“Our gift is about honoring, supporting, and inviting in everyone who might come to the clinic.” -Eliza Dushku Palandjian

For Peter Palandjian and Eliza Dushku Palandjian, giving to the Brigham connects them with philanthropists and friends who have come before them and pushes forward causes they care about deeply. Now, they have committed $7.5 million to expand their investment in people and programs they hold dear.

Of this extraordinary contribution, $5 million will strengthen the Palandjian’s support of state-of-the-art treatment for substance use disorders and The Brigham Fund, which aids wide-ranging needs across the hospital. To recognize their generosity to these efforts since 2018, the hospital will name the Eliza Dushku Palandjian and Peter Palandjian Bridge Clinic in their honor.

Peter and Eliza hope having their names associated with the clinic will lessen the stigma around substance use disorders. For many years, Eliza has maintained sobriety, and she is now completing graduate studies in counseling and clinical mental health with a concentration in psychedelic-assisted therapies for addiction and mental health disorders.

“Our gift is about honoring, supporting, and inviting in everyone who might come to the clinic,” says Eliza. “We’re thrilled to support the committed professionals who treat addiction with a multidisciplinary approach using evidence-based sciences together with holistic integration. These principles have benefited me in my own recovery.”

With this funding, Joji Suzuki, MD, director of the Division of Addiction Psychiatry, is advancing the clinic’s mission and aims to develop safe and effective approaches for psychedelics based on emerging evidence these therapies can benefit addiction treatment.

“The Bridge Clinic and Joji, through his leadership, are highly skilled and deeply committed to recovery therapies,” Eliza says. “Clinical studies are showing that psychedelic-assisted therapy can significantly reduce suffering in measurable ways. Trauma, treatment-resistant depression, addiction, end-of-life palliative care—mental health in general—this scientific field holds incredible promise.”

The Palandjians first began supporting the Bridge Clinic in its early days, following conversations with Charles A. Morris, MD, MPH, the family’s longtime physician. During his Brigham career, Morris has taken on increasing leadership roles, now serving as interim chief medical officer and senior vice president of medical affairs. To honor him and create a legacy of support for future chief medical officers at the Brigham, the Palandjians dedicated $2.5 million of their gift to establish the Palandjian Family Distinguished Chair in Medicine, with Morris as the inaugural incumbent.

“It is humbling to be able to support, thank, honor, and encourage the countless doctors, nurses, administrators, and all Brigham hospital workers who collectively live in service of keeping us healthy,” Peter expresses.

With more than two decades at the hospital, Morris says, “I strongly believe in the Brigham’s academic and clinical missions; my belief in this institution is unwavering. To know that the Palandjian family values those missions as I do is deeply rewarding. They are helping to sustain this environment for all who come through our doors.”