Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA), an academic community health system serving Cambridge, Somerville and Boston’s metro-north region, has named Philip Wang, MD, DrPH, as its new Chief of Psychiatry. Dr. Wang is a nationally renowned administrator, researcher and educator whose career has been dedicated to improving the lives of people with mental illnesses.
Dr. Wang will manage the department’s clinical operations for both inpatient and outpatient services, including efforts to strengthen its coordination and integration with primary care and other clinical services. In addition, he will oversee the Department’s academic programs, including training and research. As an appointing department of Harvard Medical School (HMS), CHA has a diverse and vibrant faculty that has established a standard of excellence in teaching.
“Mental and behavioral health services are a key component of CHA’s mission,” said CHA’s Chief Medical Officer Assaad Sayah, MD. “Dr. Wang has excelled in building systems that can aid vulnerable groups, and we are excited he is bringing this expertise to lead and enhance our nationally recognized Department of Psychiatry.”
Dr. Wang most recently served as the deputy medical director and director of research of the American Psychiatric Association. In this role, he was responsible for developing and expanding practice resources for the more than 37,000 psychiatrists of the association. Preceding this position, Dr. Wang was the deputy director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). There, he assisted in overseeing 1,300 NIMH staff and approximately $1.5 billion spent annually on basic, translational and clinical research focused on prevention, recovery and cures.
Additionally, Dr. Wang has served on the faculty at HMS, including mentoring residents and clinical fellows on their research projects. He has authored publications in leading medical journals and conducted national and global psychiatric epidemiology studies and pharmacoepidemiologic research as well as clinical trials to test new interventions. Dr. Wang was a member of the APA DSM-V Task Force and has consulted on several APA Work Groups that developed evidence-based treatment guidelines.
Dr. Wang completed his undergraduate degree in biochemistry, medical school, psychiatry residency and chief residency, as well as a master’s and doctoral degree in epidemiology, at Harvard. He will join CHA in September 2019. CHA is an academic community health system committed to providing high quality care in Cambridge, Somerville and Boston’s metro-north communities. CHA has expertise in primary care, specialty care and mental health/substance use services, as well as caring for diverse and complex populations. It includes three hospital campuses, a network of primary care and specialty practices and the Cambridge Public Health Dept. CHA patients have seamless access to advanced care through the system’s affiliation with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. CHA is a Harvard Medical School teaching affiliate and is also affiliated with Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard School of Dental Medicine and Tufts University School of Medicine.