Ayana Jordan is an American addiction psychiatrist and immunopathologist. She researches treatments for substance use disorders in marginalized communities. She is the Barbara Wilson Associate Professor of Psychiatry at NYU Langone Health and was a professor at Yale School of Medicine. She served as an attending psychiatrist in the Yale University Department of Psychiatry. She was elected to the Board of Trustees of the American Psychiatric Association in 2018. She attended Hampton University and received her MD and PhD from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Ayana M. Jordan
Born
Ayana Martina Jordan

Education
Scientific career
FieldsAddiction psychiatry, immunopathology
Institutions

Early life and education

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Ayana Jordan was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and grew up in Pittsburgh's Hill District. Her family moved to a white neighbourhood when she was 12. She won the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science multiple times.[1]

Jordan attended Hampton University, a historically Black university, graduating with a BS in biology in 2001. She earned her MS in pathology from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in 2006. She received her PhD in immunopathology in 2009 and her MD in 2011, both from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She was a member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority[2] and served as president of the Einstein chapter of the Physicians for a National Health Program.[3]

Medical career

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In 2011, Jordan joined the faculty of Yale School of Medicine as an assistant professor and addiction psychiatrist. During her residency, she established an internship program for students from Common Ground High School in New Haven.[4] She became the chief resident in psychiatry in 2014. At Yale School of Medicine, Jordan served as the director of Social Justice and Health Equity curriculum for the department of psychiatry.[5] For a time she was the faculty's sole Black woman psychiatrist.[6]

In 2016, Jordan was honored as a fellow and became an attending psychiatrist at the Yale University Department of Psychiatry.[7] In 2017, she joined the Yale University Department of Psychiatry as the director of their Social Justice and Health Equity Curriculum. She was hired by the Connecticut Mental Health Center as director of their Medication for Addiction Treatment Consultation Center in 2018. She became the Associate Psychiatry Residency Program Director at Yale in 2020. Jordan was hired as the Barbara Wilson Associate Professor of Psychiatry at NYU Langone Health in 2021.[8]

Research and projects

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Jordan specializes in addiction, global mental health, and mental health in marginalized communities. Her research centers on treatment for substance use disorders, especially in underserved communities.[9]

In 2017, Jordan joined Yale School of Medicine psychiatry professor Chyrell Bellamy to design the Imani Breakthrough Project. The project collaborated with Latino and Black churches in Connecticut as venues for the treatment of substance abuse.[10][11] The program included 12 weeks of classes and wellness coaching for its participants. Patients were connected with providers of medication-assisted treatment prescriptions.[12]

In 2018, Jordan published a study with Keturah James demonstrating that the frequency of deaths from opioids was increasing with white people less than it was with Black people.[13] She received her first NIH R01 grant in 2020.[1]

In 2020, Jordan worked with U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro to secure funding for a program addressing racial disparities in the treatment of drug and alcohol addiction. The program, "Computer Based Training for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy", targeted the Black community in New Haven, Connecticut, and was hosted by the Dixwell Avenue Congregational United Church of Christ.[14] Jordan provides treatment for methadone users in Connecticut[15] and studied rule changes allowing methadone users to administer the medication at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.[16]

Jordan was a senior author of a 2021 study published in Lancet Psychiatry that found that minority patients suffering from depression or anxiety had unmet needs for healthcare practitioners who were culturally competent.[17]

Jordan was part of a team of researchers who conducted analyses of data collected on overdoses in California during the COVID-19 pandemic.[18] She was a lead author in a 2022 study published in JAMA Psychiatry examining racial disparities in the impact of the pandemic.[19] Jordan's research group also conducts studies of drug use and holds training sessions for the use of naloxone.[20]

Science communication and advocacy

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Jordan has studied mental health in Sierra Leone. In a 2015 deportation trial for a former child soldier from the country, she told the judge that returning him to Sierra Leone would likely result in him being stigmatized and suffering a psychotic episode.[21] She has also participated in faith-based summits on mental health.[22]

As a science communicator, Jordan has written articles and provided commentary on subjects relating to mental health and addiction. Topics she has addressed include fentanyl,[23] cannabis use disorder,[24] treatments for methamphetamine users,[25] Narcan use,[20] the portrayal of addiction in the television series Euphoria,[26] the link between suicide and substance abuse disorders,[27] follow-up care for patients who screen positive for depression,[28] excited delirium,[29] the viability of SPECT scans for assessing alcohol-related brain damage,[30] and racial disparities in the prescription of addiction treatments[31] and overdose deaths.[9] As part of the #ShareTheMic campaign in 2020, Jordan took over the Twitter account of bariatric surgeon Arghavan Salles.[32]

In 2020, Jordan reviewed an analysis of racial disparities in prescription drug use published in JAMA Psychiatry for The New York Times. She cited corporate marketing strategies and physician bias as factors that contribute to attributed racial disparities in the duration of treatment for buprenorphine.[33]

Awards and honors

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Jordan was elected to the Board of Trustees of the American Psychiatric Association as its Early Career Psychiatrist Trustee-at-Large in 2018.[34][35] She received the Yale School of Medicine's Psychiatry Residents' Association Faculty Diversity Award in 2021.[36]

Personal life

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Jordan is Christian.[22] During the COVID-19 pandemic, she hosted virtual Black Trivia Nights with music from live DJs.[2]

Selected publications

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  • Jordan, Ayana; Mathis, Myra L.; Isom, Jessica (September 2020). "Achieving Mental Health Equity: Addictions". Psychiatric Clinics of North America. 43 (3): 487–500. doi:10.1016/j.psc.2020.05.007. PMID 32773076. S2CID 221098371.
  • Jordan, Ayana; Shim, Ruth S.; Rodriguez, Carolyn I. (March 1, 2021). "Psychiatry Diversity Leadership in Academic Medicine: Guidelines for Success". American Journal of Psychiatry. 178 (3): 224–228. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.20091371. PMID 33641375.
  • Friedman, Joseph; Beletsky, Leo; Jordan, Ayana (February 2022). "Surging Racial Disparities in the U.S. Overdose Crisis". American Journal of Psychiatry. 179 (2): 166–169. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2021.21040381. PMC 8820266. PMID 35105165.
  • Krawczyk, Noa; Jordan, Ayana; Cerdá, Magdalena (February 13, 2023). "Optimizing Opioid Settlement Funds To Save Lives: Investing In Equitable Solutions". Health Affairs Forefront. doi:10.1377/forefront.20230210.535750.

References

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  1. ^ a b Morgan, Jules (June 2021). "Ayana Jordan". The Lancet Psychiatry. 8 (6): 464. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(21)00174-7. PMID 34023017.
  2. ^ a b Gold, Jessica A. (June 30, 2021). "11 Ways Real Therapists Cope After Their Hardest Sessions". Self. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  3. ^ "Speakers Bureau: Ayana Jordan". Physicians for a National Healthcare Program. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
  4. ^ Gardner, Christopher (December 19, 2017). "Yale Psychiatry residents renew mentoring partnership with Common Ground High School". Yale School of Medicine.
  5. ^ Belli, Brita (July 30, 2020). "For Yale's emerging psychiatrists, confronting racism is in the curriculum". YaleNews. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  6. ^ Flaherty, Colleen (October 20, 2020). "Scholars talk about being Black on campus in 2020". Inside Higher Ed. Archived from the original on May 8, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  7. ^ Gardner, Christopher (June 21, 2016). "Residents, fellows, faculty honored at 2016 Commencement ceremony". Yale School of Medicine.
  8. ^ "Addiction Expert & Health Equity Advocate Joins the Department of Psychiatry at NYU Langone Health". NYU Langone News. October 25, 2021. Archived from the original on February 4, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Law, Tara (July 20, 2022). "Drug Overdose Deaths Rose More Among Black and Indigenous Americans During COVID-19 Pandemic". Time. Archived from the original on April 20, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  10. ^ Sloat, Sarah (June 1, 2022). "Mental Health Care Should Be Available for All, Not a Luxury". Scientific American. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  11. ^ Vaz, Megan (April 27, 2023). "'Compounding' pandemics: Among Black and Latino New Haveners, fatal overdoses skyrocket during COVID-19". Yale Daily News. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  12. ^ Bebinger, Martha (May 24, 2018). "Black Drug Users Grapple With Surging Opioid Overdose Death Rates". WBUR. Archived from the original on April 14, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  13. ^ Shade, Colette (January 25, 2021). "The Problem With Mental Health Awareness". The Nation. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  14. ^ Zahn, Brian (November 5, 2020). "'The need is huge': The Black Church Project in New Haven aims to provide culturally affirming addiction treatment". New Haven Register. Archived from the original on November 18, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  15. ^ Szalavitz, Maia (March 24, 2020). "People Who Take Opioid Painkillers Are Getting Screwed Thanks to Coronavirus". Vice. Archived from the original on May 15, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  16. ^ Johnson, Carla K. (August 12, 2021). "How COVID pandemic changed methadone treatment for addiction". AP News. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  17. ^ Su, Jasmine (October 11, 2021). "Yale study finds minority patients with anxiety and depression are more likely to want doctors who share their culture". Yale Daily News. Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  18. ^ Mann, Brian (March 3, 2021). "Drug Overdose Deaths Surge Among Black Americans During Pandemic". NPR. Archived from the original on April 29, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  19. ^ Sisson, Jordan (February 11, 2022). "Despite precautions, COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacts people from minoritized backgrounds". Medical Xpress. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  20. ^ a b Jacoby, Sarah (March 29, 2023). "1st opioid overdose reversal drug approved over-the-counter: What to know". Today. Archived from the original on June 12, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  21. ^ Aviv, Rachel (November 29, 2015). "The Rights of Refugees Who Do Wrong". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on August 11, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  22. ^ a b Blair, Leonardo (March 19, 2023). "Christian psychiatrist reveals 3 things faith leaders can do to protect their mental health". The Christian Post. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  23. ^ Snipe, Margo (October 7, 2021). "Overdose deaths in Tampa Bay's Black community are skyrocketing". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  24. ^ Smith, Dana G. (April 10, 2023). "How Do You Know if You're Addicted to Weed?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  25. ^ Joseph, Andrew (January 13, 2021). "Combination of two drugs can help treat methamphetamine addiction for some, new clinical trial data shows". STAT. Archived from the original on June 6, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  26. ^ Rodriguez, Karla (February 25, 2022). "What 'Euphoria' Gets Right and Wrong About Addiction and Recovery". Complex.
  27. ^ Sullivan, Kaitlin (May 21, 2020). "Drug overdose deaths drop in U.S. as other deaths of despair rise, report finds". NBC News. Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  28. ^ Delamerced, Tino (March 10, 2022). "Widespread screening catches more cases of depression. But follow-up care still falls far short". STAT. Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  29. ^ Brody, Jennifer K.; Jordan, Ayana; Wakeman, Sarah E. (April 6, 2021). "Excited delirium: valid clinical diagnosis or medicalized racism? Organized medicine needs to take a stand". STAT. Archived from the original on June 6, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  30. ^ Medaris, Anna (January 27, 2022). "A controversial Hollywood psychiatrist conducted Bella Hadid's brain scans, inspiring the model to stop drinking". Insider.
  31. ^ Hoffman, Jan (May 10, 2023). "Addiction Treatment Medicine Is Vastly Underprescribed, Especially by Race, Study Finds". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  32. ^ Edwards, Erika (June 22, 2020). "#ShareTheMicNowMed: To amplify Black voices in medicine, non-Black doctors hand over their Twitter accounts". NBC News. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  33. ^ Baumgaertner, Emily (November 9, 2022). "Medication Treatment for Addiction Is Shorter for Black and Hispanic Patients, Study Finds". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 24, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  34. ^ Stiles, Laura (May 21, 2018). "New APA President Takes Office as the First African-American to Lead the Organization". Psychiatry Advisor. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  35. ^ "2018 APA Election Results". American Psychiatric Association. 2018. Archived from the original on June 27, 2020.
  36. ^ Gardner, Christopher (June 30, 2021). "Residents, Fellows, Faculty Honored at 2021 Commencement Ceremony". Yale School of Medicine. Archived from the original on November 28, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
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