Honors & Awards

Larimer receives Marlatt Mentorship Award

Department news | April 30, 2024

Congratulations to Mary Larimer, PhD, for receiving the Marlatt Mentorship Award from the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA). The Marlatt Mentorship Award recognizes an individual who h as demonstrated exceptional mentoring of young researchers in the alcohol research field. Mary Larimer, PhD, herself a former student of G. Alan Marlatt, has been an exemplar in organization, detail, innovation and effect of her mentoring. In addition to NIH-sponsored projects where she is principal or co-investigator, Dr. Larimer is the mentor to junior scientists on multiple NIH-funded projects led by junior scientists, thus opening pathways to independence and a passing of the baton to the next generation. Her scientific “offspring” includes an Associate Dean and a Director of a PhD program.

“It is humbling to receive this award in Alan’s name, given what an enormous impact he had on my life and the lives of so many others he mentored over the years,” said Dr. Larimer. “I also want to thank Melissa Lewis, Dana Litt, Christine Lee and Jason Kilmer for their work in nominating me for the award—I really appreciate it, and it is deeply meaningful to me to receive it!”

Megan Goldenshteyn, 2024 UWMC Patient Safety Hero Award

Department news | April 30, 2024

Megan Goldenshteyn, PhD, was recently selected as a recipient of the 2024 UW Medical Center Patient Safety Hero Award. The award is given to faculty and staff who have gone above and beyond to intervene on behalf of patients. Dr. Goldenshteyn works as a licensed psychologist at the Institute on Human Development and Disability (IHDD) in the Child Development Clinic, Cardiac Neurodevelopment Clinic, and the Infant Development Follow-up Clinic where she conducts psychological and developmental evaluations. Congratulations!

Curry, Green and the Addiction Medicine Consult Team receive UW Medicine Cares Award

Department news | April 30, 2024

Congratulations to Aaron Green, MD, Christine Curry, MD, and the Addiction Medicine Consult Team at Harborview for receiving Spring 2024 UW Medicine Cares Awards! The UW Medicine Cares Award was established in 2013 to formally recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of individuals and teams who consistently exemplify the UW Medicine Service Culture Guidelines.

The UW Medicine Patient Experience Team selected Drs. Green and Curry based on their exemplary adherence to these guidelines, as demonstrated by these summaries of their nomination:

Dr. Green provides generous listening, attention, and detailed care for his patients. When his colleagues think of “unconditional positive regard,” he immediately comes to mind. He authentically works with patients in a curious, nonjudgmental way. Dr. Green teaches trainees and others around him the power of undivided attention and holistic care for patients. He goes the extra mile to track down a medication for a patient, to chat with a distant family member, to research the nuances of medication interaction, or to create an individualized treatment plan.

Dr. Curry stepped in to fill the role of interim clinic director for the last year; despite her busy schedule, she always has time to talk through problems with colleagues. She also goes above and beyond to ensure that each patient feels heard, understood, and empowered in their recovery journey. Her ability to build strong therapeutic relationships with her patients is truly remarkable. Dr. Curry’s compassionate approach and deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by individuals experiencing early psychosis have helped to create a supportive and effective treatment environment; her expertise makes a significant impact on the lives of our patients.

The Addiction Medicine Consult Team currently led by Matt Iles-Shih, MD, MPH, and Christine Curry, MD, also showed exemplary adherence to the UW Medicine Service Culture Guidelines. “In your work and interactions with colleagues and the public, you have shown that you understand and embrace the principles of service excellence.” -- UW Medicine Patient Experience Team

Thank you to Dr. Curry, Dr. Green and the entire Addiction Medicine Consult Team for the tremendous work you do with our patients and trainees every day. We are so fortunate to have you on our team!

Congratulations to our Staff Scholarship Award recipients

Department news | March 28, 2024

Congratulations to the recipients of our latest round of Staff Scholarship Awards! Funded by department and philanthropic funds, these awards support professional development of classified and professional staff who work in our department. Awardees for this round include:

HaRRT Center Team Award – for staff and research assistants to attend the American Psychological Association conference in Seattle.
SPIRIT Center Team Award - to attend the POD Course “Creating Equity with Gracious Space”.
Aaron Davis (HaRRT Center) – to attend the American Psychological Association conference in Seattle.
Kelcey Schmitz (SMART Center) – to attend the Association for Positive Behavior Support Conference in Chicago.
Mackenzie Tennison (SPIRIT Center) - to attend a two-day Certified Clinical Trauma Professional Training.
Roger Goosey (SMART Center) – to attend the Society of Clinical Research Associates Conference in Las Vegas.
Victoria Shepard (SPIRIT Center) – to enroll in a Spanish Medical Terminology course.

Thank you to the Staff EDI Professional Development & Training subcommittee (Vaughan Collins, MSW, Amy Davis, Winnie Ho, and Andie Uomoto, MPA) for reviewing the proposals and to the donors who make this program possible.

Joey Mazzola, 2024 UWMC Patient Safety Hero Award

Department news | March 28, 2024

Joey Mazzola, MD, a second-year psychiatry resident, was selected as the recipient of the 2024 UW Medical Center Patient Safety Hero Award. The award is given to faculty and staff who have gone above and beyond to intervene on behalf of patients. Dr. Mazzola exemplifies excellence in dedication to patient care as exemplified in this excerpt from his nomination:

“I have not seen a resident more dedicated to patient safety than Joey Mazzola. Once, he took care of patient J - unhoused, her schizophrenia decompensated, her reality skewed from substances, her cognition just intact enough to refuse the care she needed. Joey made it a priority that she safely discharge to a supportive environment. However, he took it a step further. He coordinated resources for her, checked in on her when appropriate, and identified community champions to help her safely make it to walk-in appointments. Without Joey's tender care for a human in need and a penchant for understanding safety in the long term, J would not have succeeded in the way she has today.”

UW SOM grad, CoLab recognized for research

Department news | February 29, 2024

Congratulations to UW School of Medicine graduate Andy Wen, MD, MPH, whose paper, Racial disparities in youth pretrial detention: a retrospective cohort study grounded in critical race theory, was recently selected as a finalist for the Office of Health Equity Research (OHER) Award for Yale Research Excellence. The paper was supervised and coauthored by Sarah Walker, PhD, with whom Dr. Wen worked while pursuing his MPH at UW. Dr. Wen is currently a psychiatry resident at Yale School of Medicine.

Alex Whitebirch receives WRF Postdoctoral Fellowship

Department news | January 31, 2024

Alex Whitebirch, PhD, received a Washington Research Foundation (WRF) Postdoctoral Fellowship to investigate the role of prefrontal cortex neurons in fentanyl addiction and relapse using fiber photometry and chemogenetic approaches. Dr. Whitebirch completed a doctorate in neurobiology and behavior at Columbia University and is currently working with Susan Ferguson, PhD. Learn more

John Fortney named to Population Health Initiative Executive Council

Department news | September 28, 2023

Congratulations to John Fortney, PhD, for being named to the Population Health Initiative Executive Council as a representative of the School of Medicine (SOM). Chaired by President Ana Mari Cauce, the council includes senior leaders, faculty, students and staff representing a range of contributing colleges, schools, programs and stakeholder units. It is quite an honor to be one of a very small number of SOM representatives to this UW-wide effort appointed by President Cauce. Dr. Fortney is the second SOM faculty member from our department to represent us on the council, the first being Jürgen Unützer, MD, MPH, MA.

Patricia Areán appointed Director of NIMH’s Division of Services and Intervention Research

Department news | September 28, 2023

Patricia Areán, PhD, became the new director of the National Institute of Mental Health’s (NIMH) Division of Services and Intervention Research (DSIR) in August. In this role, she leads the funding of major national scientific research programs and ensures the coordination of scientific substance, policy and procedural issues across NIMH’s extramural intervention and services research programs.

Dr. Areán joined the department in 2015. She founded the CREATIV Lab, served as the director of the NIMH-funded ALACRITY Center, and received the Wayne J. Katon Outstanding Mentor Award among numerous other honors and awards for her mentorship, disparities research, and contributions to geriatric psychology and health services research. We wish her well in her new role. Read more

Department news | September 28, 2023

Congratulations to the following faculty, staff and trainees!

Psychiatry resident Yanni Chang, MD, received an Honorable Mention recognition for the 2023 NIMH Outstanding Resident Award. Yanni has been an active member of the research track, co-authoring a manuscript published in BMC Health Services Research, and she is currently involved in three separate research projects around substance use disorders. As an awardee she has been invited to virtually present her research and research interests in a short talk during the award program.

Emily Dworkin, PhD, received a Partners in Justice Award from the Lutheran Community Services of Northwest Spokane for helping support trauma survivors, especially during the pandemic.

Rebecca Hendrickson, MD, PhD (psychiatry) and Andrew Saxon, MD (addiction medicine) were named a Top Doc by Seattle Met Magazine for 2023. We are delighted they were chosen by their peers for this well-deserved honor and appreciate their commitment to excellence in patient care.

James Lee, MD, Chief Resident for Harborview Medical Center, received the 2023 Resident Psychiatric Educator Award at the Association for Academic Psychiatry (AAP) Annual Meeting.

Jill Locke, PhD, was recognized as one of the 25 most prominent autism researchers. Her work has focused on social interventions for autistic students in elementary schools. Read more

Four department teams were among the recipients of the first UW Medicine Well-Being Grants for their creative approaches to foster well-being: the Addictions, Drug & Alcohol Institute (ADAI), the Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors (CSHRB), the School Mental Health Assessment, Research, and Training (SMART) Center, and the Center for Mental Health Policy and the Law (CMHPL). See the list of Well-Being Grants for descriptions of all funded grants.