PGY-3 Jeena Kar, DO and her collaborators have been published in The Cooper Rowan Medical Journal (CRMJ).

Florida ranks 9th in states with the highest…

Andrew Moore, a PhD student in the Neurocognitive Laboratory working under Dr. Sara Jo Nixon and Dr. Ben Lewis, is the latest investigator to be featured in the MBI Rising Stars video series.

The department of psychiatry held Housestaff Graduation on June 24th at Sweetwater Branch Inn. Congratulations to all our graduates!

Dr. Amanda Elton received her undergraduate degree in neuroscience at The College of William and Mary. She underwent graduate training at Emory University, where she received a master’s degree in pharmacology, before heading to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences where she received her PhD in clinical and translational sciences.

Dr. Elton continued her scientific training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was awarded a K01 research career development award from NIAAA to study the neural correlates of risk for alcohol use disorder. Her research interests include elucidating the effects of early life stress, heritable risk, and substance on neurocognitive processes relevant for addiction and other forms of psychopathology using  neuroimaging and behavioral methods.

In her role, she will be conducting research in addiction science with a study of lifespan trajectories, psychiatric and medical comorbidities, and application of large data sets to inform science, practice and policy.

Please welcome Dr. Amanda Elton to the Team!

Dr. Richa Vijayvargiya is happy to be returning to the University of Florida as a faculty psychiatrist. She completed her undergraduate degree at UF, followed by medical school at the University of Central Florida, residency at Baylor College of Medicine, and Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry fellowship at the University of Washington.

Dr. Vijayvargiya is passionate about optimizing the health and well-being of her patients, and strives to be a healing presence for patients enduring the adversity of general medical hospitalization. She values compassion and service, a strong work ethic, and a growth mindset, and as an educator, she hopes to model these attributes effectively for trainees while getting to know them individually. Outside of work, she enjoys music as a singer-songwriter, spending time with friends and family, and working out at the gym. She looks forward to continuing to grow in this vibrant community.

In her role she will be providing consult liaison services, evaluations and inpatient hospital care to patients at UF Health Shands, in addition to providing clinical teaching and supervision to interns, residents, and fellows. 

Please welcome Dr. Richa Vijayvargiya to the Team!

Geri Underhill back to Department of Psychiatry. Geri has returned to our department after retiring 6 years ago. She has spent 4 of the last 6 years working part-time with the Department of Anesthesiology. Geri has accepted our Fiscal Assistant II for research position, her responsibilities include assisting our research faculty and staff with purchase orders, travel, reimbursements and PCard verification. Geri joins our team with many years of UF administrative experience.

Please welcome Geri Underhill to the Team!

The Florida Museum of Natural History invites members of the Autism Community or anyone with a disability or special needs to enjoy a Sensory Friendly Day, Museum for Me! They will open early for a morning of exploration at the museum! Adults and children with disabilities and their friends, families, and caregivers can explore the museum at their own pace in a peaceful and less-crowded environment. In addition, a separate quiet space will be available to decompress or desensitize, if needed.

The Third Annual, Run 4 Recovery is Sunday, September 24th, 2022 at Depot Park, 874 SE 4th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601. Kickoff for the event begins at 8:15 a.m. on the day of the event.

Registration is free and includes a T-shirt for participants.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Gainesville Chapter will hold their Annual NAMI Walk on October 2, 2022 at Westwood Middle School at 1:00 p.m.

The NAMI walk is the main fundraiser for NAMI each year and continues to grow in support from the community. NAMI is the largest grass roots organization that provides support, advocacy and education to family members and individuals with a mental illness.

Did you know that it only takes 15 minutes of exercise/stretching each day to improve your health? We are excited to share our new, 15-minute lunchtime classes, available to any UF or UF Health employee! Each are live-streamed via Zoom.

Jump Start - Mondays from 12-12:15 pm. JumpStart focuses on elevating your heart rate, energy, and mood for the week through cardiovascular and strength-based interval training. Register here.

Relax - Tuesdays from 12-12:15 pm. Flow will offer gentle yoga that can be done at a desk with a focus on linking breath to movement.  Register here.

Build - Wednesdays from 12-12:15 pm. Improve your total-body strength with this 15-minute virtual workout. No equipment needed! Register here.

Unwind - Thursdays from 12-12:15 pm. This class focuses on gentle stretching that can help improve muscle control, flexibility, and range of motion. Register here. 

The UF Counseling and Wellness Center (CWC) offers free online mental health workshops for UF STUDENT, FACULTY, and STAFF. Workshops provide the opportunity to learn new skills to strengthen personal resilience, develop healthy self-care habits, and grow mental health awareness. No consultation or appointment is needed. Just RSVP and join at your convenience.

The full list of workshops is available here: https://counseling.ufl.edu/outreach/workshops/. Recordings of previous workshops are also available on the UF CWC YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/UFCWC

You can also subscribe to the UF CWC Newsletter here: https://lists.ufl.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=CWCINFO-L&A=1&X=O6136D532911A3CD557

In an effort to more efficiently connect UF and UF Health faculty and staff and their families to mental health services, UFHR, in partnership with the UF departments of Psychiatry and Clinical and Health Psychology, is introducing a new Mental Health Services Access Line devoted exclusively to university employees and their dependents. Faculty, staff and their dependents may call (352) 627-0032 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, to receive assistance identifying and securing access to the mental health services best suited to their needs.

The new helpline is designed to increase access to mental health care and to supplement existing resources like the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) rather than replace them, providing a single point of entry and ensuring employees get the help they need in a timely manner. UF employees and their household members may still call the EAP at any time, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at (833) 306-0103, and anyone experiencing a crisis with more urgent needs should call the Alachua County Crisis Center at (352) 264-6789.

Receive weather watches and warnings along with other weather tools with this free app from UF’s Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN).

Safety resources at your fingertips with the new UF GatorSAFE Mobile App. Smartphone users who download the free GATORSAFE app can now report tips, including those not adhering to COVID-19 guidelines, to the UF Police Department, make emergency calls and perform other functions that improve their personal safety and security.

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Editorial Team: 

David Roberts

Melinda Fawcett

Alexis Dusel

Priscilla Spence