The occurrence of National Suicide Prevention Month reminds us of the tremendous burden of suicide in our country, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, as perhaps the most severe outcome of significant life trauma and depression. It is an outcome that psychiatry and psychology “own,” and one which is front-of-mind in our clinical practices, our teaching, and our research, as a serious brain disorder of complex etiology. It brings unspeakable pain to families, friends, and colleagues. The special month reminds us of the need to address suicide to bring relief and treatment as well as to gain new knowledge for prophylaxis.

The occurrence of Women in Medicine Month reminds us of the value of diversity in medicine. High-quality medical practice is vitally dependent on diversity among its practitioners. It is not only that medicine needs a diverse and vital workforce for service delivery, but it is also that diversities of practice, personalities, and interests as generated by gender and racial diversity remain important for a high-quality medical force.

In 2014, we developed an intensive outpatient program, Suicide Prevention and Resilience at Children’s (SPARC), to respond to the need for suicide-specific treatment in a less restrictive setting with the focus on reducing risk factors related to suicidal behavior and increasing protective factors.

SPARC is grounded in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and includes components of Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Mindfulness CBT, and Relapse Prevention CBT. The program includes teen groups twice weekly, individual therapy, multi-family groups, weekly skills-based parent psychoeducation groups, family therapy (as indicated), and medication management (as needed). Patients spend 7- 9 hours in treatment each week and participate in programming for 4-6 weeks.

Qualitative improvement data is an important component of the program. Since its inception, feasibility and acceptability outcomes have been positive, and retention rates are satisfactory, with nearly 83% of participants completing the program. Over 95% of parents and patients have reported being satisfied or very satisfied with the program. Outcomes related to future attempts are also positive, with reattempt rates at 6 months less than 12%. Within 6 months, those who did not complete the program had a higher rate of suicide attempts, which suggests that the program may be effective in preventing attempts post-discharge if the patient completes the program (i.e., attends 5 or more sessions). A 2015 meta-analysis found an overall rate of 28% for attempts post-treatment for youth treated for suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Thus, our 6-month outcome data compare favorably. Dr. Graham Emslie is the medical director, Dr. Betsy Kennard (pictured above) is program director, Dr. Jessica King is lead psychologist, and Roshini Kumar is clinical manager.

Kala Bailey, M.D., serves as Chief of Psychiatry for University Hospital and Clinics. This clinical service line includes a state-of-the-art, 23-bed inpatient unit, an active hospital consult-liaison service, and a large multispecialty outpatient practice. Dr. Bailey's clinical focus is Interventional Psychiatry, through which she specializes in working with patients who have treatment-refractory mental disorders. In her role as Clinical Director of Interventional Psychiatry, she has led the development of a fully integrated program whereby patients can present for a single evaluation and have access to all indicated, FDA-approved treatments, as well as investigational approaches and clinical trial offerings at UT Southwestern.

“I was inspired to pursue a career in medicine by my maternal grandfather. It had been his dream to become a physician, but he was unable to realize this because of a lasting physical disability from a childhood polio infection. From the time I was young, he fostered an excitement in me to make this dream of his a reality, and I haven’t regretted it a single day since.”

“I am blessed to get to work in such an incredible academic institution that fully supports and encourages my development as a woman in a clinical leadership position. I am surrounded by brilliant colleagues here, and I know I am a better doctor because of them. More than that, I have the privilege of delivering innovative treatment approaches to patients with difficult to treat mental disorders, offering hope to patients and their families when there previously had been none. It is a joy to me to come to work here every day, and I am excited to see what the future brings for our department.”

Wouldn't it be nice if the department set aside a day for you to get refreshed by learning about a key national issue important to psychiatry and beyond, enhancing your work effort and work/life balance, learning information about key clinical service in the city, enabling you to connect with other psychiatry faculty and clinicians you rarely get to converse with, and giving you an informative review of the department by the Chair? The Psychiatry Department has done just that!

We will be having a retreat for Faculty, Advanced Practice Providers, and Clinical Therapists on Friday, October 1, from 8:30am to 2:30pm. The retreat will be virtual yet still have many of the aspects of in-person retreats, including many opportunities to enhance our connections with each other.

Topics and format:

8:30 Virtual registration and networking

9:00 Introductions

9:15 Anti-racism presentation followed by breakout rooms for small group discussions

11:00 Two concurrent sessions (attendees have flexibility to attend parts of each):

12:00 Fun breakout rooms, socializing, a little competition

1:15 Dr. Tamminga presents the State of the Department

2:15 Summary of the day’s programs

Questions? Email the Retreat Committee:

The Psychiatry Department expressed its appreciation and provided some help for staying cool in the heat on August 26, with a paleta cart filled with delicious, ice-cold popsicles. Yolanda Barner-Thomas, Cari Norz, and other managers and leadership from the department handed out treats to staff members, who were happy to receive refreshment and physically distanced social connections.

UT Southwestern Psychiatry was very well represented at the September 8-10, 2021, meeting of the Association for Academic Psychiatry (AAP), an organization devoted to education in psychiatry from the beginning of medical school through lifelong learning for psychiatrists and other physicians. The meeting's theme was "Bridging the Divide: Reducing Inequity through Education."

Life Science Forum presenters will have the opportunity to give a pitch to 500+ venture capitalists, corporate innovation groups, angel networks, industry leaders, academics, and service providers and participate in office hours on November 10.

Digital Health and Biotech Startups in Texas can pitch for a Fast Track into Capital Factory and a $50,000 Investment.

The Johnson & Johnson Scholars Award Program aims to fuel development of female STEM2D leaders and feed the STEM2D talent pipeline by awarding and sponsoring women at critical points in their careers, in each of the STEM2D disciplines: Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, Manufacturing and Design. Applications for the 2022 WiSTEM2D Scholars Award close September 27. The awards will fund one woman per STEM2D discipline who has completed her advanced degree, is working as an assistant professor (or global equivalent faculty position), and is not yet tenured at an accredited university, institution, or design school. The goal is to fuel the research passion of the awarded women and inspire career paths in their respective STEM2D fields. Johnson & Johnson is looking to identify global women leading in both their research fields and leading as mentors, to be a vision for girls and other women in STEM2D.

The Sponsored Programs Administration team is pleased to assist with the potential review and submission of the above funding opportunities, on behalf of

UT Southwestern Medical Center. Request assistance.

The Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care's Guest Lecturer Dr. Jane Foster will present "Microbes and Mood: How Your Gut Microbes Are Linked to Your Mental Health" via Zoom at 10am Thursday, September 16.

The SUCCESS program helps clinician faculty build knowledge and skills for success in Clinical Excellence, Educational Effectiveness, Scholarly Productivity, and Professionalism and Institutional Citizenship. The two-part program is scheduled for September 21, 8am-12pm, and September 28, 12:30pm-5pm.

For more information, contact the Office of Faculty Development.

Psychiatry Department Grand Rounds (select Wednesdays at 12pm via Zoom)

September 22 OBI Grand Rounds: The Hype & Hope of Assistive Technology

September 29 Faculty Development: Optimizing Leadership

September 21 Neuropsychiatry: Short & Long Term Outcomes Following Concussion

October 5 Caring for Patients with Opioid Use Disorder in Routine Psychiatric Practice

The Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute (OBI) research team has been working on exciting new programs for the UTSW research community. Psychiatry faculty are eligible for three funding opportunities (below). These programs (and others) will be discussed in an “Intro to OBI Research Program Initiatives” meeting, scheduled especially for the Psychiatry Department, via Zoom on Friday, October 15, at 12pm.

OBI Special Seminar: Optimizing Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson’s Disease Using Physiologic Signals and Biophysical Modeling

Speaker: Svjetlana Miocinovic, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Neurology, Emory University School of Medicine

When: Thursday, September 23, 12pm

Online: Join Zoom Meeting