Rajeev Ramchand

Rajeev Ramchand
Codirector, RAND Epstein Family Veterans Policy Research Institute; Senior Behavioral Scientist
Washington Office

Education

Ph.D. in psychiatric epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; B.A. in economics, University of Chicago

Media Resources

This researcher is available for interviews.

To arrange an interview, contact the RAND Office of Media Relations at (310) 451-6913, or email media@rand.org.

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Overview

Rajeev Ramchand (he/him) is codirector of the RAND Epstein Family Veterans Policy Research Institute and a senior behavioral scientist at RAND. He studies the prevalence, prevention, and treatment of mental health and substance use disorders in adolescents, service members and veterans, and minority populations. He has conducted research on suicide and suicide prevention including environmental scans of suicide prevention programs, epidemiologic studies on risk factors for suicide, qualitative research with suicide loss survivors, systematic reviews of the role of firearm availability, storage, and policies on suicide, and evaluations of suicide prevention programs. He has also developed freely available tools to help organizations to evaluate their own suicide prevention programs. In 2022, he was appointed by the Secretary of Defense to serve as a member of the Department of Defense Suicide Prevention and Response Independent Review Committee. He currently serves on the Executive Committee of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee. He has testified on suicide prevention before the United States Senate and House of Representatives.

In addition to his research on suicide, Ramchand studies military and veteran caregivers; the changing legal and policy environment for psychedelic substances; the impact of disasters on community health; and public health approaches to combatting violent extremism. He holds a Ph.D. in psychiatric epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a B.A. in economics from the University of Chicago.

Recent Projects

  • Fostering community resilience in U.S. Gulf States communities
  • Systematic reviews of literature on gun policy in the U.S.
  • Libraries for Health
  • Hidden Heroes 2.0: Military and Veteran Caregivers 10 Years Later
  • Individual- and Community-level Financial Distress and Suicide

Selected Publications

Ramchand R, Ayer L, Kotzias V, Engel C, Predmore Z, Ebener P, Kemp J, Karras E, Haas G, "Suicide Risk among Female Veterans in Distress: Perspectives of Responders on the Veterans Crisis Line," Women's Health Inssues, 26, 2016

Helmus, Todd C., Ryan Andrew Brown, and Rajeev Ramchand, Prevalence of Veteran Support for Extremist Groups and Extremist Beliefs: Results from a Nationally Representative Survey of the U.S. Veteran Community, RAND Corporation (RR-A1071-2-v2), 2023

Ramchand, Rajeev, Terri Tanielian, Michael P. Fisher, Christine Anne Vaughan, Thomas E. Trail, Caroline Batka, Phoenix Voorhies, Michael W. Robbins, Eric Robinson, and Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, Hidden Heroes: America's Military Caregivers, RAND Corporation (RR-499-TEDF), 2014

Ramchand R, Jaycox LH, Ebener P, Barnes-Proby D, Gilbert ML, Goutam P, "Characteristics and Proximal Outcomes of Calls Made to Suicide Crisis Hotlines in California: Variability across Centers," Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention

Ramchand R, Franklin E, Thornton E, Deland S, Rouse JC, "Opportunities to Intervene? “Warning Signs” for Suicide in the Days before Dying," Death Studies, 2017

Ramchand, Rajeev, Lisa H. Jaycox, and Patricia A. Ebener, Suicide Prevention Hotlines in California: Diversity in Services, Structure, and Organization and the Potential Challenges Ahead, RAND Corporation (RR-1497-CMHSA), 2016

Ramchand R, Acosta J, Burns R, Jaycox L, Pernin C., The War Within: Preventing Suicide in the US Military (MG-953-OSD)., RAND Corporation (MG-953), 2011

Schwartz HL, Ramchand R, Barnes-Proby D, Grant S, Jackson BA, Leuschner KJ, Matsuda M, Saunders J., The Role of Technology in Improving K-12 School Safety, RAND Corporation (RR-1488), 2016

Honors & Awards

  • Presidential Merit Award, RAND Corporation
  • Gold Merit Award, RAND Corporation
  • The Harold and Sylvia Halpert Endowment Fund, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Recent Media Appearances

Interviews: CBS Radio; Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress; Military Times; National Public Radio; Reddit; WebTalkRadio; WFAE-FM Online; When I'm 64, Stanford University Center on Longevity

Commentary

Publications