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Dear Faculty, Trainees, and Staff,
We saw an enormous show of talent and hard work on Research Day, April 20, where dozens of teams of interns, undergraduate and postgraduate students, post-doc fellows, research assistants, residents, and even one precocious high school student from the Harraz Lab, presented their findings. All eight of our Dana scholars – rising stars of STEM being mentored by Dr. Sonia Bansal who received the Dana Foundation Grant – also participated.
Last month's Research Day stood out as being the first since we expanded the categories for entry to present research posters. The result was a show of force in medical research and care delivery that was so successful we are considering a new event to be held in the Fall. More to come on this!
Four trainee awards were announced at the Department of Psychiatry Research Day. Mr. Aditya Kulkarni (Psychology Intern) won the Elevator Speech contest, and the Dr. Pat McMahon Trainee Poster top prizes were awarded to Dr. Farah Aslanzadeh (VAMHCS Clinical Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Fellow) for Best Clinical QI Poster; Ms. Deidra Bibbs (Psychology Intern) for Best Traditional Research Poster, and Ms. Mary Kleinman (VAMHCS Psychology Extern) for Best Research Design poster.
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I want to congratulate each of this year’s winners once more for the extraordinary work they demonstrated!
In the spirit of Research Day, I also want to highlight the incredible work that our faculty has done in recent months with regards to research publications.
This month, I asked every faculty member of our Department to submit any and all impactful articles and research findings that have been published in recent months, and I received dozens of works. Though we had to be very selective due to the volume of submissions, I have chosen several to be featured featured in our “Recently Published” section of this issue. And each month going forward, we will select several publications to highlight. Please remember to forward them to me to be included.
Finally, I would like to highlight that May is particularly prominent from a mental health perspective: It is National Mental Health Month and celebrates Children's Mental Health Awareness Week.
Thanks to everyone for your hard work and dedication in serving our community, be it our academic community, our students and residents, or our patients!
Sincerely,
Jill A. RachBeisel, MD
Dr. Irving J. Taylor Associate Professor and Chair, Department
of Psychiatry
|  | Left to right: Dr. Jill RachBeisel, Dana scholars Krupa Rami, Tasnia Sadat, Roxey Alam, Arshia Ashtian, Dean Mark Gladwin, Dana scholars Roshnee Roberts, Najae Ali, Mahmoud Abdel-Halim, and Dr. Deanna Kelly | |
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On the heels of a successful Research Day, I want to congratulate Dr. Gloria Reeves for overseeing the planning and implementation of the event. Dr. Reeves and her team were involved in every step of the process, and the result was an event so successful we are thinking of doing another Research Day event for this fall.
Congratulations, Dr. Reeves!
Dr. Marissa Flaherty has been promoted to Assistant Dean of Student Affairs, effective July 1, 2023. This promotion is in recognition of Dr. Flaherty's outstanding work as Director of Student Affairs.
Congratulations, Dr. Flaherty!
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A Public Service Announcement: Please Take 5 Minutes to Update Your Faculty Profile!
A glance at our Faculty Page shows that dozens of us are missing our headshots, or an accompanying bio, or both.
Fortunately, it only takes minutes to complete your profile. If you are missing a headshot, you can schedule an appointment with the university photographer Mark Teske at this link. Once taken, your headshot will automatically be uploaded to your faculty page with no further effort on your part.
If you are missing a bio, here is a link to updating your faculty profile. It should only take a few minutes. However, you also have the option of authorizing someone on your staff to make the updates for you. To delegate someone to complete your profile for you, simply fill in this form.
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The Department of Psychiatry Diversity Committee | |
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This academic year, our department has been focused on Equity. Equity relates to power sharing and creating policies and practices which allow for all members of the department to fully contribute its evolution and advancement. The department wants to hear directly from all of you on our journey to Equity. Please be on the look out for more information from your division DEI champions. We will be asking directly how members of the department view our practices when it comes to Equity and discuss at our July Year in Review presentation.
Our next Diversity Committee meeting is May 25th at 4pm: Zoom link here: https://umaryland.zoom.us/j/97407561683?pwd=ZWpoTW5ET1ROWVZPNW04YXpnT3JHUT09 .
We welcome everyone to join us at the monthly meetings and we continue to invite new members to join each of our sub-committees.
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MPRC Conte Center Virtual Seminar | |
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Dr. Sharon Hoover co-authored a publication appearing in The Journal of School Health. Titled "Youth eating disorders soared during Covid-19: Schools can help," it reviews the data on increased youth eating disorders during COVID and highlights strategies for schools to address the problem. Recommendations include expanding mental health literacy for educators to include eating disorders, expanding coverage for psychological and nutrition counseling in schools, and reviewing and updating accommodations for students with eating disorders.
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Dr. Todd Gould and a team of fellow inventors were awarded U.S. Patent No. 11613514B2 for a method of synthesizing free base forms of hydroxynorketamine. This invention has great potential to help the estimated 30% of bipolar depression patients who do not respond to ketamine treatment as a result to unwanted central nervous system effects.
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Dr. Ben Israel (picture unavailable) was awarded the President's Award of Distinction from the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. The yearly award is presented to honor those who have made exceptional achievements and contributions to the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation and the field of trauma and dissociation in general. | | |
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This year's Clarence G. Schulz Prize for best Psychotherapy Paper has been awarded to Dr. Masha Puzanov (picture unavailable) for her paper entitled “The Wrapper: Containment Amid Chaos.”
She will present her paper at the Sheppard Pratt Grand Rounds on May 17th at noon.
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Dr. Sharon Hoover co-chaired the 52nd International Conference on Behavioral Sciences in Banff, Alberta, Canada, March 19-22. This conference brings together prominent researchers and practitioners from Canada and the US to focus on knowledge translation from science to practice in the behavioral sciences. This year's conference theme was "School Mental Health: Utilizing Science, Culture, and Context to Inform Practice." In addition to her role as co-chair, Dr. Hoover presented her research and clinical work on school-based interventions for refugee and immigrant youth.
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