Welcome to the UCSF Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program! We are proud to offer a one-year, ACGME-accredited fellowship that provides state-of-the art addiction training, all in the San Francisco Bay area.
Why UCSF?
The Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship emphasizes evidence-based treatments – including psychosocial therapies, behavioral therapies, and psychopharmacology – for a range of substance use disorders. Prominent features include:
- Sub-specialty clinics with UCSF faculty supervision (see “Sites and Rotations”)
- Adolescent and family treatment experience
- Training in motivational interviewing with nationally recognized experts
- Psychotherapy training, including group psychotherapy supervision
- Elective rotation in a private residential addiction treatment center
- Consultation work at two major San Francisco hospitals
- Clinical research, including cutting-edge buprenorphine and cannabis research
- Mentorship within national organizations, including the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP), American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) and California Society of Addiction Medicine (CSAM)
- Opportunities to teach UCSF medical students, residents, and fellows
- All sites located in the San Francisco area, near many local sites and amenities
- The UCSF Addiction Psychiatry fellowship program remains committed to training physicians with a diverse range of backgrounds and life experiences to match the needs of our patients.
Applying to the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship
We have filled our class for the 2026-2027 academic year and are now accepting applications for the 2027-2028 academic year.
Applicants must have completed an ACGME-accredited general adult residency in psychiatry and have a valid, completely unrestricted California medical license, DEA license to prescribe buprenorphine, and California ePDMP login (CURES) prior to the starting date (July 1).
How to Apply
Our program uses the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) to process applications. Visit the ERAS website to learn more.
We encourage applicants to submit materials as early in the application period given the fact that interviews are offered on a rolling basis. Recruitment will be conducted virtually. Requests for onsite tours of the campus will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
The recruitment timeline for fellows starting July 1, 2027, is as follows:
- July 1, 2026: ERAS applications open for submission
- July 15, 2026: ERAS application released to the fellowship programs
- August–November 2026 (~four months): Interview season
- Nov. 12, 2026 (9 p.m. EST/6p.m. PST): Applicant and program NRMP Rank Order lists due
- Dec. 2, 2026: Match Day
- After Dec. TBA, 2026: Applicants can apply to programs directly
Submission Process and Deadline
Fellowship selection will occur via the NRMP Match and we will be recruiting up to four fellows. Please submit all application materials to the ERAS website once the application cycle opens and contact program coordinator Alejandra Infante at [email protected] with any questions.
Leadership Team
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Takeo Toyoshima, MDDirector, Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program |
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Eric Alcid, MD, PhDAssociate Director, Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program |
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Karin Lavie, MDVA Site Director, Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program |
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Katherine Pier, MDSite Director, Addiction Medicine and Recovery Services |
Alejandra InfanteProgram Coordinator |
Core Faculty
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Steven L. Batki, MDProfessor Emeritus, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Stephen Leung, MDHealth Sciences Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Murtuza Ghadiali, MDVolunteer Associate Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Monika Koch, MD, FASAMVolunteer Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
Community Supervisors
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Jeffrey Devido, MDVolunteer Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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David Kan, MD, DFASAMVolunteer Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Melissa London, PhDLicensed Clinical Psychologist |
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Veronica Losso, MDHealth Sciences Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
Volunteer Clinical Faculty
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Brian Borsari, PhDProfessor in Residence, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Marcus Ellis, PharmD, BCPPVolunteer Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Christopher Galloway, PhDHealth Sciences Associate Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Ellen Herbst, MDHealth Sciences Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
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Michael Hoefer, MDHealth Sciences Associate Clinical Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
Current and Former Addiction Psychiatry Fellows
| Year | Fellow (Residency site) |
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| 2025-2026 | Jacob Johnson, MD (San Mateo Country BHRS) Sarah Kaufman, MD (LSU Health Shreveport) Cecilia Nease, MD (Kaiser Oakland) Elsa Stoff, MD (Temple Univ.) |
| 2024-2025 | Amira Athanasios, MD (Jersey Shore Univ.) Victor Contreras, MD, MSc (UCSF) Jesse Vanacore, DO, MS (Medical Univ. of South Carolina) |
| 2023-2024 | Rachel Gluck, MD (Emory Univ.) Karin Lavie, MD (Univ. of Chicago) Erik Quan, MD (New York Univ.) Devin Stroman, MD (Univ. of Southern California) |
| 2022-2023 | Raghu Appasani, MD (Univ. of Southern California) Veronica Losso, MD (California Pacific Medical Center) Jason Roley, MD (San Mateo County) |
| 2021-2022 | Eric Alcid, MD, PhD (UCSF) Farhan Ladhani, BA, MD (Boston Medical Center) Stephen Leung, MD (Univ. of Michigan) Jack Van Bezooyen, MD (Emory Univ.) |
| 2020‑2021 | Tiffany Arnold, MD (Louisiana State Univ. Shreveport) Adam Berns, MD (Zucker Hillside Hospital) Isabella Morton, MD, MPH (UCLA) |
| 2019‑2020 | Martha Ignaszewski, MD (Adult: Univ. of Massachusetts • Child and Adolescent: Harvard Univ./Boston Children's Hospital) Jennifer Papac, MD (Stanford Univ.) Christopher Rienas, MD (UCSF) |
| 2018‑2019 | Madison Johnson, MD (Vanderbilt Univ.) Shakevia Johnson, MD (Vanderbilt Univ.) Takeo Toyoshima, MD (UCSF) |
| 2017‑2018 | Christopher Blazes, MD (Albert Einstein Medical Center) Katherine Pier, MD (Mt. Sinai College of Medicine) Bradley Zicherman, MD (Adult: Texas Tech Health Sciences Center • Child and Adolescent: Univ. of South Florida) |
| 2016‑2017 | Elie Aoun, MD (Brown Univ.) |
| 2015‑2016 | Smita Das, MD, PhD, MPH (Stanford Univ.) Pernilla Schweitzer, MD (UCSF) |
| 2014‑2015 | Nicholas Reeves, MD (UCLA) Tauheed Zaman, MD (Harvard Medical School/Cambridge Health Alliance) |
| 2013‑2014 | Zachary Plaut, MD (San Mateo County) Joan Striebel, MD (UCLA) |
| 2012‑2013 | John Nguyen, MD (Cornell Univ.) |
Sites and Rotations
The San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC) and Kaiser Permanente Addiction Medicine & Recovery Services (AMRS) are teaching sites for UCSF, and training is considered a core mission.
Download: Sample Rotation Schedule (.pdf)
SFVAMC Rotations
- Substance Use Disorder Outpatient Clinic: treating a range of non-opioid addictions
- Opiate Treatment Program (OTP): buprenorphine, methadone, injectable MOUD treatment
- Addiction Consultation (AddCon): consulting on addiction patients, including prescription opioid safety issues
- Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP): higher-level three days/week treatment program
- Veterans Justice Outreach (VJO): working alongside UCSF forensic psychiatry fellows in treating justice-involved veterans
- Downtown clinic (DTC): working with urban underserved populations in downtown San Francisco
- Longitudinal Clinic (LCE): Managing addiction and comorbid psychiatric issues in a year-long clinic
- Several programs also include contingency management, injection adherence contingency management, psychotherapy groups with opportunities for facilitation training, motivational interviewing, hospital consultations, etc.
Kaiser AMRS
Kaiser AMRS provides a spectrum of services, which include outpatient longitudinal substance use disorder clinics, medical stabilization and detoxification, day treatment, intensive outpatient treatment, therapy groups, and psychiatric treatment of co-morbid conditions. AMRS also provides comprehensive treatment for adolescents and families.
As part of a larger medical system, AMRS provides integrated consultative services for patients with obstetrical (pregnancy), chronic pain, HIV or Hepatitis C conditions or those requiring emergency or hospital consultation.
Elective rotation sites
Half-day/week opportunities for fellows to engage with additional educational and training opportunities within the VA and Kaiser systems as well as through the greater UCSF network. Past fellow experiences have included participating in research, the John Muir Adolescent Substance Use Treatment Program, San Francisco Syringe Access Program, San Francisco County Jail Buprenorphine Program, San Francisco Street Medicine Outreach Team to Homeless Encampments, San Francisco VA Ketamine Clinic, and various electives available through Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.
Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG) and San Francisco Department of Public Health Clinics
The San Francisco Health Network is comprised of the city's safety net hospital and associated community clinics serving the most marginalized people in San Francisco. Elective experiences in addiction medicine include the Addiction Care Team, a hospital-based consult service at ZSFG, and the Tom Waddell Urban Health Clinic.
Didactics
Addiction psychiatry fellows have a half day of protected time each Wednesday afternoon for didactics and supervision. These sessions are often led by local and national experts in the field of addiction. Didactics include:
- Zweben Addiction Seminar: a weekly, 60-minute seminar covering a range of fundamental topics, aimed at a multidisciplinary audience of physicians, psychologists, social workers and trainees
- Addiction board review: a monthly, 60-minute interactive teaching session focused on high-yield topics on the Addiction Psychiatry board exam
- Addiction Psychiatry advanced psychotherapy curriculum developed by the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP) in collaboration with Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) and NYU School of Medicine
- CBT-SUD & MI: a monthly, 120-minute course on cognitive behavioral therapy for substance use disorders and contingency management led by national expert Dr. Borsari
- Faculty teaching: several faculty members provide rotation-specific didactics relevant to their area of expertise throughout the year
- Community faculty supervision hour: a monthly, supervision hour focused on career development, advanced addiction psychopharmacology, addiction psychotherapy, addiction private practice, and addiction and forensic psychiatry overlap
- UCSF Grand Rounds & Drug Use Research Group: research presentations on innovative harm reduction strategies, public health interventions, and drug policy
- Fellow teaching opportunities in collaboration with the School of Medicine, Psychiatry Residency, VA Education Office, and other departments throughout the VA and Kaiser Permanente
- See historical UCSF Addiction Bootcamp lectures available on Youtube
Previous addiction seminar topics include:
- Psychedelics and Substance Use
- Cannabis: Biology to Policy
- The Relationship Between Disability Payments and Substance Use
- PTSD, Alcohol Use Disorder and TBI- Treatment Challenges and Strategies
- Clinical Drug Testing and the Medical Review Officer
- Addiction Group Therapy
- Three Views on Chronic Pain and Opioid Use Disorder
Previous education hour topics include:
- The Intersection of Addiction and Forensic Psychiatry
- Management of Complex Benzodiazepine Tapers
- Motivational Interviewing for the Rushed Physician
- A Research Career in Addiction Psychiatry
- Journal clubs and complex addiction case presentations
