Geriatric Psychiatry

We train geriatric psychiatrists who diagnose and treat people age 60 and older with complex psychiatric, medical, and neurological illnesses. Our in-depth program emphasizes neuropsychiatry, which examines psychiatric conditions from a neurological perspective – the neuropathology of diseases, how emotions and psychiatric illnesses relate to brain function, and the neuropsychiatric aspects of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. 

As part of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Aging (CNSA), we focus on the earliest detection and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders and provide support for patients’ caregivers on managing dementia-related behaviors. We also treat geriatric patients with severe mental illnesses and complex medical comorbidities and provide psychiatric care for patients in long-term care facilities.

We have a multidisciplinary team of geriatric psychiatrists, neuropsychiatrists, and consultation-liaison psychiatrists – who provide psychiatric consultations for hospitalized and skilled nursing patients – neurologists, psycho-oncologists, and licensed social workers who specialize in working with seniors.

As part of our collaborative research with the CNSA, we’re developing novel neurocognitive tests for the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease. We’re also involved in creating a registry of Black people and other under-represented groups at risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders – patient populations that are challenging to enroll in clinical research. Additionally, we’re involved in several clinical trials exploring treatments of Alzheimer’s disease and its related symptoms.

Our division includes the University of Miami state-funded Memory Disorders Clinic – part of CNSA’s Alzheimer’s Center of Excellence – a recognized partner of 1Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC). This partnership furthers our mission of identifying disease at the earliest stages; reaching underserved, at-risk populations; and improving older adults’ quality of life.

The goal of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine Division of Geriatric Psychiatry is to ensure tomorrow’s geriatric psychiatrists have a deeply enriching educational experience that provides them with the knowledge, tools, and experience to deliver exceptional care to patients and help preserve mental well-being and acuity in the later stages of life.