Psychopharmacology: A Master Class
- Continuing Education
Expand your clinical expertise by joining our 15th annual two-day Master Class, designed for psychiatrists, researchers, and trainees focused on complex and treatment-resistant psychiatric conditions. Engage with leading experts as they present cutting-edge strategies, emerging treatments, and the latest neurobiological research shaping the future of psychiatric care.
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Overview
We are pleased to offer our 15th annual two-day Master Class uniquely designed for practicing clinicians, clinical researchers, and trainees in psychiatry. Presentations will focus on typical psychiatric patients with emphasis on those who are difficult to treat or are treatment resistant. Newer treatments and developing treatment strategies will be discussed including the use of genetic tests, blood level measurements, and drug combinations. New research that can inform clinical practice will be emphasized. There will be considerable opportunity for interaction with the presenters.
This conference will focus on the following topics: An updated review of neurobiology and brain function taking the attendee through neurotransmission sequence from the central role of neurotransmitter circuits, transmitters and receptors, synaptic function gene transcription, and interaction between genes and the environment. Drug treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder will be presented with a focus on prodromal symptoms and first episode patients, as well as long-term maintenance, and treatment resistant patients. New antipsychotic medications and treatment augmentation will be reviewed along with potential new uses for mood stabilizers. Neurobiological mechanisms of depression with a discussion of both the genetic and epigenetic contribution, and the role of inflammation will be highlighted. Modern use of antidepressants will be based on the latest clinical findings. Special consideration will be given to ketamine, ECT, TMS, psychedelics, and augmentation strategies for treatment resistant depression, and bipolar depression.
Diagnosis and treatment of anxiety, and anxiety-spectrum disorders as well as their pharmacological treatment will be presented, including panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, along with recent data regarding the risks and benefits of benzodiazepines. The etiology and standard pharmacological treatment of PTSD will be discussed including the new use of ketamine and psychedelics in a separate presentation. The evaluation and psychopharmacological treatment of women’s mental health issues will be updated with particular emphasis on PMS, perinatal, and postpartum disorders. The course will also include a review of the neurobiology and treatment of sleep disorders in psychiatry as well as a lecture on the neurobiology and treatment of alcohol, cannabis, and other substance abuse disorders. Basic neurobiological and pharmacological factors in the treatment of child and adolescent affective disorders and latest advances in geriatric psychopharmacology and neuropsychiatry will be reviewed.
Throughout the course both the establishment and importance of the therapeutic alliance when prescribing all psychotropic medications as well as new neurobiological research findings that will influence clinical practice.
Learning Objectives
- Evaluate the effects of neurotransmitters, neurocircuits, and genes on psychotropic drug treatment.
- Describe the pharmacologic treatment of schizophrenia with particular reference to the prodromal period and first episode.
- Outline the emerging theories and treatments of bipolar disorder, depression, treatment resistant depression, bipolar depression, stress, and anxiety, PTSD and neuropsychiatric disorders.
- Discuss the role of psychopharmacology in the management of depression and bipolar disorder in childhood and adolescence .
- Identify the benefits and risks of ketamine and psychedelics, including use for PTSD.
- Discuss the role of psychotropic medications in women’s mental health with an emphasis on PMS, pregnancy, nursing, and the postpartum period.
- Explain the role of psychopharmacology in the treatment of substance use disorders with particular emphasis on alcohol, opiates, and cannabis.
- Give examples of the latest advances and problems associated with treatment approaches in the geriatric populations.
Developed and Offered By:
Continuing Education courses are developed by faculty from Harvard Medical School's teaching hospitals and accredited by Harvard Medical School. This course is offered by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Participant Types
Pharmacists, Specialty Physicians, Psychologists, Physician Assistants, Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, Primary Care Physicians
Schedule
All agenda sessions are in Eastern Time.
Friday, March 20, 2026
Registration
7:30-8:00 am
Welcome Remarks
8:00-8:15 am
Update on the Neurobiology for the Practicing Clinician: Understanding Brain Function and its Clinical Relevance
8:15-9:00 am
Developing New Treatments for Major Depression: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back?
9:00-9:45 am
Treatment of Bipolar Disorders; Neurobiology and Clinical Directions; Revival of Lithium
9:45-10:30 am
Coffree Break
10:30-10:45 am
Update: The Psychopharmacology of the Reproductive Life Cycle: Premenstrual, Pregnancy, Lactation, and Menopause
10:45-11:30 am
Psychopharmacologic Approaches in Childhood affective disorders
11:30 am-12:15 pm
Panel Discussion # 1
12:15-12:45 pm
Lunch
12:45-1:45 pm
Clinical Relevance of Brain Circuity for Psychiatric Treatment
1:45-2:30 pm
Psychopharmacology in geriatrics and neuropsychiatry
2:30-3:15 pm
Coffee Break
3:15-3:30 pm
Therapeutic Approaches to the Difficult Patient
3:30-4:15 pm
Panel Discussion # 2
4:15-5:00 pm
Saturday, March 21, 2026
Treatment for Schizophrenia: Prodrome First Episode, Relapse and New Treatment Possibilities
8:30-9:15 am
Neurobiology and treatment of Sleep in Psychiatric Disorders
9:15-10:15 am
Coffee Break
10:15-10:30 am
Update: Digital Phenotyping in Psychiatry and Psychopharmacology; Role of AI?
10:30-11:15 am
Mechanisms of Psychedelics and Their Potential Treatment for PTSD
11:15 am-12:00 pm
Panel Discussion
12:00-12:45 pm
Lunch
12:45-1:45 pm
Update: Effective Treatment of Substance Use Disorders
1:45-2:30 pm
Treatment of Anxiety Spectrum Disorders, and PTSD, New Benzodiazepine Data
2:30-3:15 pm
Coffee Break
3:15-3:30 pm
Psychopharmacology of trauma related disorders
3:30-4:15 pm
Panel Discussion
4:15-4:45 pm
Wrap-Up, Last Questions
4:45-5:00 pm
Faculty
Harvard Medical School Continuing Education attracts the best and brightest faculty from all around the world. As a student in this course, you’ll have access to outstanding course directors and faculty.
Course Directors
Carl Salzman
MD | Course Director
- Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Matcheri Keshavan
MD | Course Director
- Stanley R. Cobb, Professor and Academic Head of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts Mental Health Center (MMHC)
- Harvard Medical School
Roscoe Brady
MD, PhD | Course Director
- Vice-Chair for Research in the Department of Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School
Melissa Bianchi-Coppola, RN, BSN, MA
Tony Cunningham, PhD
Director for the Center for Sleep and Cognition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School
Alejandro Dan Mendoza, MD
Director of Neuropsychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Cognitive Neurology Unit and Director of Heart Transplant Psychiatry for the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Heart Transplant Program
Melissa DelBello, MD, MS
A Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics and Dr. Stanley and Mickey Kaplan Chair of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine (UCCOM)
Kristina Deligiannidis, MD
Director of Women’s Behavioral Health at the Zucker Hillside Hospital at Northwell Health and a Professor of Psychiatry, Molecular Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell
Jean-Marie Flynn
Ryan Henner, MD
Staff Psychiatrist and Director of Novel Therapeutics at Beth Israel Deaconess main campus in Boston, with work on the Consult-Liaison service, Esketamine clinic, and BI-Lahey Collaborative Care Program
Kevin Hill, MD, MHS
Director of Addiction Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School
Katie Mazzeo
Charles Nemeroff, MD, PhD
Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin
Pooja Sarkar, DO
Board-Certified Addiction Psychiatrist in the Division of Addiction Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Katrina Screen, MA
Alan Schatzberg, MD
Kenneth Norris Jr. Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University
Stephen Stahl, MD, PhD
Faculty positions at Stanford University, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), the Institute of Psychiatry London, the Institute of Neurology London, and, currently Distinguished Health Sciences Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the University of California Riverside, Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego
John Torous, MD, MBI
Director of the Digital Psychiatry division, in the Department of Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BDIMC), a Harvard Medical School affiliated teaching hospital, where he also serves as a staff psychiatrist and associate professor.
John Winkelman, MD, PhD
Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Chief of the Sleep Disorders Clinical Research Program in the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital
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Course Fees
Fee Disclaimer
You may register through our secure online environment and will receive an email confirmation upon receipt of your payment. Prices include CME credit, electronic syllabus. At the end of the registration process, a $10 non-refundable processing fee will be added to your registration.
Early Registration Deadline:
| Role | Course Fee |
|---|---|
| Physician (MD/DO) | $920.00 |
| Nurse (RN/APRN) | $720.00 |
| PA | $720.00 |
| Psychologist | $720.00 |
| Resident/Fellow | $720.00 |
| Social Worker | $720.00 |
| Allied Health Professional / Other | $720.00 |
Accreditation
The Harvard Medical School designates this live activity for a maximum of 14.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Harvard Medical School designates this live activity for a maximum of 14.25 ANCC contact hours.
The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) states that 14.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ are acceptable for continuing medical education requirements for recertification. We would also suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with 14.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
This activity meets the criteria of the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine for 24.00 credits of Risk Management Study. This includes:
- 0.75 credit(s) of Opioid Education and Pain Management Training
- 0.75 credit(s) of Medical Marijuana Training
Please check your individual state licensing board requirements before claiming these credits.
The American Medical Association (AMA) has an agreement of mutual recognition of continuing medical education (CME) credit with the European Union of Medical Specialties (UEMS). Additional information regarding this agreement may be found on the European Union of Medical Specialties website.
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada recognizes conferences and workshops held outside of Canada that are developed by a university, academy, hospital, specialty society or college as accredited group learning activities.