UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital Faculty and Fellows to Present at ACLP 2026

Faculty and fellows from UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital will present their research and clinical expertise at the 73^rd Annual Meeting of the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry (ACLP), Nov. 18 to 21, 2026, in San Diego, Calif.

The meeting, themed “Expanding the Vision of C-L Psychiatry: New Roles, New Settings, New Pathways,” brings together consultation-liaison psychiatrists, researchers, and trainees from across the country.

Participating physicians and trainees from UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital and the University of Pittsburgh are listed below.

UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital Faculty Presentations

Priyanka Amin, MD

• Making Quality Improvement More Accessible: How to Integrate Quality Work into Mentorship, Career Development, and Curriculum Design; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026, 1 to 2:15 p.m.

Patrick Buckley, MD, MBA

• Beyond the Bowel: Expanding the Role of C-L Psychiatry in the Management of Women Living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease; Thursday ,Nov. 19, 2026, 4:30 to 5:45 p.m.

Andrew Coulter, MD (presenting UPMC work)

• Identifying Predictable Drivers of Violence Risk in Hospitalized Patients with Substance Use Disorders (first author - pre-recorded brief oral presentation)

Morgan Faeder, MD, PhD

• Pathways to Equitable Care for Transgender Patients: Reimagining the Role of the C-L Psychiatrist – an LGBTQIA2S+ Sig-Sponsored Session; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026, 1 to 2:15 p.m.
• It's Not All Dementia: Exploring the C-L Psychiatrist's Role in the Management of Functional Cognitive Disorder; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, 4:30 to 5:45 p.m.

Priya Gopalan, MD

• When Misinformation Becomes Medicine: Neuropsychiatric Manifestations of Ivermectin Toxicity; Poster Session I; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026; 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Psychiatry Without a Route: A Case of Managing Medications During Prolonged NPO Status; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026; 5:30 6:45 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Hungry for a Better Approach: Barriers to Eating Disorder Care in the Adult Medical Hospital; Poster Session II; Thursday, Nov. 19. 2026; 6 to 7 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Bridging the Perinatal Psychiatry Gap: Descriptive Analysis from the Inaugural Year of a Statewide Perinatal Access Program; Friday, Nov. 20, 2026, 3:47 to 4:01 p.m. (brief oral presentation co-author)
• Descriptive Analysis of a Pilot Doula Pathway for a Perinatal Access Program (co-author - pre-recorded brief oral presentation)

Shelly Kucherer, MD

• Misinformation in the Infodemic Era: Evidence-Based Communication in Perinatal Psychiatry; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, 4:30 to 5:45 p.m.

Estelle Hirsh, MD

• Hungry for a Better Approach: Barriers to Eating Disorder Care in the Adult Medical Hospital; Poster Session II; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026; 6 7 p.m. (poster co-author)

Alex Israel, MD

• It's Not All Dementia: Exploring the C-L Psychiatrist's Role in the Management of Functional Cognitive Disorder; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, 4:30 to 5:45 p.m.

Isabella Kratzer, MD

• Hungry for a Better Approach: Barriers to Eating Disorder Care in the Adult Medical Hospital; Poster Session II; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026; 6 to 7 p.m. (poster first author)

Richa Lavingia, MD

• Successful Injection-Only Low-Dose Buprenorphine Initiation in the Inpatient Setting; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026; 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. (poster first author)

Roberto Leon-Barriera, MD

• Successful Injection-Only Low-Dose Buprenorphine Initiation in the Inpatient Setting; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026; 5:30 to6:45 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Donors on Drugs: Psychopharmacological Considerations in Living Organ Donors (first author – pre-recorded brief oral presentation)

Darcy Moschenross, MD, PhD

• Equity Considerations in Behavioral Emergency Response Teams (BERTs) Across the Lifespan: A CL Division Directors' Forum Sponsored Workshop; Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026, 10:15 to11:30 a.m.

Sharvari Shivanekar, MD

• When Misinformation Becomes Medicine: Neuropsychiatric Manifestations of Ivermectin Toxicity; Poster Session I; Wednesday, Nov 18. 2026; 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Inpatient Consultation-Liaison Telepsychiatry and the Reduction of Travel Burden in Rural, Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Communities: A Retrospective Analysis Using the Area Deprivation Index; Friday, Nov. 20, 2026, 1:49 to 2:03 p.m.

Samantha Sahi, MD

• Hungry for a Better Approach: Barriers to Eating Disorder Care in the Adult Medical Hospital; Poster Session II; Thursday, Nov 19. 2026; 6 to 7 p.m. (poster co-author)

Meredith Spada, MD, MEd

• Psychiatry Without a Route: A Case of Managing Medications During Prolonged NPO Status; Wednesday, Nov 18. 2026; 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Misinformation in the Infodemic Era: Evidence-Based Communication in Perinatal Psychiatry; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, 4:30 to 5:45 p.m.
• Hungry for a Better Approach: Barriers to Eating Disorder Care in the Adult Medical Hospital; Poster Session II; Thursday, Nov 19. 2026; 6 to 7 p.m. (poster co-author)
• Bridging the Perinatal Psychiatry Gap: Descriptive Analysis from the Inaugural Year of a Statewide Perinatal Access Program; Friday, Nov. 20, 2026, 3:47 to 4:01 p.m. (brief oral presentation co-author)
• Descriptive Analysis of a Pilot Doula Pathway for a Perinatal Access Program (co-author - pre-recorded brief oral presentation)

Trainee Presentations

Simran Kaur, MD

• Bridging the Perinatal Psychiatry Gap: Descriptive Analysis from the Inaugural Year of a Statewide Perinatal Access Program; Friday, Nov. 20, 2026, 3:47 to 4:01 p.m. (first author - brief oral presentation)

Tyler McGehee, MD

• Facing Mortality: Workshop on Mastering Conversations on Death and Dying in Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry; Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026, 4 to 5:15 p.m.
• Advancing Education in Psychiatric Aspects of Care for Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellows: A Quality Improvement Project; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, 3 to 4:15 p.m.

Radhika Patel, DO

• Descriptive Analysis of a Pilot Doula Pathway for a Perinatal Access Program (first author - pre-recorded brief oral presentation)

Kalyan Tripathy, MD, PhD

• Clinical Factors Influencing Response to a Novel Frontostriatal Neuromodulation Paradigm for Anhedonic Depression: Insights for Optimizing Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Referrals in the Consultation-Liaison Setting; Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, 3 to 4:15 p.m. PM (first author - brief oral presentation)

Christopher Chae

• Treatment in Perinatal Depression: Variation in Antidepressant Prescription; Poster Session II; Thursday, Nov. 19. 2026; 6 to 7 p.m. (poster first author)

Mary Martin, MD

• When Misinformation Becomes Medicine: Neuropsychiatric Manifestations of Ivermectin Toxicity; Poster Session I; Wednesday, Nov 18. 2026; 5:30 to– 6:45 p.m. (poster first author)

Nicole Schindler, MD

• Psychiatry Without a Route: A Case of Managing Medications During Prolonged NPO Status; Wednesday, Nov 18. 2026; 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. (poster first author)

Hussein Zalzale, MD

• Psychiatry Without a Route: A Case of Managing Medications During Prolonged NPO Status; Wednesday Nov. 18, 2026; 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. (poster co-author)

Additional faculty listed as co-authors

• Helmet Karim, PhD
• Neal Ryan, MD
• Zachary Brodnick
• Ashey Pogue
• Neil Jones
• Jihui Diaz
• Rebecca Price
• Erika Forbes
• Shinnyi Chou

Additional UPMC faculty

• Lara Lemon
• Carolyn Lange
• Elizabeth Krans
• Murat Kaynar

Additional UPMC experts listed:

• Colleen Gianneski
• Belinda Sirianni
• Melissa Young
• Alptug Kaynar
• Jessica Summers
• Kathy Kershaw
• Todd Harvey
• Michael Talamo

UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital is proud to be ranked #7 in the nation for excellence in psychiatry by U.S. News & World Report