We are pleased to announce that Heather Joseph, DO, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Joseph earned her DO from Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, and she came to Pittsburgh to complete residency training in Psychiatry at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital. She next undertook a clinical fellowship in child and adolescent...

A growing body of evidence demonstrates that antidepressant placebo medications are not merely control conditions in clinical trials. Rather, the expectations and learning processes engaged with use of placebo actively shape mood outcomes through neural and molecular mechanisms. These effects recruit circuits involved in valuation, interoception, and affective regulation, and engage neurochemical pathways known to...

At the 2026 Society of Biological Psychiatry (SOBP) Annual Meeting in New York City, Pitt Psychiatry faculty and trainees gathered for a program focused on Building Better Brains: From Synapses to Cities. Department members presented and learned more about recent research, networked with friends and colleagues, and picked up a few awards! A.E. Bennett Clinical/Translational Research Award Tharick Pascoal, MD, PhD...

We are pleased to announce that Marie Anne Gebara, MD, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Gebara earned her MD from the American University of Beirut (Lebanon), then came to the United States for psychiatry residency training at Washington University in St. Louis Barnes Jewish Hospital. Upon completing her residency, she undertook a...

Congratulations to Sarah Pedersen, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Clinical and Translational Science, and Psychology), who has recently been recognized with both national and University honors. Dr. Pedersen was selected for the prestigious Research Society on Alcohol Dora Goldstein Distinguished in the Sciences Award. This award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated excellence and creativity in...

A recent UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH) symposium on mental health and student-athletes was attended by nearly 800 psychologists, coaches, athletic directors and trainers, sports nutritionists, administrators, school counselors, social workers, and teachers. Mental Health and Student-Athletes: Managing the Invisible Injury presented the latest research around the vulnerability of student-athletes to mental...

Please join us in congratulating Eric Golden, MD (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry), who has received a 2025 UPMC Award for Commitment to Excellence in Service (ACES). The prestigious award, received by less than 1% of UPMC staff annually, honors individuals who routinely go above and beyond. Dr. Golden is medical director of PsychCare+/Network Admissions, overseeing the referral of patients from network hospitals...

Three papers published in Current Psychiatry Reports and Appetite by Christine Call, PhD (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry), and colleagues in the Perinatal Health and Behaviors (PHAB) Lab, highlight advances in our understanding of eating disorders in pregnancy and the perinatal period. Dr. Call’s research aims to equitably promote health during high-risk times for problematic eating and excess weight gain...

Robert Hudak, MD (Professor of Psychiatry), is an expert on the clinical treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a chronic, debilitating, and often misunderstood psychiatric disorder that is characterized by repetitive, compulsive behaviors, as well as obsessions. Dr. Hudak is the psychiatrist at the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH) Center for Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Intensive...

Please join us in congratulating Vernon Nathaniel, MD (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry), who has received a 2025 UPMC Award for Commitment to Excellence in Service (ACES). The prestigious award, received by less than 1% of UPMC staff annually, honors individuals who routinely go above and beyond. Dr. Nathaniel is medical director of WPH’s Community Treatment Teams, which provides outreach and community-based...