Enzo G. Plaitano, BA, NRP
PhD Candidate, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice; Predoctoral Fellow, Center for Technology and Behavioral Health
Enzo is a 4th year PhD Candidate and Predoctoral Fellow at the Dartmouth Center for Technology and Behavioral Health (CTBH). Formerly, he was a Predoctoral Trainee in the NIH-NIDA T32 Science of Co-occurring Disorders Training Program within CTBH before transitioning to his own award. Enzo’s NIH-NIDA Individual Predoctoral Fellowship Grant (1F31DA062393) and CTBH P30 Pilot Grant (P30DA029926) focus on identifying modifiable momentary predictors of substance use in high-risk emergency medical services clinicians. This work is informed by his lived experience as a licensed paramedic. Enzo understands the toll of this tough profession on his own mental health and sees the stress of this job contribute to mental health and substance use problems in his coworkers, impacting their lives, families, and healthcare careers. Therefore, his research methods leverage ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) and intensive longitudinal analysis to assess risk factors for substance use and mental health symptoms in real life environments. He plans to use these findings to develop and test robust digital health interventions to support this high-risk population. Enzo’s mentors include Drs. Catherine Stanger, Lisa Marsch, Nicholas Jacobson, and Madelyn Frumkin at CTBH. Enzo also collaborates with experts at the National Registry of EMTs, National Association of EMTs, and the National Center for PTSD, receiving wide-spread, national media attention for this novel, pioneering research. His free time is often spent traveling to new destinations or outside skiing, hiking, and biking around New England. Enzo also continues to work clinically as a licensed paramedic and ski patroller in a nearby town.
Selected Publications
- Plaitano EG, Zeng S, Emrich M, Patton EE, Webb EK, Pacella-LaBarbara ML, Barduhn MS, Hruska B. Examining the between- and within-person associations among perceived sleep quality and mental health symptoms in emergency medical service clinicians. J Trauma Stress. 2025 Jun 11. doi: 10.1002/jts.23180. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40501003.
- Plaitano EG, McNeish D, Bartels SM, Bell K, Dallery J, Grabinski M, Kiernan M, Lavoie HA, Lemley SM, Lowe MR, MacKinnon DP, Metcalf SA, Onken L, Prochaska JJ, Sand CL, Scherer EA, Stoeckel LE, Xie H, Marsch LA. Adherence to a digital therapeutic mediates the relationship between momentary self-regulation and health risk behaviors. Front Digit Health. 2025 Feb 4;7:1467772. doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1467772. PMID: 39981105; PMCID: PMC11841403.
- Pacella-LaBarbara ML, Plaitano EG, Suffoletto BP, Kuhn E, Germain A, Jaramillo S, Repine M, Callaway CW. A longitudinal assessment of posttraumatic stress symptoms and pain catastrophizing after injury. Rehabil Psychol. 2023 Feb;68(1):32-42. doi: 10.1037/rep0000481. PMID: 36821344.
- Pacella-LaBarbara ML, Plaitano EG, Chang BP. An evidence-based approach to emergency department patients at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Emerg Med Pract. 2023 Jan 1;25(1):1-28. PMID: 36592367.