We are pleased to announce that Rachel Kolko Conlon, PhD, has been promoted to Assistant Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Conlon earned a PhD in clinical psychology from Washington University in St. Louis after completing her clinical internship at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital. Upon receiving her doctorate, Dr. Conlon remained in Pittsburgh for postdoctoral...

We are delighted to report that Daniel Buysse, MD (Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry, Medicine, and Clinical and Translational Science, and UPMC Endowed Chair in Sleep Medicine), has received the Harvard Medical School Division of Sleep Medicine 2023 Annual Prize. Dr. Buysse is an internationally recognized expert in sleep medicine research. His pivotal work on sleep disorders has set national and international...

Pitt Psychiatry extends a warm welcome to two new faculty members: Bruna Bellaver, PhD (Research Assistant Professor of Psychiatry) Dr. Bellaver earned her PhD in biological sciences: biochemistry in 2020 from Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil (UFRGS). Upon completion of her doctorate, Dr. Bellaver undertook a postdoctoral fellowship at UFRGS investigating the involvement of astrocytes in...

The October 2023 Behavioral Health and Aging Conference focused on two broad themes, sleep and cognitive impairment. Invited speakers, who focused on the association between geriatric mental health and sleep, discussed the link between sleep and both emotional and cognitive health in later life, behavioral approaches to improving sleep, and the use of hypnotic medications. Speakers addressing age and cognition...

Congratulations to Eric Thut (Residency Program Coordinator), and Meghan Wander (Academic Manager), of the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH) Office of Residency Training, on their receipt of the 2023 UPMC Medical Education Outstanding Team of the Year! The award honors the hard work and dedication of a GME team that has gone above and beyond to support each other, their trainees, and their program, and was...

The year following inpatient psychiatric hospitalization—particularly the first three months following discharge—are a period of high risk for suicidal behavior among psychiatric patients. Prior history of suicidal behavior, mood, anxiety, substance use, and post-traumatic stress disorders contribute to risk for future suicidal behavior within this population. Psychosocial stressors also contribute to risk for...

We are pleased to announce that Carmen Andreescu, MD (Professor of Psychiatry), and Andrea Goldschmidt, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry), have been elected to the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) Scientific Council. The BBRF is the top non-governmental funder of mental health research grants. The Scientific Council reviews and selects the most promising research proposals with the greatest...

We are pleased to announce that Lauren Bylsma, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Assistant Professor of Psychology), has been named a Society for Psychophysiological Research (SPR) Fellow. This honor recognizes the substantial and sustained contributions that Dr. Bylsma has made to the field of psychophysiology and to the SPR. Dr. Bylsma is a highly accomplished clinical psychologist and expert in child...

Two years ago, Rachel Kolko Conlon, PhD (Research Assistant Professor of Psychiatry), and Heather Joseph, DO (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics), were looking for opportunities to merge their mutual research interests in perinatal and infant mental health. They formed the Psychiatry Maternal Perinatal Infant Research Collaborative, which brings together faculty and trainees with both research and...

We are delighted to announce that Rameshwari Tumuluru, MD, has been promoted to Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Tumuluru earned her MBBS from Gandhi Medical College in India. Following an internship at Gandhi Hospital, she came to the United States for psychiatry residency training at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia. She completed her child and...