Dr. Jesse Suh is a clinical research psychologist and an investigator for the VISN 4 Mental Illness, Research Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center where he oversees the MIRECC Neuroimaging Research Program. He is Instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Center for Studies of Addiction. Using the latest therapies and neuroimaging techniques, he examines novel treatment approaches and behavior-brain vulnerability factors in the co-morbid conditions of substance addiction and PTSD. Dr. Suh’s primary responsibilities include submitting research grants, overseeing research projects, conducting assessment and treatment, analyzing behavior and neuroimaging data and publishing results.
Dr. Suh received his doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Long Island University, C.W. Post, as part of the entering Class of 1996. He then went on to complete the NIH National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Studies of Addiction at the University of Pennsylvania. He has received research grants from NIH-NIDA to study the role of affect regulation in cocaine dependent patients, and from VA-MIRECC to investigate behavior-brain vulnerability factors in veterans with PTSD using behavioral and neuroimaging assessment tools. He has presented at various national and international conferences, and has published numerous book chapters and scientific journal articles on substance addiction and co-morbid conditions. Several of his most recent journal articles include: Effects of Varenicline on Smoking Cue-triggered Neural and Craving Responses (Archives of General Psychiatry, 2011), Identifying Marijuana Use in High-Risk Veterans for Targeted Screening (Journal of Addiction Medicine, 2010), Low Prefrontal Perfusion Linked to Depression Symptoms in Methadone-Maintained Opiate-Dependent Patients (Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2009), and Gender Differences in Predictors of Treatment Attrition with High-dose Naltrexone in Cocaine and Alcohol Dependence (American Journal of Addiction, 2008).
Dr. Suh’s core research and clinical interests lie in the area of substance addiction, co-morbid conditions, and treatment. He maintains a private practice in Philadelphia working with adolescents, adults and their families with trauma experiences and/or substance abuse problems, with the aim of facilitating a therapeutic environment, promoting emotional growth and building coping skills. As a Korean-American clinician, he possesses invaluable experience in working with Asian adolescent and adult clients, with emphasis on cultural, acculturation and intra-familial issues. For further information, Dr. Suh can be reached atSuh_J@mail.trc.upenn.edu.
Dr. Suh will be coming back to Long Island University, C.W. Post Campus, on April 28, 2011. In the morning, he will receive a Distinguished Alumni Award at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Award Ceremony. In the afternoon, he will give a campus-wide lecture entitled Using Affect-Related Behavioral-and Brain-Markers to Predict Relapse and Resilience in Substance Abuse.