Adrienne C. Lahti, M.D.Adrienne C. Lahti, M.D., F. Cleveland Kinney Endowed Chair and professor of medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, has been named chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology.
Lahti will officially assume the role of chair Jan. 1, 2021.
“I have been with the department for 14 years now, and I have come to appreciate how impressive the department is through its excellent faculty and staff,” Lahti said. “It is thus an honor for me to serve as chair. I hope to build on its already formidable strengths by continuing to improve clinical care for patients with psychiatric conditions, advancing research aimed at improving mental health, and training future clinicians and scientists.”
Lahti, a physician-scientist, has been at UAB since 2006. Her research is dedicated to the study of schizophrenia and psychosis spectrum disorders using multimodal brain-imaging techniques. She has won several honors and awards for her research, including the Kempf Fund Award for Research Development in Psychobiological Psychiatry and the McNulty Civitan Scientist Award. Additionally, Lahti has written or co-written more than 145 peer-reviewed articles and several book chapters.
At UAB, she has pioneered growth in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology through her numerous leadership endeavors. She has served as vice chair for Research Training and Faculty Development, as director of the division of Behavioral Neurobiology, and on several departmental committees. Lahti is presently serving as director of the Comprehensive Neuroscience Center and co-director of the Alabama Advanced Imaging Consortium.
“Dr. Lahti is a skilled physician-scientist whose passion and knowledge is an exceptional fit for the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology,” said Selwyn M. Vickers, M.D., FACS, senior vice president for Medicine and dean of the School of Medicine. “Under her leadership, the department can continue to focus on research, discovery and patient care.”