Peter S. Jensen, MD

Peter S. Jensen, MD

Peter S. Jensen, MD is director of the Center for the Advancement of Children's Mental Health - Putting Science to Work, and Ruane Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. In addition to his responsibilities in the overall direction of the Center, Dr. Jensen's major areas of work include the integration of research findings into clinical settings, effectiveness and dissemination research, and studies of optimal approaches to facilitate the adoption of evidence-based mental health approaches by practitioners and parents on behalf of children with mental disorders. Dr. Jensen serves on many editorial and scientific advisory boards, is the author of more than 200 scientific articles and book chapters, and has written or co-edited 12 books on children's mental health. He has received many national awards, including the Norbert Reiger Award (1990 and 1996) from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the Agnes Purcell McGavin Award (1996) and the Blanche Ittelson Award (1998) from the American Psychiatric Association and the association for Child Psychiatric Nursing. In 1999 he received the Exemplary Psychiatrist Award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and was inducted into the CHADD Hall of Fame. In 2000 he received the Outstanding Mentor Award, as well as the Elaine Schlosser Lewis Award for ADHD research from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Jensen received his bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University, graduating with High Honors in 1974, and his medical degree from George Washington University Medical School in 1978. He did his post-graduate training in psychiatry and children and adolescent psychiatry at the Conference Speakers 14 2006 Children’s Conference University of California, San Francisco, and at Letterman Army Medical Center, 1978-1983. Before coming to Columbia University, Dr. Jensen was the associate director of Child and Adolescent Research at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). While at NIMH, Dr. Jensen served as the lead NIMH investigator on the six-site NIHM and Department of Education-funded study of Multimodal Treatment of ADHD (the MTA Study), and also as an investigator on other NIMH multi-site studies. Also prior to his current appointment, Dr. Jensen was assistant professor, Medical College of Georgia, and associate professor, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.