The Department of Psychiatry extends a warm welcome to the physicians below, who join our clinician-educator faculty at the rank of assistant professor. Alex Israel, MD Dr. Israel received his MD from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and following a residency in general psychiatry at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH) in the Academic-Administrator, Clinician-Educator Track, he...

The Pitt School of Medicine has recognized Jose Mantilla Rivas, MD (PGY4 Child & Adolescent Fellow), for outstanding dedication to medical education by posting praise from a Pitt Med student on the Office of Medical Education website. "During my psychiatry rotation, Dr. Jose Mantilla Rivas created a positive environment that valued team-work and transparency. Without knowing him at all and having just met, he...

We are thrilled to announce that Vanessa Brown, PhD, has joined the faculty as Assistant Professor of Psychiatry. Dr. Brown earned her PhD in clinical psychology from Virginia Tech and completed her psychology internship at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital, followed by the Department of Psychiatry’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded Clinical and Translational Research Training in Geriatric...

Please join us in welcoming Yao Wang, PhD, to the Pitt Psychiatry faculty. Dr. Wang received his PhD in molecular biology from the University of Science in Technology of China. He then joined the University of Pittsburgh as a postdoctoral associate under the mentorship of Yanhua Huang, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry) and Yan Dong, PhD (Professor of Neuroscience). His research with Dr. Huang focuses on the...

We are delighted to announce that César Escobar-Viera, MD, PhD, MPH, has joined the faculty as Assistant Professor of Psychiatry. Dr. Escobar-Viera received his MD from the Universidad Nacional de Asunción School of Medical Sciences in Paraguay. He completed his residency training in psychiatry at the Universidad Nacional de Asunción, and held academic appointments at the Universidad del Pacífico and the...

In August 2020, 74 scientists from five continents joined the Department of Psychiatry’s virtual Summer SWIM (Sleep and Circadian Workshop on Indispensable Methods), led by Martica Hall, PhD (Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology and Clinical and Translational Science), and Daniel Buysse, MD (UPMC Professor of Sleep Medicine (Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science), of the University of...

We are proud to announce that Jason Rosenstock, MD (Professor of Psychiatry), has been appointed Associate Dean for Medical Education at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Since 2005, Dr. Rosenstock has served as Director, Medical Student Education in the Department of Psychiatry. An outstanding educator in the Department, Dr. Rosenstock has won multiple teaching excellence awards including the...

Sheena Kelemen, Donna Pandullo, Courtney Johnson and Sabrina George are well-known for skillfully helping to organize and manage the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH) Office of Clinical Affairs (OCA) with efficiency and good spirit. The apparent omniscience and omnipotence of this team allows Department of Psychiatry clinical faculty and WPH physicians to provide the highest quality care to patients in WPH...

We are pleased to announce that Colleen McClung, PhD, and Carla Mazefsky, PhD, 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 potential to lead to breakthroughs in mental health research. Dr. McClung...

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is characterized by impairing cognitive and behavioral symptoms including inattention, hyperactivity or restlessness, and impulsivity, which interfere with important activities of daily functioning for children and adults. While ADHD is most common in young people, the disorder can continue beyond childhood in 15–35% of those affected. Moreover, many individuals with...