Recent Recognitions

2020

• Congratulations to Dr. Victoria Merritt on receiving the Early Career Award from the National Academy of Neuropsychology. This award is designed for someone who is within 10 years of receiving their doctoral degree and who has made substantial early career service contributions to NAN and the field of neuropsychology in general.
• Congratulations to Monica Castillo, MD, MS, a PGY-1 Research Track Resident, for being selected as a 2020 Travel Awardee for ACNP! Dr. Castillo was selected from over 260 applicants for this prestigious award! The College has extended the travel award benefits to attend the 2021 Annual Meeting in San Juan Puerto Rico next year due to this year's meeting being virtual.
• Monica Federoff, MD, PhD, a PGY-3 Psychiatry Research Track Resident, was selected to receive the 2020 NIMH Outstanding Resident Award. This award is given each year to a select group of Psychiatry Residents with outstanding achievements in basic and clinical research. Monica will be invited to attend a "remote" NIMH conference this Fall and to present a "virtual" poster of her research. Congratulations, Monica!
• Congratulations to Dr. Amy Jak for being selected as a winner of The Society for Military Psychology, APA 2020 Distinguished Mentor Award. The award is intended to recognize exceptional efforts of individuals who invest in the development of psychologists and other professionals interested in the psychological study of the military through service, education, research, teaching and training.
• Dr. Dilip Jeste has been invited by the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) to give its annual Distinguished Lecture at the annual conference in Phoenix on December 7, 2020, on the topic of “Neuroscience of Wisdom in the Era of the New Pandemics.” We congratulate him on this prestigious invitation.
  
• Alana Iglewicz’s article on Treatment of Grief was noted as one of the top 10% downloaded papers of the year and “one of the top downloaded in recent publication history!”. Complicated grief therapy for clinicians: An evidence‐based protocol for mental health practice, It also was referenced in the hot off the press just approved APA resource docs.
• Congratulations to Mariana Cherner, she has been elected as Divisional Representative to systemwide Assembly! This is well-deserved and we know she will represent UCSD most capably.
• Congratulations to PG2 Residents Al Cesarz and Becky Sturner on the acceptance of their submission "El No Es Mi Padre": A Discussion of the Practical and Ethical Dilemmas in the Case of a Psychotic Immigrant Teen, as a Clinical Case Conference presentation at AACAP's 67th Annual Meeting.
• Dr. Morrison Steel has been recognized by third year medical students to receive the UC San Diego SOM Humanism in Medicine Resident Award in Psychiatry. With this award, he is invited to join UC San Diego School of Medicine’s Chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS) and be recognized at the Student Clinicians Ceremony.
• Congratulations, Jyoti Mishra, Steve Koh, and all involved in this innovative proposal to help develop an app to support the COVID emotional support work From Rapid Response GEM COVID-19 proposal! It’s an excellent example of the way clinical services, research, and education can come together in an integrated fashion.
• Congratulations to Laura Earp BSN, RN who won Nurse Leader of the Year in Transformational Leadership for her leadership in our transformation!
• Congratulations to Dr. Ariel J. Lang for being selected to serve as the Director of the VA Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health (CESAMH) in San Diego!
  
• Congratulations to Danica Young RN who won Nurse of the Year in Transformational Leadership for her leadership in our transformation!
• Congratulations to Bosi Chen (3rd year JDP student) for being awarded as one of Autism Science Foundation’s 2020 Predoctoral Fellowship Grant Recipients for her project titled, “Examining cortical myelination as an index of brain maturation in the first years of life in ASD”!
  
• Congratulations to Arnold Gutierrez, PhD, for being awarded the UC San Diego Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship award for the 2020-2021 academic year. The fellowship provides salary support for up to two years and enhances training by offering professional development and mentoring opportunities, and funding for research-related activities.
  
• Congratulations to Dr. John Correa for being awarded the 2020 SNRT Travel Award. This award will enable Dr. Correa to attend the 2020 Annual Meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco in New Orleans, LA.
• The UC San Diego Dissemination & Implementation Science Center (UC San Diego DISC) is a newly established center focusing on dissemination and implementation science across UC San Diego Health Sciences. Read More.

2019

• A new study, psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for patients with treatment resistant depression, is enrolling patients (age 18-55 and referred by a physician). Go to: https://clinicaltrials.ucsd.edu/trial/NCT03775200 for information about enrolling in the study.
• Congratulations to the UCSD/SDSU Joint Doctoral Program for being selected to receive a grant to Advance Diversity in Doctoral Programs from the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students Committee!
• Congratulations to Dr. Sidney Zisook and colleagues on their article, “General Predictors and Moderators of Depression Remission: A VAST-D Report” for being named one of the Top Stories of 2019 by NEJM Journal Watch Psychiatry.
• From Interim Chair Dr. Robert Anthenelli - I am saddened to inform you that JoAnn Grant, wife of Dr. Igor Grant passed away on November 21, 2019.
  Read JoAnn Grant's Obituary
• Congratulations to Dr. Maria Tiamson-Kassab for being elected President-elect of the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry.
  
• The First Annual Clinical Division Picnic for faculty and staff was held on Saturday, October 12, 2019. Read more about the picnic here.
• Congratulations to Dr. Katherine Bangen for being awarded the highly competitive Levitt Early Career Award in Neuropsychology. This award is given candidates who have received their doctoral degree within the past ten years and have made a distinguished contribution to the field in neuropsychology through research, teaching and clinical work.
  
• Congratulations to Dr. Kelsey Thomas for receiving the Chancellor’s Outstanding Postdoctoral Scholar Award.
• Congratulations to Dr. Dilip Jeste for receiving the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Postdoctoral Scholar Mentoring.
• Congratulations to Dr. Leslie Morland for being awarded the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies Distinguished Mentor Award for 2019!
  
• The Fall of 2019 issue of Triton Magazine features Dr. Jyoti Mishra and Dr. Dhakshin Ramanthan in the article, “The Physician & The Scientist”. Read the full article here.
• Congratulations to Lindsay Olson, student in the SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, on being awarded an Autism Speaks Predoctoral fellowship, “Neural correlates of socioeconomic status, language ability, and autism symptoms in early childhood.”
• Congratulations to Jiwandeep Kohli, student in the SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, on being awarded an Autism Speaks Predoctoral fellowship, “Age-related changes in myeloarchitectonics across adulthood in Autism Spectrum Disorder”.
• The Department of Psychiatry hosted a group of 10 practitioners and university faculty from Ukraine who are in training to become national trainers in addiction medicine in their country.Read More...
• Congratulations to David Moore, Ph.D., Professor for being featured as the September 2019 Department of Psychiatry Teacher Spotlight.Read More...
• Dr. Murray Stein for his invitation to serve as a section member for the Risk Identification Section on the Research Strategies Line of Effort. Their task is to "improve our ability to identify individual veterans and groups of veterans at greater risk of suicide". This section is part of a Cabinet-level Task Force to unify the various arms of the U.S. Government in strengthening Veteran suicide prevention.
• Congratulations to Dr. Carla Marienfeld for being selected to participate in U.S. Surgeon General VADM Jerome M. Adams round table discussion on maternal substance misuse. The UC San Diego Department of Psychiatry continues to play an important role in contributing to conversations and initiatives at the national level through events like these.
• Congratulations to Juan Molina, MD, and Matt Klein, MD, PhD, two rising PGY-4 Research Track Residents, who were both selected as a 2019 Travel Awardee for the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) meeting in Orlando, FL this December. Drs. Molina and Klein were selected from over 300 applicants for this prestigious award!
• Congratulations to Elizabeth Twamley, Ph.D., Professor for being featured as the June 2019 Department of Psychiatry Teacher Spotlight.Read More...
• Congratulations to Anny Reyes, a JDP student, for receiving a National Research Service Award (NRSA) F31 grant in the amount of $37,858 for her project, "Explaining cognitive heterogeneity in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE): Identifying unique imaging features, health-related risk factors and protective factors in TLE subtypes"!
• From Igor Grant, MD, Department Chair: It is with great sadness that I report the passing of Mike Bloom, our very longtime Vice Chair for Administration and Business Manager of the Department of Psychiatry. Mike passed away on Thursday, January 31, 2019 after an almost 4 year battle with cancer. The Department of Psychiatry has established the Mike Bloom Staff Excellence Award, which on an annual basis will recognize a Department of Psychiatry staff member whose exemplary performance reflects Mike’s values and contributions. Read Igor Grant's full announcement.
• With great sadness I want to share that Lew Judd, our Chair from 1977 to 2014, passed away on December 16, 2018. Read Igor Grant's full announcement.
• Congratulations to our Psychiatry Trainees, for honors awarded at the 2019 Department of Psychiatry Graduation Banquet. See the awards and their recipients here.
• San Diego County Board of Supervisors declared May 21, 2019 as "Dr. Igor Grant Day". Congratulations to Dr. Grant! Photo of Dr. Grant and Supervisor Nathan Fletcher honoring Dr. Grant during Mental Health Awareness Month.
  
• Congratulations to JDP faculty member, Dr. Marc Norman, for becoming the new Executive Director of the International Neuropsychological Society! Read the full announcement here.
  
• Dr Henry Nasrallah, Professor and Chairman, Sydney W. Souers Endowed Chair, delivers the first Henry and Amelia Nasrallah Annual Endowed Lecture in Psychiatry and Neuroscience on April 23, 2019. Read more about his visit here.
  
• Congratulations to Abigail Clark, MD, PhD, a 1st year Resident, for receiving the 2019 UCSD SOM Humanism in Medicine Resident Award in Psychiatry! This award is given to those who exemplify a compassionate, dedicated, and humanistic approach to patient care and serve as role models for others.
  
• Executive Vice Chair and Professor, Robert Anthenelli, M.D., named as Department’s Interim Chair
  Read full announcement
  
• In honor of the department’s milestone anniversary, the Grants have established the Dr. Igor and JoAnn Grant Chair in Psychiatry. Read full announcement on UCSD News
  
• Congratulations to Juan Molina, MD, a 3rd year Research Track Resident, for receiving the American Psychiatric Association / APA Foundation SAMHSA Funded Minority Fellowship for the 2019‐2020 academic year! This is a one-year resident fellowship, which grants awardees $25,000 to be used towards their proposed project and related expenses.
• Congratulations to Jared Young, PhD on receiving the 2019 SIRS Rising Star Award!
• Congratulations to Sonia Ancoli-Israel, PhD on receiving the 2019 American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s highest honor - the William C. Dement Academic Achievement Award for exceptional initiative and progress in the areas of sleep education and academic research!
• Current students and alumni from the SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program (JDP) in Clinical Psychology attended a JDP Alumni Networking Event at the annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society. See the photos here.
• Congratulations to Samantha Friend, MD, PhD, a 4th year Research Resident, and Juan Molina, MD, a 3rd year Research Resident, for receiving the 2019 American Psychiatric Association Research Colloquium Travel Award! This award provides travel funds, guidance, mentorship, and encouragement to young investigators in the early phases of their training.
• Congratulations to Alexandra (Allie) Clark (UCSD/SDSU Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology student working with Dr. Lisa Delano-Wood) on being selected to participate in the 2019 Career Development Institute for Psychiatry (CDI)!
• Congratulations to recent recipients of UC's Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program grant awards: Robert Anthenelli, MD and Sandra Sanchez-Roige, PhD, PhD!
• Thank you to Psychiatry Department faculty (from left to right) David Welsh MD,PhD, Dhakshin Ramanathan MD,PhD, and Murray Stein MD,MPH who presented their research at the recent VA San Diego Psychiatry Retreat.

2018

• We are saddened to inform you of the passing of our colleague and friend, Alvaro Camacho, MD, from suicide in Imperial County. Our thoughts and sympathies are with his family, friends, patients and the entire psychiatric community. Read full announcement.
• Congratulations to Eric Granholm, PhD and the MHTech group on receiving a Center Launch Seed Funds grant from the UCSD Office of Research Affairs! Read about the group here.
• Congratulations to Lisa Eyler, Ph.D. on being selected for a UCSD 2018 Inclusive Excellence Award!
• Congratulations to Greg Light, Ph.D. and his team on being listed among Brain and Behavior Research Foundation's "Greatest Research Achievement of 2018" for their improvements working with schizophrenia patients using a computerized cognitive training method called TCT! See article here.
• With great sadness I want to share that Lew Judd, our Chair from 1977 to 2014, passed away on December 16, 2018. We will celebrate his incredible contributions, not just to our Department, School, and University, but the field of Mental Health internationally in the new year. In lieu of flowers the family suggests contributions to one of the following: The Department of Psychiatry Lewis L. Judd Recognition Fund or the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Here are links to the NAMI national office and the NAMI San Diego chapter. Please join me in wishing our sincere condolences to Professor Patricia Judd and family.
  Link to New York Times obituary. Read Igor Grant's full announcement.
  
• Congratulations to Dr. Kara Bagot and the ABCD study on their feature with Anderson Cooper of CBS's 60 Minutes. ABCD researchers, Drs. Kara Bagot and Joanna Jacobus, seek to identify overlaps in neural activation among adolescents with problematic social media use, and those with Cannabis Use Disorders via fMRI cue reactivity tasks. Read the story here.
• Congratulations to Maddi Werhane on receiving the SDSU Inamori Fellowship! Maddi is a 4th year student in the SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program mentored by Dr. Lisa Delano-Wood.
• Congratulations to Ellen Lee, MD, a T32 Geriatric Research Fellow, for receiving the 2018 Chancellor's Postdoctoral Scholar Award! This award recognizes postdoctoral scholars who exemplify UC San Diego's research mission -- to strive for and advance the frontiers of research, provide leadership and mentorship to the next generation, and participate in their professional development through service, training and scholarship.
• Congratulations to Stephanie Wells, a Joint Doctoral Program student, for receiving the 2018 Outstanding Student Achievement Award from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS)! This award is designed to recognize a graduate student member of ISTSS who has made a significant contribution to the field of traumatic stress through research, clinical activity or advocacy.
• Congratulations to Ellen Lee, MD on being chosen to receive the 2019 American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry's Member-in-Training Research Award!
• Congratulations to Psychiatry faculty: Jessica Bomyea, PhD, Yuliana Gallegos-Rodriguez, PhD, and Tamara Maginot, PhD who were selected to participate in the UC San Diego Hispanic Center of Excellence (HCOE) Faculty Scholars Program!
• We are saddened to inform you of the passing of our colleague and friend, Alvaro Camacho, MD, in Imperial County.Read More...


• Dr. Igor Grant gives his “State of the Department” address at the Psychiatry General Faculty meeting on Tuesday, September 11, 2018.
  Watch his full presentation...


• Congrats to Samantha Friend, MD, PhD, a 4th year Research Track Resident, for being selected as a 2018-19 NNCI Scholar!
• Congratulations to Psychiatry Department students and faculty who received Research and Early Career Awards from the American Psychological Association's Division 40 - Society for Clinical Neuropsychology!Read More...


• Congratulations to the VASDHS/UCSD Interprofessional Fellowship Program in Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Oriented Services, under the leadership of Dr. Dimitri Perivoliotis, for receiving the American Psychological Association Division 18 President's Excellence in Training Award!
• Congratulations to Juan Molina, MD, a PGY-III Research Resident, for receiving the NIH LRP Award for his research study, "Identification of Neurophysiologic Biomarkers of Treatment Response to Targeted Cognitive Therapy in Schizophrenia"!
• Congratulations to Kelsey Thomas, PhD, a Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Fellow, for being awarded a 3 year, $175,000 fellowship from the San Diego/Imperial Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association!
• Judy E. Davidson, DNP, RN, FCCM, FAAN, a nurse scientist at UC San Diego Health, is quoted in an article, "Nurse Suicide is Real. Don't Ignore It." Click here for the article.
• Congratulations to Michael Langley-DeGroot, a third year Psychiatry Resident, for receiving the 2018 AAP Resident Psychiatric Educator Award!
• Congratulations to Matthew Klein, MD, PhD, a Research Track Resident, for receiving the 2018 NIMH Outstanding Resident Award AND the 2018 APA Research Colloquium Travel Award!
• Congratulations to Psychiatry faculty honored at the Endowed Chair Investiture Celebration on May 21, 2018.Read More...


• Congratulations to the Spot Awardees of the Department of Psychiatry Clinical Services’ Division!
  Read More...


• Congratulations to Joanna Jacobus, PhD on receiving a High Impact Research Project Award from the UC Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program! This project will study the effects of simultaneous cannabis and tobacco use on white matter integrity, white/gray matter cerebral blood flow, and cognition in adolescents ages 14-21.
• Congratulations to Betty Shih, PhD on receiving a 2018 Faculty Mentor Program Outstanding Mentor Award!
• Congratulations to Lisa Delano-Wood, PhD on being appointed to the Board of Directors of the San Diego/Imperial Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association! Dr. Delano Wood will be the Chairperson of the Medical Community Relationships Committee and will work directly with the Chapter’s Programs Team to increase outreach to physicians and other allied health professionals.
• Congratulations to Robert Heaton, PhD on receiving a UCSD Integrity Award! The awards honor UCSD’s commitment to uphold the six pillars of integrity—responsibility, honesty, fairness, respect, trustworthiness and courage. Click here to read more about the award and ceremony.
• On April 24 2018 Chair Igor Grant (on L) welcomed NIMH Director Joshua Gordon to the UCSD Department of Psychiatry. Joining him (from R) are Professors Neal Swerdlow Vice Chair for Education, and Stephanie Dulawa. Dr. Gordon’s Grand Rounds was on topic of "Challenges and Opportunities in Mental Health Research".
• Congratulations to Alexandra Sietsma, MSN, PMHNP-BC on receiving the Nurse of the Year award from UCSD!
• Congratulations to Fiza Singh, MD on being featured in an article by the NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) on the topic of her NIMH R61 award entitled “Enhancing Gamma Band Response in Schizophrenia to Improve Working Memory”!
• Congratulations to Raeanne Moore, PhD on receiving a R21 grant titled: “Real-Time Mobile Cognitive Tests for Bipolar Disorder Research”!
• Congratulations to Robert Heaton, PhD on receiving a UCSD Integrity Award!
• Congratulations to Matthew Panizzon, PhD and Richard Hauger, MD on receiving a new grant from the Million Veteran’s Program titled, “Clinical Manipulation of Testosterone and its Impact on Dementia and Health"!
• Congratulations to Neal Swerdlow, MD, PhD on receiving the American College of Psychiatrist’s 2019 Stanley Dean Award!
• Congratulations to Davide Dulcis, PhD and his collaborators Alessandra Porcu, PhD and David Welsh, MD, PhD on receiving a Chancellor’s Research Excellence Scholarships (CRES) award.
• Congratulations to Eric Granholm, PhD and the MHTech group on receiving a Center Launch Seed Funds grant from the UCSD Office of Research Affairs! This award will accelerate collaborations and progress toward developing a center that truly will enhance the lives of people with mental health problems through the application of technology and data analytic solutions.
• Congratulations to Jonathan Sebat, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry, on receiving the Society for Biological Psychiatry's A.E. Bennett Award. The award will be presented at their annual meeting in New York in May.
• Congratulations to Psychiatry Department faculty Greg Aarons, PhD, Danielle Fettes, PhD, and Amy Green, PhD on receiving a William T. Grant Foundation Research Award!
• Congratulations to Maddi Werhane on receiving the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology's Dissertation Award!
• Congratulations to Natassia Gaznick, MD, PhD, a Research Track Resident, for being selected to be a part of the 2018 class of Ruth Fox Scholars to attend the 49th American Society of Addiction Medicine Annual Conference!
• Congratulations to Samantha Friend, MD, PhD, a Research Track Resident, for being elected to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) 2018 Alies Muskin Career Development Leadership Program!
• Congratulations to Kara Bagot, MD and Maria Marquine, PhD on being selected for the UCSD Hispanic Center Of Excellence Faculty Scholars Program!

2017

• Welcome to Jeff Anderman, MBA, new UCSD Psychiatry Department Administrative Vice Chair. Read full announcement
• Congratulations to Eric Granholm, PhD on receiving the Trailblazer Award from the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies’s “Schizophrenia and Other Serious Mental Disorders Special Interest Group”! The award is given to a mental health scientist practitioner who has made a pioneering impact on the knowledge and treatment of serious mental illness.
• Congratulations to Dan Sewell, MD on receiving the inaugural “Medal of Excellence” from the Glenner Alzheimer’s Family Centers!
• Congratulations to Maddi Werhane on receiving a National Research Service Award (NRSA) F31 grant entitled, "Characterizing the effects of vascular and genetic risk on brainstem white matter tract microstructure in older adults with mild cognitive impairment"!
• Congratulations to Alexandra (Allie) Clark on being selected as a recipient of a 2017 American Psychological Association Dissertation Research Award!
• Congrats to Yash Joshi, M.D., Ph.D., a third year Research Track Resident, for being chosen by The American College of Psychiatrists for a Laughlin Fellowship! The Laughlin Fellows are chosen from an elite pool of applicants deemed likely to make a significant contribution to the field of psychiatry.

• Dr. Benjamin Maxwell was featured in a news story announcing Rady Children's Hospital plan to build the region's first pediatric psychiatric emergency department. Click here to view the news story.

• Congratulations to Davide Dulcis, PhD and his colleagues on the publication of their paper entitled, "Neurotransmitter Switching Regulated by miRNAs Controls Changes in Social Preference" in the journal Neuron! Further information about the article can be found in the following links in a video abstract and in a Press Release.

• Congratulations to the Spot Awardees of the Department of Psychiatry Clinical Services’ Division! Read More...
• Congratulations to John Kelsoe, M.D. on receiving the 2017 David Mrazek Award for Psychiatric Pharmacogenetics!
• Congratulations to Emily Edmonds, Ph.D. for receiving the 2017 Early Career Award from the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology!
• Congratulations to Alison Trexler, MD, Attending Psychiatrist being featured as the August 2017 Department of Psychiatry Teacher Spotlight.Read More...
• Congratulations to Mike Bloom on his retirement after 36 years of service to UCSD and the Department of Psychiatry!Read More...
• Congratulations to Vanessa Lauzon, M.D. for receiving the UCSD 2017 Whitehill Prize for Excellence in Clinical Education!
• Congratulations to Brent Mausbach, PhD on receiving a UC Intercampus Consortium Seed Grant Proposal. Dr. Mausbach's award will be used to conduct a small pilot of leisure activities and blood pressure.
• Sidney Zisook, M.D. Congratulations to Sidney Zisook, M.D. on being featured as the June 2017 Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight.Read More...
• Congratulations to Dr. Emily Edmonds on receiving a grant from the Alzheimer’s Association entitled “Longitudinal Cognitive and Biomarker Trajectories of MCI Subtypes.”
• MD Congratulations to Yash Joshi, MD on receiving the American Society of Clinical Pharmacology's Early Career Research Award!
• Congratulations to Vanessa L. Lauzon, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor on being voted President-Elect of the San Diego Psychiatric Society! Dr. Lauzon is also featured as the May 2017 Department of Psychiatry Teacher's Spotlight. Read More...
• The annual National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Walk/Run took place on April 29, 2017. Read More...
• Congratulations to Alejandro Meruelo, M.D., Ph.D., a third-year Research Track Resident, for receiving a Diversity Supplement award to an R01 (PI: Dr. Susan Tapert) sponsored by the National Institutes of Health!
• Congratulations to Kathleen Kim, MD on being selected as the next Chief of Staff at the VA San Diego Healthcare System!
• Congratulations to Savita Bhakta, MD who was recently selected as the Clinical Foundations Co-director at the UCSD SOM!
• Congratulations to Lauren Brookman-Frazee, PhD on receiving the UCSD Faculty Integrity Award! This award recognizes outstanding contributions in support of UC San Diego's commitment to integrity.
• Congratulations to Niloo Afari, PhD on her selection as the Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health at VA San Diego Healthcare System and Vice Chair of Veterans Affairs at the Department of Psychiatry, UCSD School of Medicine.
• Congratulations to Raeanne Moore, PhD on receiving a Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program award entitled, "Remote Sensing Technology to Improve Community-Based Fall Risk Assessment and Prevention Among Older Adults Living with HIV"!
• Murray B. Stein MD, MPH, Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Family Medicine and Public Health, has been chosen as the new Editor-in-Chief of the journal Depression and Anxiety.
• Congratulations to UCSD Psychiatry faculty! Read More...
• Congrats to Sarah Jurick, a JDP student, for receiving the APA Division 40 Society for Clinical Neuropsychology Dissertation Award, which provides $1000 to help offset the direct costs of research and a $1000 travel supplement!
• Congrats to two of our JDP students, Madeline “Maddi” Werhane and Anny Reyes, for receiving Student Research Awards at the 45th Annual Meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society in New Orleans!

2016

• Congratulations to Mike Bloom on his retirement after 36 years of service to UCSD and the Department of Psychiatry! Read More...
• Congratulations to Mounir Soliman, MD, MBA (Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) -- Recipient of a 2016 UCSD Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action & Diversity Award!
• Congratulations to the Spot Awardees of the Department of Psychiatry Clinical Services’ Division! Read More...
• Congratulations to Autumn Backhaus -- Recipient of a 2016 UCSD Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action & Diversity Award!
• Congratulations to Rachel Robitz, MD, a Combined Family Medicine & Psychiatry Resident for receiving the Trailblazer Award.
• Congratulations to David Feifel, MD, PhD, on receiving his 10-year re-certification in “Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry” from the United Council of Neurological Subspecialties!
• Congratulations to Suzi Hong, Ph.D. on being elected to the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research! Read More...
• Congratulations to Maryam Soltani, a PGY3 Resident in the Combined Psychiatry / Family Medicine Residency for having her artwork published on the cover of the January, 2017 issue of Academic Medicine. For more information on the process of Dr. Soltani's piece see the following link: here...
• Congratulations to Carla Marienfeld, MD on the publication of the book she co-edited titled, “Motivational Interviewing for Clinical Practice”!
• Abraham Palmer of the University of California, San Diego, asks if a tendency for loneliness can be found in your genes. Palmer is a professor of psychiatry at UCSD. A transcript of this podcast can be found here...
• Congratulations to Luz Garcini, Ph.D., a recent graduate of the JDP, on the APA/APAGS Award for Distinguished Graduate Student in Professional Psychology. Dr. Garcini has been recognized for her research on recently immigrated populations.
• Congrats to Laura Berner, PhD for receiving a 2016 Travel Award from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. Read More...
• Congrats to Laura Sittig, PhD for receiving a 2016 Travel Award from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) for being a distinguished young scientists in the field!
• Congrats to Yash Joshi, MD, PhD, a Research Track Resident, for winning the International Congress on Schizophrenia Research Young Investigator Award!
• Congratulations to Ling Zentner on 25 years of service at UCSD!
• Congratulations to Neal Swerdlow, MD, PhD on receiving a NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Award! Read More...
• Congratulations to Eric Rafla-Yuan, MD, a first year resident, for being selected the winner of the Best Trainee Poster Award. Read More...
• Congrats to Stephanie Wells, a fourth year JDP student, on being one of two 2016 recipients of the Frank W. Putnam Trauma Research Scholars Award. Read More...
• Congrats to Natassia Gaznick, MD, on being awarded the prestigious 2016 American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP) Travel Award. Read More...
• Congratulations to Igor Grant, MD on receiving a 2016 HIV Community Service Award from the San Diego LGBT Community Center! Read More...
• Congratulations to Priti Ojha, MD for being chosen by The American College of Psychiatrists for a Laughlin Fellowship! Read More...
• Congratulations to Michael Langley-DeGroot, MD on being one of two residents across the country chosen to receive a PRITE Fellowship for 2016/2017! Read More...
• Congratulations to Robert Heaton, PhD on receiving the Paul-Satz International Neuropsychological Society (INS) Career Mentoring Award!
• Congratulations to Laura Berner, PhD on receiving the UCSD Chancellor's Award for Outstanding Postdoctoral Scholar! Read More...
• Congratulations to Larry Squire, PhD on being awarded continued support for his NIMH grant, Memory Systems of the Brain. Read More...
• Congratulations to David Feifel, MD on being featured in UC San Diego Health Sciences Discoveries Magazine. The article "Reframe of Mind" focuses on Dr. Feifel's work with advanced treatments for depression. Click Here to read the article.
• Congratulations to Christine Smith, PhD on receiving a VA Merit Award.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Dan Sewell, M.D. on being featured in the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for July.
  Read More...


• Congratulations to Mark W. Bondi, PhD, who is the 2016 recipient of the Alzheimer Award from the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Jose “Joey” Mendez and Jennifer Hickey-Hinojosa for their nominations for the 31st instance of UC San Diego’s annual Exemplary Employee of the Year award. Thank you for your service to our department!
• Congratulations to Alana Iglewicz, M.D. on being selected to receive the 2016 Whitehill Prize from the UC San Diego Academy of Clinician Scholars!.
  Read More...
• Click Here... to view the talk on wisdom and aging given in November 2015 at the TEDMED conference, by Dilip Jeste, MD, Director of the Center for Healthy Aging and the Stein Institute for Research on Aging at UC San Diego.
• Congratulations to Emily Judd for receiving the Cher Conner Scholarship from the Doris A. Howell Foundation for Women's Health Research.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Alana Iglewicz, M.D. on being featured in the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for June.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Alejandro Meruelo, M.D., Ph.D. on being selected to receive the 2016 NIMH Outstanding Resident Award.
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• Congratulations to Dan Sewell, MD on being selected by the MSIII class for the Kaiser “Excellence in Teaching” Award!
• Congratulations to Davide Dulcis, Ph.D., on receiving an award from the Kavli Institute for Brain and Mind! This is a project on the structural neuroplasticity of identified microcircuits using novel EM probe technology in collaboration with Daniela Boassa at the UCSD National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR).
• Congratulations to Terry Schwartz, M.D. on being featured in the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for May.
  Read More...
• UC San Diego Health hosts special ceremony to inaugerate Mental Health Awareness Month.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Dr. Michael Langley-DeGroot on being recognized by third year medical students to receive the Arnold P. Gold Foundation’s Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Resident Award in Psychiatry.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Matthew J. Worley, Ph.D., M.P.H. on receiving a NIDA K23 titled, “Behavioral economic mechanisms of prescription opioid addiction in chronic pain”
• Congratulations to Larry Malak, M.D. on being featured in the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for April.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to Dr. Laura Berner, on receiving a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award for Postdoctoral Fellows from the National Institute of Mental Health.
  Read More...
• Congratulations to The SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology which was recognized as an Outstanding Graduate Program. The award is based on the Graduate and Professional Student and Experience Satisfaction (GPSES) survey conducted by the UCSD Graduate Student Association.
• Congratulations to Sanjai Rao, M.D. on being featured in the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for March.
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• Congratulations to Jeremy Elman, Ph.D., on being selected to receive a Pilot Grant Award from the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.
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• Congratulations to Emily Edmonds, PhD who is the postdoctoral recipient of the UC San Diego Frontiers of Innovation Scholars Program award.
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• Congratulations to Melissa Tarasenko, PhD, third year fellow in the VA San Diego/UCSD Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) Postdoctoral Fellowship, was selected to receive the Jared Purton Schizophrenia Research Pilot Grant Award.
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• Congratulations to Alejandro Meruelo, M.D., Ph.D., second year Resident in the UCSD R25 Psychiatry Research Residency Track, was selected to receive the NIDA - American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Resident Training Award in Substance Abuse and Addiction.
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• Congratulations to Igor Grant, MD, on receiving the 2016 Paul Satz–International Neuropsychological Society Career Mentoring Award. Pictured from left to right: Drs Sean Rourke, Igor Grant, Jennifer Manly, and Robert Heaton.
• Congratulations to Jamie Joseph, Ph.D. who is the postdoctoral trainee recipient of the UC San Diego Frontiers Innovation Scholars Program award. This award is a multidisciplinary research effort to determine whether pancreatic enzyme activity and levels are associated with increased incidence of a leaky gut and trigger altered immune and metabolic profiles in schizophrenia. The study will be conducted with co-mentors Colin Depp, PhD, Geert Schmid-Schönbein, PhD (Bioengineering), and Dilip Jeste, MD.

2015

• David Grelotti, MD to head Neuropsychiatric and Behavioral Services Hillcrest. Read full announcement from our Chair.
• William Perry, PhD, named Vice Chair for Program Development and Operations. Read full announcement from our Chair.
• David Folsom MD, MPH, has accepted the position of Director, Division of Clinical Psychiatry. Read full announcement from our Chair.
• Congratulations to both Kristin Cadenhead, M.D. and Murray Stein, M.D. for being among Thomson Reuters’ 2015 Highly Cited Researchers, ranking among the top 1% most cited for their subject field and year of publication.
• Congratulations to Chaitanya Pabbati, MD on receiving the AADPRT Ginsberg Award! The AADPRT/George Ginsberg Fellowship, funded by AADPRT, acknowledges the excellence and accomplishments of outstanding residents interested in education and teaching who are pursuing careers as clinician-educators and/or academic administrators. Fellowships are awarded to five outstanding applicants each year.
• Congratulations to David Lehman, M.D., H.S. on being featured in the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for January.
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• Congratulations to Allison Hadley, MD on being awarded the Department of Psychiatry's Teacher Spotlight for November.
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• Congratulations to Dilip Jeste, M.D. on being awarded Honorary Fellowship (the highest honor which the College can bestow) from The Royal College of Psychiatrists in London.
• Congratulations to Cinnamon Bloss, PhD who received a $2M NIH R01 grant award for research into privacy and personal health information.
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• Congratulations to Rachel Robitz, a senior resident in our Combined Family Medicine / Psychiatry Residency Training Program, for being selected as a Laughlin Fellow.
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• Congratulations to Maryam Soltani, a PGY-II Resident in the Combined Psychiatry / Family Medicine Residency and a remarkable artist and scientist, for having her artwork published on the cover of the October, 2015 issue of "Academic Medicine.
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• Congratulations to Desiree Shapiro for being selected as both a Laughlin Fellow and a PRITE Fellow as well as being the recipient of the John E. Schowalter, MD Award.
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• Congratulations to the Department of Psychiatry 2015 San Diego Magazine's “Physicians of Exceptional Excellence”, Top Doctor Awardees. 
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• Congratulations to David Folsom, MD, PhD, on being selected as the recipient of the 2015 Robert D. Sparks, MD Leadership Achievement Award from the California Medical Association Foundation.
• Congratulations to Dr. Robert Heaton and Dr. Scott Letendre on the funding of their grant, "Age related determinants of HAND: A 12 year follow-up of CHARTER participants"!
• Congratulations to David Feifel, MD, PhD, on being elected to the Board of the Clinical Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) Society and appointed as co-chair of the society’s Standards committee and editor of its newsletter, “The Magnet”.
• Congratulations to Jessica McCurley, the recipient of The Trainee Champion of Diversity Award for 2015.
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• Congratulations to Arpi Minassian PhD, the recipient of The Champion of Diversity Award for 2015.
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• Congratulations to Jared Young, Ph.D. on his being invited to serve on the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Council!
• Dilip V. Jeste, MD, Senior Associate Dean for Healthy Aging and Senior Care, Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, and Director of the UC San Diego Center for Healthy Aging and Stein Institute for Research on Aging will give a talk at TEDMED 2015 taking place in Palm Springs, California on November 18-20, 2015.
• Congratulations to Dr. Mark Bondi for being elected President-Elect and Dr. Amy Jak for being elected Secretary of the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology.
• A research study led by Lisa T. Eyler, PhD and including several Psychiatry Department faculty collaborators was highlighted in the latest National Institute of Mental Health newsletter, Inside NIMH. The study, which focuses on understanding the role of inflammation and mood in predicting cognitive declines with aging in bipolar disorder, was featured in the "Director's Highlights" section as a Notable NIMH Grant.
• Congratulations to Lisa Ross, BSN, RN-BC for being chosen as the San Diego County Psychiatric Nurse of the Year for direct care! Lisa works on the Psychiatry Department’s Senior Behavioral Health Unit as a charge nurse.
• Congratulations to Dr. Dan Sewell for being elected as a member of the UCSD School of Medicine Academy of Clinician Scholars.
• Congratulations to Professor Tamara Wall on her appointment as Associate Vice Chancellor - Academic Personnel
• Congratulations to the UCSD Psychiatry Residency program for being rated #3 in the west and #1 of all UCSD Training programs by Doximity, which assists in helping medical students and physicians make informed decisions in the residency process. The exceptional ratings by former residents as well as the outstanding scholarly statistics upholds the program's commitment to providing the highest standard of living and education.
• Congratulations to Dr. Savita Bhakta for receiving the 2015 ASCP New Investigator Award for conducting translational studies of pro-cognitive interventions and investigating the neural basis of tolcapone, a potential pro-cognitive drug, in genotyped healthy adults. She will have an opportunity to present preliminary findings from her ongoing study at the 55th Annual ASCP meeting, and attend a full-day closed clinical trials workshop, led by experts from NIH, FDA, and industry.
• Congratulations to Raeanne Moore, PhD, one of the recipients of the 6th Annual Beck Institute Student Scholarship. The Beck Institute awards 10 full tuition scholarships to the Beck Institute Student Workshop: CBT for Depression and Suicidality. Each year the Beck Institute offers a summer workshop covering the fundamentals of cognitive behavior therapy, specifically designed to meet the needs of developing professionals.
• Congratulations to Dr. Savita Bhakta and Dr. Neal Swerdlow for being recognized with the APF/Kemp Fund Award for Research Development in Psychobiological Psychiatry.
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• Congratulations to Dr. Gregory Aarons, who was appointed to the American Psychological Association Advisory Steering Committee for Development of Clinical Practice Guidelines. This committee plays a central role in ensuring that APA guidelines will be scientifically rigorous and will help advance effective healthcare for a diverse population.                                                                                                        
• Congratulations to Dr. Murray Stein, the recipient of the American Psychosomatic Society's Donald Oken Fellowship for 2015.
• Congratulations to Dr. Nancy Downs, who was selected by her UC Student Health and Counseling psychiatry peers to Chair the UC Lead Psychiatrists. This group works to improve timely access to quality mental health care for UC students on all ten campuses.

2014

• Congratulations to Dr. Mark Geyer, the 2014 recipient of the ACNP Julius Axelrod Mentorship Award
• Dr. Igor Grant participates in PBS "Second Opinion" series on the topic of medical marijuana.
  Watch the video here.
• Congratulations to Dr. Dilip V. Jeste, Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Neurosciences, on being elevated to senior associate dean for Healthy Aging and Senior Care.
• Congratulations to Gregory Light PhD, co-recipient of the 2014 Sidney R. Baer, Jr. Prize for Innovative and Promising Schizophrenia Research.
• Dr. Dilip Jeste talks with the Wall Street Journal about pessimism as an anxiety coping mechanism.
  Watch the video here.
• Congratulations to the Department of Psychiatry 2014 San Diego Magazine's “Physicians of Exceptional Excellence”, Top Doctor Awardees:
  

  Allison R. Hadley, MD	Jeremy M. Hirst, MD
  Alana Iglewicz, MD	Scott A. Irwin, MD
  Dilip V. Jeste, MD	Jeffrey Rowe, MD
  Daniel D. Sewell, MD	Sidney Zisook, MD

• Congratulations to Scott Irwin MD, recipient of the 2014 Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine Fellowship
• Trainee Luz Garcini, has been presented with The Champion of Diversity Award by the UCSD Department of Psychiatry
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• Monica Ulibarri PhD, has been presented with The Champion of Diversity Award by the UCSD Department of Psychiatry
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• David Braff MD, Distinguished Professor at UCSD's Department of Psychiatry has been named this year's Lieber Prize winner
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