José Maldonado, MD joined the Stanford faculty in 1993 and became Medical Director of the Psychosomatic Medicine Service in 1995. He received his medical degree at Ponce School of Medicine and his psychiatric training at Temple University, in Philadelphia. He completed additional training in Forensic Psychiatry at Temple University, and a fellowship in Consultation-Liaison/Neuropsychiatry at New England Medical Center/Tufts University, in Boston.
Dr. Maldonado is Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine; with courtesy appointments in the Departments of Medicine, Emergency Medicine, Surgery, the Center of Biomedical Ethics and the Stanford School of Law. He serves as Chief of the Medical and Forensic Psychiatry Section, Director of the Psychosomatic Medicine Clinic, and Medical Director of the Psychosomatic Medicine Consult Service. Dr. Maldonado serves as psychiatric consultant to all solid organ transplant teams (i.e., heart, lung, liver, kidney, and small bowel); including our new program in Composite Tissue Allotransplantation. He has special expertise in the areas of psychosomatic medicine and somatoform disorders, neuropsychiatry, dissociation, medical hypnosis, and organ transplantation.
Dr. Maldonado's research interest include: Neurobiology, Prediction, Prevention and Treatment of Acute Brain Failure (Delirium); Neuropsychiatric Sequelae of Medical Illness and its Treatment; Psychosocial Assessment & Neuropsychiatric Complications of Organ Transplantation; Functional Neurological Disorder; Application of Hypnosis in Psychiatry and Medicine; Neuropsychiatric Sequelae of Traumatic Brain Injury; Pathophysiology and Management of Alcohol Withdrawal; Factitious Disorder & Munchausen's Syndrome; Cultural Diversity in Medical Care; Diagnosis and Treatment of Dissociative Disorders; and Forensic Psychiatry.
Dr. Maldonado has received numerous awards including the Charles Shagass, MD Award, for meritorious scholarly work during residency training, from Temple University (1988). The Psychiatric Times named Dr. Maldonado 2001 Teacher of the Year. In 2002 he received the Best Paper Award on the Application of Hypnosis, presented by the American Psychological Association. In June 2003, Dr. Maldonado was awarded the Henry J. Kaiser Award at the Stanford University School of Medicine Commencement Ceremony for excellence in clinical teaching. In August 2003, Dr. Maldonado received the "Best Researcher/Author Presentation" Award at the World Congress in Psychosomatic Medicine for his work on acute brain failure/delirium. He received the 2004 DLIN/Fischer Award, for significant achievement in clinical research from the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine for his research in the prevention of Post-Operative Delirium and the introduction of novel alpha-2 agonists (e.g., dexmedetomidine) in ICU sedation protocols. He received the Teacher of the Year Award by the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University in 2004, 2009, and 2011. In 2009 he was recognize by the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine with the Dorfman Award, for Best Original Research, for his work on the development of the Stanford Integrated Psychosocial Assessment for Transplantation. In September 2012 he was named one of US News and World Report's 'Top Doctors'. In November 2012, he received the Research Poster of the Year Award from the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine, for the development of a “Non-Benzodiazepine Protocol for Alcohol Withdrawal Syndromes”. In 2013, he received the Research Poster of the Year Award from the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. In May 2014, Dr Maldonado received the Herbert Spiegel Award for Hypnosis Research from the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University & New York State Psychiatric Institute. In November 2014, Dr Maldonado received the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine’s DLIN/Fischer Award, for significant achievement in clinical research for his research on alcohol withdrawal syndromes and the development of the Prediction of Alcohol Withdrawal Severity Scale (PAWSS). He also received the APM’s 2014 Research Poster of the Year Award for the paper “Cortical hypoactivation during resting EEG suggests central nervous system pathology in patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome”, and the 2014 Visiting Professorship Award. In June 2016, Dr Maldonado received the Sawlow Memorial Award on Neuroscience from the Oregon Health & Science University and the Portland International Neuroscience Symposium planned jointly by psychiatry, neurology and neurosurgery. Finally, he has been recognized by his clinical peers as one of Castle Connolly – “Top Doctor Award” every year since in 2003 (2003 – 2016).
Dr. Maldonado is a Fellow of the American College of Forensic Psychiatry and the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine; and a member of the Board of Directors and President-Elect of the American Delirium Society (ADS). Dr. Maldonado enjoys national and international recognition as an expert in Psychosomatic Medicine, and specifically in the pathophysiology, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of delirium and acute brain failure; the neurobiology, prevention and treatment of alcohol withdrawal syndromes; Transplant Psychiatry, more specifically the psychosocial assessment of organ transplant candidates and donors; traumatic brain injury; conversion disorder; and hypnosis. He is also director of the Mental Health & the Law course in the Stanford School of Law.
Dr. Maldonado is Board Certified in General and Adult Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine, Forensic Psychiatry, Forensic Medicine, and Addiction Medicine. Dr. Maldonado has over 140 publications to his name, and delivered over 130 peer-reviewed and over 330 invited national and international presentations. Dr Maldonado and his team have developed a number of clinical instruments and tools designed to assist Psychosomatic medicine practitioners, including:
Stanford Integrated Psychosocial Assessment for Transplantation (SIPAT) – developed to assess the psychosocial candidacy of organ transplant and ventricular assisted devices (VADs). Studies have demonstrated that demonstrated that higher SIPAT scores are significantly correlated with the probability of poor medical (p<.001) and psychosocial (p=.002) outcomes. Currently been used in over 175 centers around the world and been translated into 10 languages. 2012, Stanford University.
Prediction of Alcohol Withdrawal Severity Scale (PAWSS) – Developed to identify medically-ill patients at risk of severe AWS, so appropriate prophylaxis and timely treatment could be implemented before the development of clinical complications. Studies have demonstrated the tool has a sensitivity of 93.5%, specificity of 99.5%, positive predictive value of 93.5%, and negative predictive value of 99.5%. I received the 2014 DLIN/Fischer Award for excellence in clinical research from the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine for my work on PAWSS. 2013, Stanford University.
Stanford Proxy Test for Delirium (S-PTD) – The first and only Delirium diagnostic tool based on DSM-5 and ICD-10 criteria, developed to allow for the timely and accurate diagnosis of delirium, in order to provide early and timely management of this condition. The tool has a sensitivity of 80% and specificity of 90% in the diagnosis of delirium in medically-ill patients. 2014, Stanford University.
Stanford’s Algorithm for Predicting Delirium (SAPD) – developed to help predict those patients at risk for developing delirium; which should provide for the implementation of prophylactic management techniques and monitoring of patients at risk. Validation studies are under way. 2015, Stanford University.
Liza Sher, MD received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Berkeley, where she majored in Molecular and Cell Biology with emphasis in Neuroscience. She then worked in Molecular Biology Lab at the VA Medical Center in San Francisco, where she conducted basic science research on Complex I and Complex II of the respiratory chain, resulting in several publications.
In 2003, she was accepted to Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and was awarded the Olin Fellowship, for “female graduate students with exceptional professional promise.” During medical school, she received multiple awards, including the Herrmann Award, a peer-nominated award for a graduating medical student for their listening and communication skills, and the Peter Halstead Hudgens Award, in recognition of excellence in research and clinical psychiatry during medical school. She was also elected into Alpha Omega Alpha, Honors Medical Society, an honor granted to top 10% of medical school class for overall academic achievements, leadership and community involvement.
Dr. Sher went on to receive her residency training in adult psychiatry at Stanford Hospital and Clinics. During her final year, she was elected to be a Chief Resident. She was awarded the Outstanding Resident Award, given to a graduating resident for overall excellence. During her training at Stanford, Dr. Sher was particularly drawn to and inspired by Psychosomatic Medicine. She was a member of the research team that first demonstrated the clinical efficacy of the Stanford Integrated Psychosocial Assessment for Transplantation (SIPAT) under the leadership of Dr. Maldonado and was the leading author in a review article on depression and heart disease.
Dr Sher served as Stanford’s first fellow in Psychosomatic Medicine at Stanford, and joined the Stanford faculty after its completion in October 2012. She was awarded 2012-2013 Webb Fellowship by the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine. During her fellowship and continuing into her faculty time, Dr. Sher has been involved in several research projects, including the development and validation of a tool to help predict severe alcohol withdrawal among medically ill individuals, and a study designed to validate the SIPAT. Her other interests include psychodynamic psychotherapy, depression in medically ill, neuropsychiatry, psychiatric disorders in pre-, peri-, and post-lung transplantation, psychiatric disorders in cystic fibrosis, and delirium. Dr. Sher also serves as a member of Stanford Ethics Committee. Dr Sher is currently an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, and serves as Associate Training Director of the Psychosomatic Medicine Fellowship Program.
Dr. Garcia received her medical school education at Loma Linda University, School of Medicine, in the Greater Los Angeles area in 2010. She then entered the General Adult Psychiatry Residency program at University of Southern California's Keck School of Medicine. During residency at LAC+USC Medical Center, she was chosen to receive the resident achievement award for both her PGY1 and PGY2 years. Her research interests developed during residency focused on reproductive psychiatry and repetitive traumatic brain injury. She presented her PGY3 research project at the 2014 APA annual meeting on the Implications of Repetitive, Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in the Setting of Intimate Partner Violence. She longitudinally participated in USC's maternal wellness clinic with Dr. Emily Dossett working directly with women during the peripartum and postpartum periods with focus on perinatal mood disorders, including running a monthly Maternal Wellness support group. Then as Chief resident of the consultation and liaison service during her PGY4 year, she conducted an interdepartmental quality improvement project focusing on the fundamentals of decision-making capacity evaluations in effort streamline consultations and strengthen the department’s liaison roles. She also has strong interests in residency education actively participating in graduate medical education committee and residency selection committee. During her PM-fellowship at Stanford, she developed her skills in resident education, psychotherapeutic techniques in the medically ill, and participated in delirium focused research. Dr Garcia is an Instructor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford School of Medicine.
Dr. Lahijani earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences with a minor in Spanish Language and Literature from the University of Rhode Island in 2002. Prior to becoming a physician, Dr. Lahijani worked as a consultant in the Rhode Island Department of Health's Diabetes Prevention & Control Program and as a pharmacist in community settings. These experiences fostered her early interests in the interplay of behavioral health and medicine.
While attending Brown Medical School in Providence, RI, she focused clinically on infectious diseases, HIV, and endocrinology. She investigated skeletal health in HIV-infected patients. She also investigated the screening and primary care management for chronic hepatitis C virus in Rhode Island. Dr. Lahijani’ s interests in psychiatry developed as she appreciated the psychiatric comorbidities of patients with complex medical problems, such as HIV, hepatitis C, and diabetes, during her medical school rotations, particularly on the consultation-liaison psychiatry service. She developed further appreciation for holistic health, communication and cultural contexts through volunteerism in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala and Iran.
Dr. Lahijani then pursued her medical training in the combined internal medicine/psychiatry residency program at Rush University Medical Center in 2007 in Chicago. She has worked extensively in the areas of primary care, endocrinology, HIV, addiction, critical care, and consultation-liaison psychiatry. Dr. Lahijani recently completed the psychosomatic medicine fellowship at Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine. She served on the Medical Ethics Committee at Northwestern and participated regularly in teaching activities of house staff. In her fellowship, she also developed greater interest in psycho-oncology, which prompted her to rotate at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
She is a member of the Association of Medicine and Psychiatry, the American College of Physicians, the Society for the Study of Psychiatry and Culture, and the American Psychosocial Oncology Society. Given her collective experiences, Dr. Lahijani’ s clinical and research interests include the integration of medicine and psychiatry, cultural contexts of health and illness, psychotherapy, medical education, and patient advocacy. Dr. Lahijani joined the faculty at Stanford as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences in September 2015. She is working as a psychiatric consultant and clinician educator in both the inpatient and outpatient settings while focusing on psychiatric oncology and integrated care models,
Affiliated Faculty
Dr. Larry McGlynn is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area and has been on the faculty of Stanford since 2000. Dr. McGlynn began his career as a mathematician. After obtaining a graduate degree in applied mathematics/Operations Research from Stanford University, he was employed by Bell Communications Research to construct mathematical models of fiber optic electronics in the Japanese manufacturing industry. He began his transition to medicine after winning a fellowship in Mathematics and Medicine at the University of California, San Diego, where he utilized applied mathematics in both HIV and cardiovascular health in Mexican-Americans. Dr. McGlynn went on to earn his MD at Harvard Medical School where he was the recipient of the Paul Dudley White Fellowship. Dr. McGlynn used this award to study infant mortality in the highlands of Guatemala. He completed his psychiatry residency at The Cambridge Hospital.
In addition to serving as Clinical Professor and seeing patients in the Stanford-based HIV clinics, Dr. McGlynn is also Director of the Stanford Methamphetamine Task Force, a multidisciplinary group of physicians, nurses, social workers, legal experts and community members who are funded to research and provide education on the abuse of methamphetamine and its connection to HIV infection. Dr. McGlynn is also Faculty Medical Director for the San Jose AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC). In this role, he directs the multidisciplinary faculty (including Infectious Diseases, Primary Care, Mental Health, Nursing, Legal, and Social Work) and curriculum development. The San Jose AETC provides HIV clinical education for providers from Santa Clara County south to San Luis Obispo County.
At the national level, Dr. McGlynn serves as Chairman of the American Psychiatric Association’s Office of HIV/AIDS and its associated steering committee. In addition, he holds a seat on the APA’s Council on Psychosomatic Medicine.
In 2010, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors presented Dr. McGlynn with the Burgiss Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in HIV/AIDS.
Divy Ravindranath, MD
Dr. Ravindranath, a board certified Psychosomatic Medicine specialist, completed his undergraduate degree in Environmental Sciences with a minor in Business Administration at UC Berkeley in 1999. In 2000, he matriculated into the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program, earning his MS in Health and Medical Sciences in 2003 and his MD in 2005. He completed General Adult Psychiatry Residency and Fellowship in Psychosomatic Medicine at the University of Michigan in 2009 and 2010 respectively. During his post-graduate training, he received an additional certification in medical education and was the recipient of two teaching awards, the Association for Academic Psychiatry Fellowship, and the American College of Psychiatrists’ Laughlin Fellowship. He has maintained an academic and clinical interest in emergency psychiatry and acute care services, especially as it pertains to the mental health care of veterans. He is the Director of the Mental Health Evaluation Clinic and the Consultation-Liaison Service at the Palo Alto VA and has served as the site liaison for the Psychosomatic Medicine Fellowship since February 2014.
Vidushi Savant, MD
Dr. Savant completed her medical school education from Government Medical College, Patiala, India in 2008. She received her residency training in adult psychiatry at Loyola University Medical Center (2009-13). During the Consult-Liaison rotation of her residency training she became particularly interested in research on delirium, particularly the potential of melatonin for delirium prevention. During her residency she was involved in various on-going research projects at her program, including: a study investigating the use of Celecoxib in the treatment resistant bipolar depression (Dr. Angelos Halaris, mentor); and a study of the effects of treatment on kynurenine pathway and inflammatory cytokines in depressed patients. She is first author on this topic at the meeting of the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine and the Society of Biological Psychiatry. She is currently co-authoring 2 papers the relationship of the kynurenine pathway and inflammatory cytokines in depression with Dr. Halaris and Dr. Myint.
During residency she received 3 achievement awards in research and received a certificate of appreciation for clinical work. She was inducted as a member Medical Honor Society Alpha Omega Alpha during her residency by the caucus of student members of the society. She was actively involved in medical student teaching on Introduction to Psychopharmacology and Review of Psychopharmacology during her 3rd and 4th year of residency.
She completed her Psychosomatic Medicine fellowship at Stanford (2013 – 2014) during which time participated in the development and studying of a new tool for the diagnosis of delirium, the Proxy Test for Delirium (PTD) among hospitalized, medically-ill patients.
Magdolna Dunai, MD
Dr. Dunai joined Stanford Faculty in 1997 after graduating from Stanford Psychiatry Residency Training Program. She is currently an Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor in Psychiatry.She received her medical diploma at Semmelweis School of Medicine in Budapest,Hungary distinguished “summa cum laude”.then completed full residency training and received Board Certification in Internal Medicine She accomplished several years of research at the New York University Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Cornell University Medical Center in Manhattan,. After graduation, she served as the medical director for the Drug and Alcohol Clinic at Stanford, and worked as a research fellow at the Bipolar Clinic. She has been involved with the CL Psychosomatic Medicine service since 1998. She has taught and supervised residents, medical students. and fellows, both in the inpatient setting as attending physician on the Consult-Liaison Service in the hospital as well as in the outpatient clinics. She has received several awards for excellence in teaching and research.Furthermore, she is currently the consulting psychiatrist for the Department of Medicine at Stanford. Over the last couple of years she has also built a successful private practice in Palo Alto.
Dr. Dunai teaches integrative psychotherapy and medication management at the outpatient Psychosomatic Medicine clinic. She focuses on using different psychotherapeutic modalities with a combinative approach according to the personality structure and the complex psychiatric and medical problems of her patients. Dr. Dunai serves as: a member of the Educational Leadership Committee at the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford, a member of the Admission Committee for Psychiatry Residency at Stanford, and a member of the Appointments and Promotion Committee.
Past Psychosomatic Medicine Fellows
- 2011 – 2012 Yelizaveta Sher, MD
- 2013 – 2014 Vidushi Savant, MD
- 2014 – 2015 Renee Garcia, MD
- 2015 – 2016 Anna Piotrowski, MD
- 2015 – 2016 Luke White, MD
- 2016 – 2017 Andrea Ament, MD
- 2016 – 2017 Earl De Guzman, MD
