ACADEMIC

Research

The Harvard Longwood Psychiatry Residency Training Program (HLPRTP) is a rich environment in which to engage in psychiatric research during residency. Research is continually transforming Psychiatry in the 21st Century, and a major priority of the program is to enable Longwood residents to participate in this exciting area of our field. HLPRTP carves out protected research time in each year of the residency so that residents can develop and deepen their scholarly interest over all four years of training. We define scholarly interests broadly to include everything from working in a neuroimaging lab to studying ethical issues in psychiatric practice.

Step 1: Working with a mentor to find your scholarly interests. Upon entering HLPRTP, each resident is assigned a Research Mentor. That faculty mentor meets regularly with the resident to help think about ways to become involved in scholarly activities throughout the residency, and to help the resident make contact with faculty who have similar interests.

Step 2: Working on a specific project with a mentor. A resident can become involved in his or her mentor's own research; or the mentor can guide a resident to expert faculty in other areas of psychiatric research in Longwood. HLPRTP sits in an excellent location for research--adjacent to Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess, Massachusetts Mental Health Center, Boston Children’s Hospital, Judge Baker Children’s Center, and the Harvard School of Public Health. Whether you are interested in psychosis, women's psychiatric health, neuroimaging, sleep, psycho-oncology, behavioral medicine, defense mechanisms, or eating disorders, there is a faculty member here at Longwood willing and eager to engage residents in his or her ground-breaking research.

Step 3: Completing a scholarly project. Each resident will have the chance to complete a scholarly project during the residency. This may take a wide variety of forms, including publishing a research paper, carrying out a literature review, or preparing a case report. Projects may be presented at the Harvard Psychiatry Day Research Poster session held every spring, at Grand Rounds, or in any number of formal or informal settings.

Step 4: Pursuing research after residency. For those who are interested in incorporating research into their careers, HLPRTP research faculty are committed to assisting with their career development. This is a wonderful place to begin a career in research. Faculty will guide interested residents in applying for research fellowships and grants, and in exploring ways to become involved in existing research projects after training. The opportunities for career growth in research at Longwood are outstanding.

Time to do scholarly work as a resident: With each successive year of training, residents can choose to spend more time on scholarly projects.

PGY 1: Up to two, 1-month research blocks

PGY 2: A one-month research block

PGY 3: Longitudinal research time throughout the year, the equivalent of up to two months

PGY 4: Longitudinal research time throughout the year of more than 60% of the work week

LONGWOOD RESEARCH FACULTY

The following is a partial listing of psychiatric investigators in HLPRTP-affiliated institutions who have volunteered to serve as research mentors to our residents.

David Ahern, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychology

Arthur Barsky, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Somatization

William Beardslee, M.D., George P. Gardner Professor of Child Psychiatry

Susan Block, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Psycho-oncology

Jonathan Borus, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Psychiatric education

Grace Chang, M.D., M.P.H., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Brief interventions for alcohol abuse

Chandlee Dickey, M.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Functional brain imaging in schizophrenia and personality disorders

Jill Goldstein, Ph.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Gender differences in brain development

David Jimerson, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Eating disorders

Matcheri Keshavan, M.D., Professor of Pyschiatry, Neurobiology of psychosis

Bernat Kocsis, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Neuropharmacology and electrophysiology in preclinical models of psychiatric disorders

Raquelle Mesholam-Gately, Ph.D., Instructor in Psychiatry, Neuropharmacology and symptom patterns in schizophrenia (Ph.D.?)

Enrico Mezzacappa, M.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Impact of environment and parenting practices on executive function

John Peteet, M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Spirituality and health

Jim Rodrigue, Ph.D., Visiting Associate Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, Psychological issues in transplant patients

Carl Salzman, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Geriatric psychopharmacology

Russell Schutt, Ph.D., Lecturer on Sociology in the Department of Psychiatry, Psychosocial issues in the homeless mentally ill population

Larry Seidman, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, Neurobiology of schizophrenia; detection and prevention of early psychosis

Martha Shenton, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, Brain imaging in schizophrenia and traumatic brain injury

David Silbersweig, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Neuroimaging and neuropathophysiology

Bob Stickgold, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Sleep, memory and cognition

George Vaillant, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Adult development

Robert Waldinger, M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Adult development, emotion regulation in intimate relationships, domestic violence, child abuse

Barbara Wolfe, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Eating disorders

Wilson Woo, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Neurobiology of psychosis

Questions

Questions? Contact Dr. Robert Waldinger, Director of Research Training for HLPRTP, with any questions about research in the Longwood Program.

Robert J. Waldinger, M.D.
617-525-6133
rwaldinger@partners.org