This is an extraordi-narily exciting time at UHealth and the Miller School of Medicine. There is a buzz of excitement with the many new initiatives and changes that we are

all witnessing. Although I could not possibly highlight all of them, I do want to summarize some of the most important ones. First, the department research enter-prise continues to grow with the acquisi-tion of several new research grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other sources. Although there is not enough time to recognize all of the newly funded faculty, special recognition should go to Shaun Brothers, Ph.D., for his two new basic neuroscience/drug discovery grants from NIH, and Sara Czaja, Ph.D., for her several new and competitively renewed NIH grants. Under the leadership of Steven Altschuler, M.D., the Vice President for Health Affairs and CEO of UHealth, we are exploring a multitude of opportunities for the health system in general and our department in particular. We have been fortunate to recruit several new outstand-ing faculty members. Joining us from Harvard/Massachusetts General Hospital

is William Pirl, M.D., M.P.H., who will lead our efforts in Psychiatric Oncology including research, training and clinical service delivery to our patients in the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center; Firdaus Dharhar, Ph.D., from Stanford University, is a world leader in research at the interface of psychiatry, immunology and cancer; and Vastie Prudent, M.D., who trained with us and completed a fellowship in New York City at Memorial Sloan Kettering. Growing our team remains a major focus and we will continue to strengthen the department with talented and highly specialized faculty. The resident recruitment season is once again upon us and we have an unusually large number of outstanding applications. It would be hard to outperform the exceptional recruitment we experienced last year. The faculty and I are excited to meet with the approximate-ly 90-100 applicants we will interview to identify the 16 new first year residents who will begin with us in July. We are also interviewing candidates for fellowships in addiction psychiatry, psychosomatic medi-cine, child psychiatry, forensic psychiatry and geriatric psychiatry. Our External Advisory Board, co-chaired by Susan Racher and Harley Tropin, has been very active and we were delighted to hire Samantha Richter as our Assistant Director of Communications, who

serves as a linchpin between the depart-ment and the development office. We look forward to our major fundraising event this year, a golf tournament to be held October 28th at Turnberry Isle that has been spearheaded by a member of our board, Alfredo Frohlich. As I write this, only 18 days remain before the Presidential election. With the stress of the campaign behind us, and a clearer picture of what the new administra-tion will portend for us in terms of health care and research, we should be able to develop our strategic directions for the months and years ahead. My best wishes to all of you for a very happy and healthy holiday season and new year. I am so grateful to all of our faculty, staff, students, residents, fellows and friends for all the work they do, and of course to our patients whom, in the end, all of our efforts are directed. Sincerely, Charlie

Charles B. Nemeroff, M.D., Ph.D. Leonard M. Miller Professor and Chair

Mario A. Hernández

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine 1

For a Mental Health Emergency

Call 911, if someone is in danger of hurting themselves or others

University of Miami Hospital (UMH) Mental Health Admissions/ER 305.689.4444

Jackson Mental Health (JMH) Crisis Triage 305.355.7332

Silver Alert - If your loved one

has gone missing, please call 911 immediately. A statewide initiative to involve the public in locating a cognitively impaired driver who has gotten lost. Go to: http://www.floridasilveralert.com/when-someone-goes-missing

Appointments and Office Numbers

Main Psychiatry Appointment Scheduling 305.355.9028 option 1

Behavioral Health Hospital 305.355.9028 option 2

Boca Raton 561.939.4044

Child & Adolescent 305.355.7077

Clinical Research Building 305.243.2301

Courtelis Center 305.243.4129

Deerfield Beach 954.571.0117

University of Miami Hospital 305.689.1352

Center on Aging 305.355.9081

Brain Fitness Pavillion 305.355.9080 English, then option 3

Memory Disorders Clinic 305.355.9065

Chairman’s Office 305.243.6400

Dr. Beurel was born, raised and educated in central Paris, France, culminating

with her Ph.D. in Physiology from the University Pierre and Marie Curie in

2005. Her Ph.D. research in Paris focused on cancer, so how did she end up in

psychiatry in Miami? It turned out that the enzyme that was at the center of

much of her cancer research is also a key component of the immune system’s inflammatory response, and while

Dr. Beurel was completing her Ph.D., evidence was beginning to surface suggesting that the same enzyme and

inflammation were also linked to depression.

Sensing an opportunity to enter an exciting new approach to understand the causes of depression, and per-

haps identify new therapeutic interventions, Dr. Beurel accepted a challenge presented by her advisor when she

started her postdoctoral research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2005. This was to learn the intri-

cacies of both the immune system and neuroscience to study ways in which the immune and nervous systems

interact.

During the last decade she has studied how these neural-immune interactions work in healthy brains and in

brains with diseases such as depression. Her innovative research in this newly emerging field of neural-immune

interactions led to a number of awards including two NARSAD Independent Investigator awards, a K99/R00 Path-

way to Independence award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and last year a new R01 award from the

NIH to continue her studies of how abnormal actions of the immune system influence mood dysregulation in de-

pression.

In 2011, the University of Miami Departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Biochemistry and

Molecular Biology partnered together to recruit Dr. Beurel and she was charged with the challenge of building a

new research laboratory from scratch. There were a myriad of new procedures to learn and administrators to get

to know, but with the help of her new colleagues, she now has her very own independent research program and a

laboratory bustling with students all working to determine, in increasing detail, how the immune system can be

controlled to mitigate the effects of depression.

Dr. Beurel does not remember what she used to do in her free time, because there is no such thing as free

time for her any more. At the lab there is always a list of things that should have been done yesterday, and when

she is able to get home, she is blessed with two wonderful little daughters, 1 and 3 years old, who have yet to

learn the concept that there is a limited amount of time in each day. Nonetheless, busy as she might be, Dr.

Beurel wouldn’t trade her collegial interactions at UM, her exciting research progress, and her family, for any

alternative arrangement, except perhaps for a little more time to visit her beloved hometown of Paris.

2

Spotlight on the Board: Mary Demetree Mary’s interests in advances in the field of mental health run very

deep. When she learned of Dr. Nemeroff’s innovative work and he

subsequently asked her to join the External Advisory Board, she was

eager to accept. Mary has been a member of the Department of Psy-

chiatry and Behavioral Sciences’ External Advisory Board since incep-

tion of the board in April 2012.

Mary realizes that at any given time in life people are susceptible

to having a depressive episode, but that their fear to ask for help

keeps them from the help that is available. She feels that Dr.

Nemeroff’s efforts in educating the public in all areas of mental health

are critically important.

Mary lives in Winter Park, Florida and has served the Orlando

community through an array of business, philanthropic and community

involvement. Mary’s interests in real estate extend to the south Florida

region, including two office buildings in downtown Coral Gables.

Selected Studies of Interest

Alcohol and Drug Abuse: Randomized, Double Blind, Placebo-

Controlled Trial of the Safety and Efficacy of Gabapentin Enacarbil (Horizant®) Extended-Release Tablets for the Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder (Dr. I. Salloum, isalloum@med.miami.edu)

Clinical Medication Development for Bipolar Disorder and Alcohol Use Disorder (Dr. I. Salloum)

Biological Basis of Neuropsych. Disorders: Prospective Determination of Psychobiologi-

cal Risk Factors for PTSD (Dr. F. Gould, fgould@med.miami.edu)

Stem cell therapy for treatment resistant bipolar depression (Dr. P. Harvey, pharvey@med.miami.edu)

Caregiving/Caring: Caring for the Caregiver Study

(Dr. S. J. Czaja, sczaja@med.miami.edu) Exercise to Prevent Depression and Anxiety

in Older Adults. Dr. D. Jimenez (dperdomo3@med.miami.edu)

Dementia/Early Alzheimer ’s Disease: A Phase 3, 12-week, Multicenter,

Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy, Safety, and Tolerability of 2 Fixed Doses of Brexpiprazole (OPC-34712) in the Treatment of Subjects with Agitation Associated with Dementia of the Alzheimer’s Type (Dr. E. Crocco, ecrocco@med.miami.edu)

Treatment of Psychosis and Agitation in Alzheimers Disease (Dr. E. Crocco)

Novel Detection of Early Cognitive and Functional Impairment in the Elderly (Dr. D. Loewenstein, dloewenstein@med.miami.edu)

HIV-1/NeuroAIDS: HIV-1 Infection in Methamphetamine

abusers: Endocrine Outcomes (Dr. M. Kumar, mkumar@med.miami.edu)

HIV-1 Predictive Biomarkers of CVD Risk in Diverse HIV-1 + Cocaine (Dr. M. Kumar)

Schizophrenia/Cognition: Clozapine for Cannabis Use Disorder in

Schizophrenia (CLOCS) (Dr. P. Harvey, pharvey@med.miami.edu)

Social Cognition Psychometric Evaluation in Schizophrenia (SCOPE) (Dr. P. Harvey)

A Prospective, Matched-Control, Random-ized, Open-Label, Flexible-Dose, Study in Subjects with Recent-Onset Schizophrenia or Schizophreniform Disorder to Compare Disease Progression Disease Modification Following Treatment with Paliperidone Palmitate Long-Acting Injection or Oral Antipsychotics (Dr. M. Strassnig,mstrassnig@med.miami.edu)

A Phase 3 Study to Evaluate Weight Gain of ALK3831 Compared to Olanzapine in Adults with Schizophrenia (Dr. M. Strassnig)

A Phase 3 Multicenter Double-blind Study of Flexible Doses of Oral Ziprasidone in Children and Adolescents with Bipolar 1 Disorder (Dr. I Vasilu-Feltes (nbrenson@med.miami.edu)

to know, but with the help of her new colleagues, she now has her very own independent research program and a

3

Mary’s interests in advances in the field of mental health run very

chiatry and Behavioral Sciences’ External Advisory Board since incep-

Mary realizes that at any given time in life people are susceptible

Nemeroff’s efforts in educating the public in all areas of mental health

community through an array of business, philanthropic and community

involvement. Mary’s interests in real estate extend to the south Florida

For nearly 40 years, the University of Miami has supported the United Way – a tangible demonstration of

our commitment to our community and mission to strengthen local quality of life. Last year, Team UM

raised a record $1.2 million for the United Way of Miami Dade, with participation from more than 3,700

faculty and staff throughout the University. With the enthusiastic support of our faculty and staff last year;

our department was an important part of the UM Team’s success.

Please join our “TEAM UM 2016 PSYCHIATRY” as we join other departments, centers and institutes

across all campuses for a very successful United Way Campaign. It’s easy to give: Simply log onto your

University of Miami Workday, go to the “All About Me” page, and click

on the “GIVE” icon; then follow the instructions to make your donation.

Thank you again for your generosity. If you have any questions

concerning online giving, please contact your United Way

Co-Ambassadors; Adrienne Jaret ajaret@med.miami.edu or

Samantha Richter sfr30@med.miami.edu.

TEAM UM 2016 United Way Campaign Kicks

off for UM Faculty, Staff & trainees

Commitment, Dedication and Recognition

for 20-plus Years of Service This edition’s Staff Stars column recognizes all of our department’s employees who have reached service mile-

stones of over 20 years at the University of Miami! We applaud and appreciate the enduring commitment, dedi-

cation and contributions to the ongoing success of UM’s mission and vision. We are also very proud to recog-

nize the many years of dedicated service they have continued to provide our department.

Employee Title Years at

UM Years in

Psychiatry

Adrienne D. Jaret Manager, Business Operations 40 29

Doreen Morgan Project Manager 36 27

Stephanie D. Stewart Administrative Assistant 36 8

Sharon Purcell Research Support Specialist 33 13

Joyce Sadler Director, Business Operations 30 29

Mahendra Kumar, Ph.D. Professor 31 31

David Loewenstein, Ph.D. Professor 30 30

Maria Planas Staff Accountant 30 17

Carmen Alsina Executive Assistant 29 7

Jon A. Shaw, M.D. Professor 28 28

Sara J. Czaja, Ph.D. Professor 27 17

Ana Campo, M.D. Professor 25 25

Joseph H. Henry, M.D. Assistant Professor 24 24

Dolores M. Perdomo, Ph.D. Assistant Professor 24 24

Marla Fonseca Clinical Research Coordinator 23 9.5

Stephen Weiss Research Professor 23 23

Daniella David, Ph.D. Professor 22 22

Jeremy Greenfield Director, Clinical Operations 22 5

Arnetta E. Phillips Clinical Research Coordinator 21 18

Caridad I. Fratacci Program Coordinator 21 17

Amelia D. Somodevilla Accountant 20 8

Editor: Adrienne Jaret Design and Production: Mario A. Hernández Executive Editor: L. Jared Abramson Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences University of Miami Miller School of Medicine www.psychiatry.med.miami.edu

WELCOME

A warm welcome to our new faculty and staff!

Firdaus Dhabhar, Ph.D., Professor, conducting research on stress-related disorders Christopher Kauffman, M.D., Assistant Professor, Emergency Psychiatry Joycelyn Lee, Ph.D., M.B.A., Assistant Professor, Psychology Myrna Miqueli, M.B.A., Senior Manager, Finance Dolores Perdomo, Ph.D., LCSW, Assistant Professor, Center on Aging William Pirl, M.D., M.P.H., Associate Professor, Chief of Psychiatric Oncology and Associate Director for Cancer Support Services in the SCCC Vasthie Prudent, M.D., Assistant Professor, Consultation Liaison Psychiatry and Cancer Support Services in the SCCC Judith Regan, M.D., J.D., M.B.A., Associate Professor, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Samantha Richter, Assistant Director, Communications Qingzhou Zeng, Programmer, Center on Aging

4

Dr. Radu Saveanu and Dr. Charles Nemeroff welcomed the new

Psychiatry PGY-1 residents and Psychology interns.

Dr. Sara J. Czaja spoke on “Aging Gracefully: The Promotion of Successful Aging” to a crowd of 200 guests at UHealth’s “Meet

the Doc” series.

PSYCHIATRY GRAND ROUNDS

psychiatry.med.miami.edu/events/grand-rounds

10/26/16 Julie K. Hersh

Struck by Living:

From Depression to Hope

11/9/16 Stephen M. Stahl, M.D., Ph.D.,

Psychophamacology

11/23/16 David Fishbain, M.D.,

Addiction and Iatrogenic Opioid

Addiction in Chronic Pain Patients

12/14/16 Ramin Parsey, M.D., Ph.D.

MRI-based Moderators of

Antidepressant Response:

EMBARC Trial Data

OTHER EVENTS

10/16/2016 American Foundation for

Suicide Prevention

Community Walk

10/28/16 Inaugural Dept. of Psychiatry

Charity Golf Tournament

(Turnberry Soffer Course)

11/13/16 Annual Psychtoberfest

Picnic (Crandon Park)

12/(4-8)/16 American College of

Neuropsychopharmacology

ACNP (Hollywood, FL)

In Loving Memory

Adarsh Kumar, PhD