News

Mennatalla El-Mufti, MBBS, a fourth-year psychiatry resident at Duke, is passionate about global mental health and alleviating cultural stigmas around mental illness. She recently completed a six-month community psychiatry rotation at Lincoln Community Health Center in Durham, and she reflects on that experience in this Q&A.

Duke University School of Medicine surged to seventh place on the 2023 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research (BRIMR) ranking based on its National Institutes of Health funding, which grew to $551 million. Duke Psychiatry ranked tenth.

Terrie Moffitt, PhD, Nannerl O. Keohane University Distinguished Professor of Psychology & Neuroscience, who also holds an appointment in Duke Psychiatry, has received the title Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, commonly known as the MBE. The honor was presented to Moffitt by King Charles III in recognition of her outstanding scientific achievement and service to the U.K.

In a novel intervention developed by Nancy Zucker, PhD, children with functional abdominal pain are introduced to a fun and relatable cast of characters, including Georgia the Gut Growler, Harold the Hunger Pain, and Thirsty Theo, to name just a few. She and co-authors Katharine Loeb, PhD, and Marty Gagliano, MD, recently published a book to guide primary care clinicians on delivering this treatment protocol.

Through palliative psychology, Duke Psychiatry faculty members Katherine Ramos, PhD, and Laura Porter, PhD, are at the forefront of supporting patients in navigating the emotional complexities associated with illness and its impact on their lives.

In December, the Biden administration announced it will delay its decision to ban menthol in cigarettes. In this opinion piece in the Fayetteville Observer, Duke Psychiatry's Joseph McClernon, PhD, and other experts argue that a delay in moving forward with the ban will cost lives and will be a devastating setback for the nearly 500,000 North Carolinians who currently smoke menthol cigarettes and the countless North Carolinians who become addicted to menthol cigarettes in the future.

Second-year child and adolescent psychiatry fellow Zargham Abbas, MD, shares his experiences in the fellowship's consult-liaison psychiatry rotations in inpatient, emergency department, and outpatient settings.

Mindfulness practices such as meditation have been shown to reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms and improve one’s sense of well-being. But what is it about these practices that produces these benefits? That’s one of the key questions Duke Psychiatry's Moria Smoski, PhD, and Joseph Diehl, a clinical psychology PhD student, are exploring with an interdisciplinary student research team they co-lead.

Frank Keefe, PhD, professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences, received the American Psychological Association’s 2024 Distinguished Scientific Award for the Applications of Psychology—the highest honor for scientific contribution presented by the APA.

Congratulations to our faculty members who were appointed to new leadership roles at the departmental, institutional, statewide, national, and international levels this past year!