Trio educates students on FDA-approved medications |
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Faculty members in the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences recently received a renewal of a three-year grant that will allow continuing education training for students, residents, faculty, and community professionals on how to prescribe FDA-approved medications for the treatment of opioid use disorder through a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration grant.
Angela Heads, PhD, and Luba Yammine, PhD, associate professors, along with Michael Weaver, MD, professor, are collaborating to teach the Provider Clinical Support System at UTHealth (UT-PCSS) course.
The UT-PCSS course is conducted through online modules as well as an in-person attended class. Before attending the live presentation, attendees are asked to study background materials, including the medications being discussed and how they work.
Advice for incorporating the materials into a general medical practice setting are discussed along with other aspects, including prescribing, patient selection, and safety monitoring. Attendees learn about treating specific populations, such as pregnant patients, patients suffering from pain, and adolescents. Throughout the presentation, the attendees have a chance to go over case studies and express how they would handle the proposed scenario.
One of the goals for the UT-PCSS course is to train 275 individuals over a three-year period, expanding the number of clinicians who can prescribe these types of medications. Yammine says there has historically been a lack of physicians who have the ability to prescribe medications to help fight addictions. Some of the reasons include insufficient training and the stigma of addiction.
Even throughout the pandemic, the trio is committed to teaching the UT-PCSS course to benefit the community at large. Weaver and Yammine say they enjoy the opportunity to share knowledge with others.
“I’ve always been an educator,” Weaver said. “As a clinician, treating patients with opioid use disorders is part of what I do on a daily basis. Being able to see students progress and incorporate what we’re trying to teach is a great feeling for me.”
“I enjoy teaching and working with students,” Yammine said. “When they come in with relatively little baseline information in the beginning and you see the difference in the end is a gratifying feeling.”
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Soares and colleagues launch stem cell study |
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Jair Soares, MD, PhD, professor and chair for the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the Pat R. Rutherford, Jr. Chair in Psychiatry at McGovern Medical School, is leading a clinical trial to assess the safety and efficacy of stem cell therapy to battle treatment-resistant bipolar depression in conjunction with the UTHealth Center of Excellence on Mood Disorders.
Bipolar disorder is characterized by dramatic high and low moods that can change an individual’s sleep patterns, energy, thinking, and behavior. Those with bipolar disorder can feel happy and energized but just as quickly can fall into a period of feeling very sad, hopeless, and sluggish. Some with severe cases have a hard time completing daily tasks such as waking up or even taking a shower.
Soares and his team will conduct a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study, utilizing allogenic mesenchymal stem cells as an infusion in bipolar patients, aimed at reducing inflammation – which has been linked to a decreased likelihood of effective treatment for bipolar disorder.
Mesenchymal stem cells are multipotent stem cells found in bone marrow that are important for making and repairing skeletal tissues, such as cartilage, bone, and the fat found in bone marrow. These cells show the ability to have a dampening effect on inflammation.
Thirty patients will be enrolled in the trial. Half will be given the stem cells; the other half will receive a placebo.
“Since mesenchymal stem cells are known to counteract inflammation and promote neurogenesis, we’re hopeful they provide an innovative therapy for patients with treatment-resistant bipolar depression,” Soares said. “Depending on the results, these stem cells could reduce mortality associated with the disease.”
Contact Kimberly Hagan at 713-486-2621 for more information or to enroll in the study.
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Faculty Spotlight:
Chen with big plans for CPAN
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Janet Chen, MD, recently joined the faculty at the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences as an assistant professor and medical director of the Child Psychiatric Access Network (CPAN).
Chen has always envisioned herself working with children. Originally, she wanted to be a pediatrician but realized early on she really wanted to get to know her patients and their stories and felt like going to into psychiatry would allow her that opportunity.
Chen is a Texas native, growing up in Plano, a suburb of Dallas. She attended Rice University and majored in computational and applied mathematics. She then attended The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio for her medical school training. Her next stop was in St. Louis to attend Washington University where she completed her adult psychiatry residency training and served as chief resident in her final year of residency.
She then moved to New York to complete her fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry at New York Presbyterian Hospital in a combined program with Cornell University and Columbia University. Upon graduation, she stayed on faculty at Cornell, holding the role of chief of outpatient child and adolescent services at New York Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan while also overseeing the outpatient collaborative care efforts between the Division of Child Psychiatry and the Department of Pediatrics.
Returning home to Texas was always a goal for Chen and her family. She jumped at the opportunity to join the faculty at UTHealth and take on the role of medical director of CPAN. This position will allow her to continue her work and live her passion: helping children who are struggling with their mental health.
CPAN is a network of child psychiatry centers, staffed by child psychiatrists who provide pediatricians and primary care providers with live telephone case consultation as well as training opportunities related to common child mental health concerns. The department is one of the 12 CPAN hubs in Texas.
Watching the Texas CPAN program grow over the last year energized Chen to be a part of the program. As the medical director, she wants to expand various areas, including suicide training, hosting more lectures on a variety of topics, developing a more robust public presence with social media and blogs, and developing collaborations with the Department of Pediatrics..
Chen says the work CPAN does is vital for children’s mental health and is looking forward to the opportunity to grow the program here in Houston and across the state.
“It’s so important and so necessary, and I’m so glad the state of Texas has started this program,” Chen said. “With child mental health needs increasing during the pandemic, the timing was perfect for this program to start up. I’m excited to be on board to push CPAN to the next level.”
In her spare time, Chen is busy running her three children to various sports and after-school activities. She enjoys traveling with her family and hope to resume that soon. She also enjoys cooking and exploring Houston.
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Congratulations to our newly promoted faculty! |
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Thomas Meyer, PhD, LP, has been promoted to professor in the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. He specializes in treating and assessing patients with mood disorders, especially bipolar disorders, as well as identifying factors and processes involved in the development and maintenance of depression and mania.
Meyer, an accomplished researcher, completed his PhD as a clinical psychologist at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Germany. He became an assistant and later associate professor at the Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany, before accepting a position at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom. In 2014 he joined UTHealth as an associate professor.
At UTHealth, Meyer is actively involved in research and directs the Psychological Intervention and Research Program on Mood Spectrum Disorders. He is also the co-director of the UTHealth Brain Collection. Along with Jair Soares, MD, PhD, Meyer is taking steps to start the UTHealth Mental Health and Psychedelic Assisted Therapy (M-Path program) Program , the first program at UTHealth to utilize psychedelic substances for treatment.
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Tatiana Barichello, Pharm, PhD, has been promoted to associate professor in the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. She specializes in the field of immuno- psychiatry.
Barichello received her master’s degree in Biochemistry from the Federal University of Santa Catarina. In Brazil, she earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, RS. Before coming to the department, she was the Dean of Pharmacy School and Professor of Postgraduate Program in Health Sciences at the University of Southern Santa Catarina Criciúma, SC, in Brazil.
In 2014, Barichello joined the translational psychiatry program - Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Her study focuses on how inflammation and infection affect the pathophysiology of neuropsychiatric diseases. Currently, she is exploring the role of peripheral and central nervous system infection in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
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Lokesh Shahani, MD, MPH, received a promotion to associate professor. He is the Chief Medical Officer for UTHealth Harris County Psychiatric Center.
Shahani's current clinical interest include geriatric psychiatry and caring for patients with COVID-19 comorbidities.
“I appreciate the support of Dr. Soares and the department to help me achieve my career goals and ensure my professional development,” Shahani said.
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Jane Hamilton, PhD, MPH, LCSW, has been promoted to associate professor in the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. She conducts health services research at the UTHealth HCPC.
Hamilton received her PhD in health services and research and completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in mental health outcomes research, both at UTHealth. She’s a licensed clinical social worker and sees patients of all ages.
Since joining the faculty at UTHealth, Hamilton has conducted extensive research on many areas in mental health quality, utilization, and outcomes; program evaluation methods; and early intervention in mental illness. She is currently investigating approaches
to provide services to the homeless population.
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Alan Prossin, MBBS, received a promotion to associate professor. He is the director of the Neuroimmune Interactions in Depression, Addictions, and Pain (NIDAP) Research Program.
Prossin studied both psychiatry and electrical engineering. He received postdoctoral training in psychoneuroimmunology and molecular neuroimaging at the University of Michigan’s Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute.
Prossin’s research program focuses on a strong desire to translate robust findings from psychoneuroimmunology research in animal models to humans and subsequently develop more efficacious immune-based treatment strategies in stress-related negative affective states, including depression and pain states.
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The following clinical trials are in operation, following all necessary safety guidelines. If you're interested, contact the appropriate study.
Contact: 713-500-DRUG (3784)
To see all open studies, visit our website.
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The following positions are open at our department:
Community Health Worker I
Work in coordination with physicians, nurses and clinical care team members to effectively provide patients with internal and external resources, and deliver patient education to address and improve preventative and clinical quality care outcomes.
Research Assistant I – Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Under close direction of senior research staff, conducts activities to support research projects.
Research Assistant I/II – Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Under close supervision, conducts research activities according to research protocol. Research activities may include some or all of the following: patient recruiting and screening, traditional laboratory experiments and activities, informatics, field interviewer recruiting, screening and training and/or animal laboratories.
Faculty – HCPC Inpatient Psychologist
The Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth is seeking a full-time, qualified psychologist to join our team at the UTHealth Harris County Psychiatric Center (HCPC).
Psychologist – Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
We are seeking to hire a full time outpatient clinical psychologist for individual, group and family therapy. Qualifications: PsyD or PhD in clinical or counseling psychology from an APA accredited program.
See all open positions in the department here.
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Ashutosh Tripathi, Giselli Sciani, Tatiana Barichello, João Quevedo, Anilkumar Pillai
Wei Zhang, Joao Quevedo, Gabriel R. Fries
Emily F Mendez, Haichao Wei, Ruifeng Hu, Laura Stertz, Gabriel R Fries, Xizi Wu, Katherine E Najera, Michael D Monterey, Christie M Lincoln, Joo-Won Kim, Karla Moriel, Thomas D Meyer, Sudhakar Selvaraj, Antonio L Teixeira, Zhongming Zhao, Junqian Xu, Jiaqian Wu, Consuelo Walss-Bass
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Sarly Butte, LPC, was interviewed by KRGV-TV Channel 5 in the Rio Grande Valley about sentiments among U.S. veterans who served in Afghanistan after the Taliban’s takeover of that country
Ron Acierno, PhD, was interviewed by KHOU-TV Channel 11 about an increase in phone calls from people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
Jennifer Hughes, PhD, spoke with the Houston Chronicle about the emotional toll the pandemic is taking on patients who must wait on surgeries
Michael Weaver, MD, was interviewed by Texas Public Radio’s live, call-in talk show The Source about a drug known as delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)
Andrea Taylor, PhD, spoke to FOX 26 News about reports of an increase in parental yelling, and strategies parents can use to avoid shouting at their children during stressful times
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Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth
713-486-2500
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