Accredited Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program

Jeanne Lackamp, MD
Chair, Department of Psychiatry

Akhil Anand, MD
Program Training Director

Brian Barnett, MD
Associate Program Director

Kate Kilbane
Program Administrator

• University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, one of the nation’s leading academic urban hospital systems. Fellows participate in weekly didactic sessions and rotate to Addiction Recovery Services (ARS) and the Rainbow Interdisciplinary Substance Exposure (RISE) Program (high risk OB clinic)..
• The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, a leading academic medical center consistently ranked among the best hospitals in the United States. Fellows rotate in three key settings: the Alcohol and Drug Recovery Center (inpatient alcohol and drug withdrawal unit), the MAP Clinic, (multidisciplinary alcohol-associated liver disease outpatient clinic), and the Comprehensive Pain Recovery Program.
• MetroHealth System, an academic public safety net hospital system. Fellows gain valuable experience in three settings: the Dual-Diagnosis Inpatient Unit, the Addiction Consult-Liaison Service, and the Motivation & Engagement Clinic (walk-in buprenorphine clinic).
• Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center, the primary healthcare facility serving military veterans in Cleveland and the surrounding regions. Fellows rotate at the inpatient residential facility, the Opioid Treatment Program, and the Gambling Program, a nationally recognized outpatient service.
• New Directions, a comprehensive, free-standing residential and outpatient treatment program for adolescents and young adults. Fellows gain firsthand experience providing dual-diagnosis treatment to adolescents within their residential facility.
• The Comprehensive Treatment Center (CTC), a non-profit outpatient clinic providing a wide range of services to individuals with opioid use disorder, including methadone maintenance treatment, medical somatic services, counseling, vocational support, case management, and social services.
• Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH), a non-profit organization that connects service providers and housing advocates with individuals experiencing homelessness. Trainees gain valuable in street psychiatry, addressing the challenges of homelessness and the social determinants of health while advocating for social justice.
• Stella Maris, a free-standing residential and outpatient treatment program offering alcohol and drug withdrawal management, an inpatient residential facility, a partial hospitalization program, an intensive outpatient program and supportive housing.
• Cuyahoga County Jail serves as the city's primary detention facility. Fellows provide treatment for incarcerated individuals who suffer from SUD and co-occurring psychiatric diagnoses. Fellows also participate in the jail’s Wellness Re-Entry Assistance Program.
• Longitudinal Outpatient SUD Clinic, a year-long rotation where the fellows provide support and tailored treatment for patients in their recovery journey while refining their skills in patient management, treatment planning, and ongoing care.

We encourage all fellows to actively engage in scholarly work. Our affiliation with Case Western Reserve University and various collaborative programs offers extensive teaching and research opportunities. These opportunities allow fellows to contribute to the field of addiction psychiatry while enhancing their academic and professional growth.

Throughout the fellowship, trainees from both the University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program and the MetroHealth Addiction Medicine Fellowship Program, along with other interprofessional learners, meet every Wednesday afternoon for learning. We use a diverse range of dynamic teaching methods, including expert-led lectures and panel discussions, peer-led Balint groups, experiential field trips, and hands-on, game-based learning. Fellows will experience over one hundred classes, all guided by more than forty faculty members. To ensure fellows are fully prepared from the start, the program also includes a comprehensive 16-hour Addiction Medicine Bootcamp in July, setting the foundation for a successful and impactful year ahead.

2024-25 Fellows

Ajitpaul Basra, M
Hometown – Sacramento, California
Residency Program – MetroHealth Medical Center
Medical School – Government Medical College Amritsar

Jared Harp, DO
Hometown – Kenton, Ohio
Residency Program – Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Medical School – Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine

Brandon Salzman, DO
Hometown – Jericho, NY
Residency Program – Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Medical School – Midwestern University, Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine

Core UH Cleveland Medical Center Faculty

Akhi Anand, MD
Fellowship Program Director, Addiction Psychiatry, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Clinical Assistant Professor, CWRU School of Medicine

Brian Barnett, MD
Associate Program Director, Addiction Psychiatry, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Assistant Professor, CWRU School of Medicine 

Vincent Caringi, MD
Clinical Assistant Professor, CWRU School of Medicine 
Chief Medical Officer, The Centers 

Kathleen Clegg, MD
Division Chief, Adult Psychiatry, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Clinical Associate Professor, CWRU School of Medicine

Samantha Imfeld, MD
Child Psychiatrist, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Clinical Assistant Professor, CWRU School of Medicine

Jeanne Lackamp, MD
Chair, Department of Psychiatry, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Psychiatrist-in-Chief, UH Cleveland Medical Center 
Director, Pain Management Institute, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Associate Professor, CWRU School of Medicine 

Charles Luther, MD
Chair, Department of Psychiatry, Southwest General Hospital 

Sybil Marsh, MD
Family Physician, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Associate Professor,  CWRU School of Medicine

Lulu Zhao, MD
Director of RISE Clinic, UH Cleveland Medical Center
Associate Professor, CWRU School of Medicine

Natasha Ashcraft, CNP
Lead Advanced Practice Provider, UH Cleveland Medical Center

Additional Key Faculty

• Christina Antenucci, MD
• David Brager, CNP
• Heather Chapman, PhD
• Richard DeFranco, MD
• Eric Dobson, MD
• Charles Emerman, MD 
• Neera Gupta, MD
• David Ignatowski, MD
• Erick Kauffman, MD, MPH
• Kate Kelley, MD
• Joseph F Lydon, MD
• Youssef Mahfoud, MD
• Desimir Mijatovic, MD
• Theodore Parran, MD
• Josephine Sabharwal, MD
• David Streem, MD
• Pavan Tankha, DO
• Zevidah Vickery, MD
• Elena Yanchar, DO

Former Fellows

1. Feel Supported: Residency and fellowship can be difficult, and you want to have a team on your side that helps you get through the tougher days. You can expect to experience this at UH Cleveland Medical Center. There is always someone to talk to about work and non-work-related issues.
2. Feel Guided: Becoming a physician was challenging enough, then you need to decide which residency to choose, and then which fellowship to pursue, often without much guidance. At UH Cleveland Medical Center, when it comes time to graduate, be certain that the team will guide you to find the job that fits your interests, goals and needs.
3. Get Recognized: Interested in presenting at conferences, applying for grants, receiving awards and scholarships? UH Cleveland Medical Center faculty is well reputed in the field of General/Addiction Psychiatry and help their trainees receive the recognition they deserve from national organizations.
4. Feel Prepared: At UH Cleveland Medical Center, you’ll treat patients of all demographics and addictions of varying types and intensities. The variety of cases encountered in Cleveland will prepare you well to handle even the most difficult withdrawal symptoms and substance use disorders you may encounter upon graduation.
5. Feel Rewarded: Working with patients through the spectrum of treatment, (i.e., withdrawal management (detox), residential, IOP and PHP), you’ll get to follow patients’ progression through their treatment. Watching patients receive their sobriety token is such a rewarding feeling, knowing that you helped someone improve their lives, one step at a time.
6. Enjoy Cleveland: Big city vibes without the big city cost or traffic. There is just so much to do in Cleveland, like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, A Christmas Story House, West Side Market, Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland Botanical Garden, Edgewater Beach, Garfield Park, and much more. Spend a year of fellowship in a city that offers so much to do during those weekends off when you just need to unwind.
7. Work/Life Balance: There is no call obligation and there are opportunities for internal and external moonlighting.
8. Professional Development: Opportunity to mentor and hone educational skills by lecturing medical students and residents.
9. Educational Sessions: Bond with Addiction Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine fellows over learning, debate of important issues in addiction, and discussion of challenging cases.
10. Program Administrator: Literally the best administrative staffer ever—KATE KILBANE! She makes everything better!

I often reflect on the people I’ve met, the amount I’ve learned and the fun I had while in Cleveland, even during COVID. I loved the people I worked with and am I’m still in touch with Kate, our program coordinator, and Dr. Delos Reyes (the previous program director), along with the fellows and residents that I worked with. The training made me confident in the care I provide my patients.

Talha Baloch, MD (2020 graduate)
Layne Gritti, MD (2022 graduate)
Chinenye Okukpon, MD (2021 graduate)

Applicants must be board eligible at the time of entry into the program. We accept applications through the Electronic Residency Service (ERAS). Regarding visa applicants, our program sponsors J-1 visas only.

For the 2026-2027 recruitment season, we are accepting applications submitted through ERAS. Visit the ERAS website to learn more. Interviews and offers will occur via a rolling admissions process from August to November. Offers December 1, 2026.

Kate Kilbane - Program Manager
Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship
Department of Psychiatry
University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
W.O. Walker Center – 13-106
10524 Euclid Avenue | 13th Floor
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
Phone: 216-983-5627 | Fax: 216-844-5883 | kate.kilbane@uhhospitals.org