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Lois Choi-Kain, MD, Psychiatry, Belmont, MA, McLean Hospital

LoisChoi-KainMDM.Ed.

Psychiatry Belmont, MA

Director, Gunderson Personality Disorder Institute; Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School

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Summary

  • I am a board certified psychiatrist specializing in the study and treatment of personality disorders. I am currently the Director of the Gunderson Personality Disorders Institute (GPDI), a center of training for empirically supported treatments for borderline personality disorder (BPD) and research on outcomes as well as the social cognitive mechanisms targeted in these interventions. My research training began as a post-doctoral fellow under the supervision of John Gunderson, M.D. I developed an intensive residential treatment program, the Gunderson Residence, combining various empirically supported therapies with a milieu setting emphasizing rehabilitation of social and occupational functioning. I also developed a training institute offering CME-accredited trainings in MBT, DBT, DBT-PTSD, transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP), and good psychiatric management (GPM). My aim as a researcher is to expand the scope and reach of effective interventions for BPD as a regular fixture of routine mental health care, to allow earlier intervention and facilitation of recovery before the burdens of illness too greatly diminish developmental opportunities critical to fostering healthy personality functioning.

Education & Training

  • Massachusetts General Hospital
    Massachusetts General HospitalFellowship, Personality Disorders and Psychosocial Research, 2006 - 2009
  • Massachusetts General Hospital/McLean Hospital
    Massachusetts General Hospital/McLean HospitalResidency, Psychiatry, 2003 - 2006
  • Steward Carney Hospital
    Steward Carney HospitalInternship, Internal Medicine, 2002 - 2003
  • Steward Carney Hospital
    Steward Carney HospitalInternship, Transitional Year, 2002 - 2003
  • Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University
    Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson UniversityClass of 2002
  • Harvard University
    Harvard UniversityM.E.d, Individualized Master's: Psychological Anthropology, 1998
  • Harvard University
    Harvard UniversityA.B., Social Studies, High Honors, Cum Laude, 1996

Certifications & Licensure

  • MA State Medical License
    MA State Medical License 2005 - 2025
  • American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology Psychiatry

Awards, Honors, & Recognition

  • Stanley and Mickey Kaplan Distinguished Psychiatrist Award University of Cincinnati Department of Psychiatry, 2023
  • Distinguished Psychiatrist Award University of California Los Angeles, 2023
  • Briscoli Lecture University of Massachusetts Medical School, 2023
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Clinical Trials

Publications & Presentations

PubMed

Lectures

  • Rejection Sensitivity/Presentation 
    Attachment and Borderline Personality Disorder Conference, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA - 2015
  • Mentalization Based Treatment: Integrating Tradition and Revolution in Psychotherapy/Presenter 
    Massachusetts Psychiatric Society’s Annual Psychotherapy Conference, Waltham, MA - 2015
  • Borderline Personality and Mood Disorders: Comorbidity and Controversy/Presenter, Grand Rounds 
    Maine Medical Center, Portland, ME - 2015
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Press Mentions

  • Brain Energy a Revolutionary Breakthrough in Understanding Mental Health by Christopher M Palmer
    Brain Energy a Revolutionary Breakthrough in Understanding Mental Health by Christopher M PalmerNovember 16th, 2022
  • November Issues of American Psychiatric Association Journals Cover Genetic Underpinnings of Psychiatric Illness, Use of Acute Mental Health Care by Children and More
    November Issues of American Psychiatric Association Journals Cover Genetic Underpinnings of Psychiatric Illness, Use of Acute Mental Health Care by Children and MoreNovember 2nd, 2022
  • April Issues of American Psychiatric Association Journals Cover Benefits of Medication for Opioid Use Disorder and Community-Based Treatment for People with Serious Mental Illness
    April Issues of American Psychiatric Association Journals Cover Benefits of Medication for Opioid Use Disorder and Community-Based Treatment for People with Serious Mental IllnessApril 4th, 2022
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Grant Support

  • NARSAD Young InvestigatorBrain Behavior Research Foundation2022–2024
  • Good Psychiatric Management (GPM) Model: Expanding Care for Underserved Patients with BPDPrivate funds, McLean Hospital2015–2017
  • Intensive Professional Education Opportunity in the Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder in the Dominican RepublicPrivate funds, McLean Hospital2014–2016
  • Neurocognition, Attachment and PersonalityFund for Psychoanalytic Research2007–2010
  • Cultural Grand Rounds GrantAmerican Psychiatric Association, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration2005–2009
  • Interpersonal Stress ReactivityAmerican Psychiatric Institute for Research and Education, Program for Minority Research Training. Psychosocial Fellowship, McLean Hospital2006–2008

Committees

  • Member, MBT Steering Committee, Anna Freud Center 2012 - Present
  • Member, Scientific Advisory Committee, National Education Alliance for BPD 2012 - Present
  • Member, Fellowship Committee, American Psychoanalytic Association 2007 - Present
  • Co-Chair, Stanton Lecture Committee, McLean Hospital 2006 - Present
  • Member, MemberSelection Committee, MGH-McLean Adult Psychiatry Residency Program 2009 - 2010
  • Member, Selection Committee, MGH-McLean Adult Psychiatry Residency Program 2005 - 2006

Professional Memberships

Hospital Affiliations