Heather Joseph, DO, received the Junior Investigator Award from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). The award is given to one child and adolescent psychiatry junior faculty (assistant professor level or equivalent) and is intended to facilitate innovative basic or clinical research relevant to the understanding, treatment, and prevention of child and adolescent mental health disorders...

The Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA) has named Brooke Molina, PhD as its 2018 Marlatt Mentorship Award recipient. This award is given to an individual(s) who demonstrates exceptional mentoring of young researchers in the alcohol research field. Dr. Molina, Professor of Psychiatry, is devoted to mentoring the next generation of mental health scientists, reflected in her training roles as Co-Director of the...

Nearly half of U.S. high school students report being sexually active, and youth with psychiatric disorders engage in risky sexual behaviors at increased rates. Although studies have implicated mood, anxiety, disruptive, personality, and substance use disorders specifically in sexual risk behaviors, little is known about the temporal association between specific psychiatric disorders in youth and sexual risk...

The Department of Psychiatry welcomed more than 450 attendees to the 18th Annual Department of Psychiatry Research Day at the University Club on the University of Pittsburgh Oakland campus. The event celebrates the many and diverse research activities of our faculty, trainees, students, and staff. The morning session featured 146 poster presentations representing a wide range of research interests. Faculty experts...

Please join us in congratulating the 2018 graduates of Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic Residency and Clinical Fellowship programs. Residents, fellows, and their families and friends celebrated at the graduation ceremony held at the University Club on June 2. The event recognized the completion of an important component of the residents’ medical training and the outstanding contributions of Department...

Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic (WPIC) resident housestaff held their annual Kickball Classic fundraiser on May 19 at Sheraden Park. This year’s theme was “Don’t Stop Ball-ieving,” and the residents raised more than $1,000 to benefit Peoples Oakland, a recovery and wellness center for people living with serious mental illness and co-occurring disorders. The event, organized by resident social action chair...

Wesley Sowers, MD, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, is this year’s recipient of POWER’s Seeds of Hope Award. Dr. Sowers, Director, Center for Public Service Psychiatry at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, will receive the award at POWER Promises – A Night of Hope on June 13 at the Westin Convention Center Hotel. POWER is a nonprofit agency offering trauma-sensitive treatment and support services to women...

Congratulations to Traci M. Kennedy, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow working with Department of Psychiatry faculty mentors Brooke Molina, PhD, and Sarah Pederson, PhD, on receiving a Best Poster Award from the University of Pittsburgh Postdoctoral Association (UPPDA). Dr. Kennedy was presented with the award for her presentation “ Does Monitoring ADHD Symptoms Improve Them? A Smartphone-Based Ecological Momentary...

Jack Rozel, MD, MSL, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, recently received a 2018 National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Exemplary Psychiatrist Award, which honors the exceptional contributions that psychiatrists make to improve the lives of people living with mental health conditions. Dr. Rozel has worked in emergency mental health for more than 20 years and is Medical Director of resolve Crisis Network at UPMC...

Prior to the debut of Season 2 of 13 Reasons Why on May 18, an international coalition headed by SAVE (Suicide Awareness Voices of Education) developed the online 13 Reasons Why Toolkit to address concerns regarding how the show’s first season portrayed suicide, sexual health, bullying, and other sensitive topics facing today’s youth. Sansea Jacobson, MD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Director of the Child and...