How does a single, unified psychiatry department strengthen care for patients and families?

A unified department allows us to function as one team, sharing expertise and best practices across our three hospitals — Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and McLean Hospital — so patients can access the right care at the right time, no matter where they enter the system. By reducing fragmentation and strengthening continuity, a single, collaborative department helps us deliver more personalized, compassionate, and research-informed care to more individuals and families when the need for patient-centered, evidence-based mental healthcare has never been greater.

Where do you see the greatest opportunities to accelerate discovery and impact?

Our greatest opportunity lies in bringing together complementary research strengths at scale — pairing McLean’s leadership in basic and translational science with the clinical and implementation expertise at Mass General and the Brigham. Working as one department allows us to share talent more easily and move discoveries from the lab into real-world care faster, accelerating impact across psychiatry.

What excites you most as we move forward as a unified program?

I’m excited about the scale of possibility before us. We now bring together an extraordinary breadth of expertise and talent across our department, grounded in a shared commitment to improving mental healthcare across the lifespan. I’m especially energized by what this means, from training the next generation of psychiatric leaders to expanding access to care and advancing discoveries that will shape the field for generations to come. With continued partnership from our philanthropic community, I truly believe we are building something exceptional together.

Will this change how faculty and teams collaborate across the department?

While the unification of our respective psychiatry programs is relatively new, we are already building a culture of shared purpose and openness that simply wasn’t possible before. Faculty across our three institutions have long respected one another and collaborated on research. Working as a fully coordinated department is making it easier to share ideas, mentor across sites, and collaborate more seamlessly across our clinical, research, and educational missions. This connectedness strengthens our community and ultimately translates into better care for our patients, stronger training programs for the next generation, and more impactful discovery.

Why is philanthropy so essential to advancing innovation?

Philanthropic support from our generous community of donors — including the Psychiatry Leadership Council — gives us the flexibility to think boldly and innovate. Research is resource intensive, and the ability to recruit and retain world-class faculty depends on flexible resources — particularly for early-stage ideas, endowed chairs, and high-risk, high-reward research. Donor investment accelerates discovery and fuels breakthroughs that might not be possible otherwise, ensuring our psychiatry department continues to provide effective, timely, and personalized treatment to patients and families in need.

What role do Leadership Council members play in shaping the future of a unified psychiatry program at Mass General Brigham?

The Leadership Council plays an essential role through philanthropy, advocacy, engagement, and shared vision. This partnership — and that of psychiatry donors across Mass General Brigham — allows us to move faster, take informed risks, and invest in the people and ideas shaping the future of psychiatry. Thanks to this commitment, our department is stronger together — and better positioned to lead.

To learn more about psychiatry at Mass General Brigham, contact Lori Etringer at letringer@mgb.org.