Exploring the Ethical and Practical Considerations of Psychedelics Research

Benjamin Silverman, M.D. is the Senior IRB Chair at Mass General Brigham. He is additionally the Chair of the Mass General Brigham Embryonic Stem Cell Research Oversight (ESCRO) Committee, Director of Ethics for the Institute for Technology in Psychiatry at McLean Hospital, and at Harvard Medical School, serves as an Instructor in Psychiatry and Faculty Member in the Center for Bioethics. Dr. Silverman’s academic interests center on research ethics, in particular pertaining to research conducted with vulnerable populations. His recent work has focused on the use of supported decision-making to promote inclusion and equal access in clinical research. Dr. Silverman received his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, completed his psychiatry residency at the MGH McLean Adult Psychiatry Residency Training program, and completed sub-specialty fellowship training in addiction psychiatry through Mass General Brigham. He additionally completed fellowship training with the Center for Bioethics, Harvard Medical School.

Rachel Yehuda, Ph.D., is an Endowed Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Trauma.  She is also Director of Mental Health at the James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Dr. Yehuda is a recognized leader in the field of traumatic stress studies, PTSD, and intergenerational trauma.  In 2019, Dr. Yehuda was elected to the National Academy of Medicine for her seminal contributions to understanding the psychological and biological impact of traumatic stress.  In 2020, Dr. Yehuda established and now directs the Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research.

Natalie Gukasyan, M.D. is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center. After receiving her M.D. from Tulane University School of Medicine Dr. Gukasyan completed her internship and residency in psychiatry at Johns Hopkins. She went on to complete a NIDA T32 fellowship in behavioral pharmacology under the mentorship of Dr. Roland Griffiths, focusing on safety and efficacy of psilocybin-assisted therapy for people with mood and eating disorders. Before joining the faculty at Columbia, Dr. Gukasyan served as Medical Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, where her research also spanned other clinical aspects of psychedelics including placebo and psychotherapy effects in treatment, as well as medication interactions.

Darron Smith is an associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Washington. He is also Co-Director at the Center for Novel Therapeutics in Addiction Psychiatry (NTAP). The center recently received a large grant from the state of Washington to study the safety and efficacy of psilocybin on first responders with PTSD and alcohol use disorder. He is a physician assistant and US Army veteran with over 25 years of healthcare experience in primary care and behavioral health. He is also MAPS-trained in MDMA-assisted therapy. Dr. Smith’s research and scholarship examine US-based systems of race-based discrimination found in all societal domains, including healthcare policy and delivery. Dr. Smith’s current research and practice intertwine the study of applied neuroscience, race-based trauma, and mental illness by looking at the impact of EEG biofeedback versus MDMA-assisted psychotherapy on brainwave activity in individuals with racial trauma (PTSD). Dr. Smith serves on the board of directors for the American Psychedelic Prescribers Association (APPA) and the Chacruna Institute. He also sits on the Governor’s psilocybin advisory task force.

Logan Neitzke-Spruill is a post-doctoral associate in the Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a sociologist focused on exploring drug issues in the United States from psychedelic science to the overdose epidemic. His research specifically addresses topics including the construction of scientific and medical knowledge about drugs, bioethical issues associated with drugs, how social-psychological and cultural phenomena shape drug, disparities in drug overdose, as well as how the study of drugs can advance a more holistic understanding of the relationship between culture, cognition, and the brain. His dissertation, called “Psychedelic Biomedicalization: Mainstreaming a ‘Scientific Revolution’”, investigates the emergence of psychedelic science and examines how this movement has been shaped by processes of biomedicalization. His solo and co-authored work has appeared in Sociological Forum, Journal for Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, Journal of Humanistic Psychology, and Journal of Psychedelic Studies.