Wikipedia

Jan Fawcett

Jan A. Fawcett (March 31, 1934 – May 9, 2022) was an American psychiatrist, educator, and author. His research career focused on the mechanism of action of antidepressant medications and the development of more effective medications for severe depression and treatment modifiable factors leading up to suicide.[1]

Dr.

Jan A. Fawcett, M.D.
Photo of Dr. Jan Fawcett, taken on June 12, 2018 in Santa Fe, NM
Photo of Dr. Jan Fawcett, taken on June 12, 2018 in Santa Fe, NM
Born(1934-03-31)March 31, 1934
Jamestown, New York, U.S.
DiedMay 9, 2022(2022-05-09) (aged 88)
Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.
OccupationPsychiatrist, Educator, Author
LanguageEnglish
NationalityAmerican
EducationM.D. at Yale University, School of Medicine
Alma materUniversity of Rochester
Children5

Early life and education

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Fawcett was born in Jamestown, New York. He was educated at the Hamburg High School in Hamburg, NY. He spent two years at the Naval Academy at Annapolis before earning a bachelor's degree in science at the University of Rochester in 1956. In 1960, he earned his medical degree at Yale Medical School. After a rotating internship year at the U.S. Public Health Service Hospital in San Francisco, CA, he became a resident in psychiatry at the University of California’s Langley Porter Neuropsychiatric Institute. He then graduated from two additional years of residency at the University of Rochester - Strong Memorial Hospital. He then went on for a two year research fellowship at the National Institute of Mental Health at Bethesda, MD.[1][2]

Career

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Fawcett is a professor of psychiatry at the University of New Mexico Medical Center.[3] He was previously the Stanley Harris Jr. Chairman of Psychiatry at the Rush University Medical Center for 30 years.[1]

He received awards for his work, including the Anna Monika Award and the Dr. Jan Fawcett Humanitarian Award.[4][2] His research career has focused on the mechanism of action of antidepressant medications[5] and the discovery of more effective medications for severe depression[6] as well as treatment modifiable factors leading up to suicide.[7][8][9][10] Fawcett also worked as a mental health consultant for The Oprah Winfrey show.

Fawcett’s opinion has been sought on numerous high profile cases throughout the years. Notably, he interviewed and provided a psychological profile of serial killer John Wayne Gacy after meeting with him in his cell.[11] He also testified against Dr. Jack Kevorkian during his murder trial. Fawcett opined that the individuals with non-fatal illnesses who sought Kevorkian’s services were actually depressed and that treating their depression might’ve alleviated their desires to die.[12] Dr. Fawcett has also provided testimony in innumerable cases of wrongful death or malpractice related to patients who committed suicide.

Fawcett served as the president of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.[4] He was also a contributing author for DSM-V and served for 25 years as co-editor of the journal Psychiatric Annals.[13] He was also a member of the scientific board of the Brain and Behavioral Research Foundation.[14]

Personal life and death

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Fawcett had five children and four grandchildren. Fawcett and his wife, Katie Busch, lived in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Fawcett died after a long health struggle in Santa Fe, on May 9, 2022, at the age of 88.[15][16][17]

Publications

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  • Fawcett, Jan (2003). New Hope for People with Bipolar Disorders. ISBN 978-0307353009.
  • Fawcett, Jan (2010). DSM-V Perspectives on Classification of Bipolar Disorder. In: Bipolar Disorder: Clinical and Neurobiological Foundations. ISBN 978-0470721988
  • Rihmer, Z, Fawcett, J. (2010). Suicide and Bipolar Disorder. In: Bipolar Disorder: Clinical and Neurobiological Foundations. ISBN 978-0470721988
  • Fawcett, Jan (2012). Diagnosis, traits, states, and comorbidity in suicide. In: The Neurobiological Basis of Suicide. ISBN 9781439838815
  • Fawcett, Jan (2013). Living Forever. ISBN 978-1475984590.
  • Fawcett. Jan (2014) Is suicide clinically preventable? What is the evidence? In: Suicide: Phenomenology and Neurobiology. ISBN 978-3319099637

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Jan Fawcett, MD - Global Medical Education". www.gmeded.com.
  2. ^ a b "State of Minnesota, Fourth Judicial District Court, Court File No. 27-CV-07-1679" (PDF). pp. 34–54.
  3. ^ "Jan Fawcett - Psychiatry 2017 - Conferenceseries". psychiatry.global-summit.com.
  4. ^ a b "Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA)". CCHR International. 12 December 2009.
  5. ^ Sabelli, H. C.; Fawcett, J.; Javaid, J. I.; Bagri, S. (February 1983). "The methylphenidate test for differentiating desipramine-responsive from nortriptyline-responsive depression". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 140 (2): 212–214. doi:10.1176/ajp.140.2.212. ISSN 0002-953X. PMID 6849437.
  6. ^ Fournier, Jay C.; DeRubeis, Robert J.; Hollon, Steven D.; Dimidjian, Sona; Amsterdam, Jay D.; Shelton, Richard C.; Fawcett, Jan (2010-01-06). "Antidepressant drug effects and depression severity: a patient-level meta-analysis". JAMA. 303 (1): 47–53. doi:10.1001/jama.2009.1943. ISSN 1538-3598. PMC 3712503. PMID 20051569.
  7. ^ Fawcett, J.; Scheftner, W. A.; Fogg, L.; Clark, D. C.; Young, M. A.; Hedeker, D.; Gibbons, R. (September 1990). "Time-related predictors of suicide in major affective disorder". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 147 (9): 1189–1194. doi:10.1176/ajp.147.9.1189. ISSN 0002-953X. PMID 2104515.
  8. ^ Fawcett, J. (April 2001). "Treating impulsivity and anxiety in the suicidal patient". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 932 (1): 94–102, discussion 102–105. Bibcode:2001NYASA.932...94F. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.2001.tb05800.x. ISSN 0077-8923. PMID 11411193. S2CID 46419356.
  9. ^ Busch, Katie A.; Fawcett, Jan; Jacobs, Douglas G. (January 2003). "Clinical correlates of inpatient suicide". The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. 64 (1): 14–19. doi:10.4088/JCP.v64n0105. ISSN 0160-6689. PMID 12590618.
  10. ^ Fawcett, J.; Busch, K. A.; Jacobs, D.; Kravitz, H. M.; Fogg, L. (1997-12-29). "Suicide: a four-pathway clinical-biochemical model". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 836 (1): 288–301. Bibcode:1997NYASA.836..288F. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.1997.tb52366.x. ISSN 0077-8923. PMID 9616805. S2CID 25412041.
  11. ^ "People v. Gacy". Justia Law. Retrieved 2018-12-11.
  12. ^ Lessenberry, Jack (April 24, 1996). "Specialist Testifies Depression Was Issue in Kevorkian Cases". New York Times. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  13. ^ Roash, Richard N. (1992). "A Message from the Publisher". Psychiatric Annals. 22 (5): 5. doi:10.3928/0048-5713-19920501-03 – via Healio.
  14. ^ "The Quarterly - Fall 2014" (PDF). Brain and Behavior Research Foundation.
  15. ^ "Dr. Jan Fawcett Obituary (2022) Chicago Sun-Times". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  16. ^ "Remembering Jan Fawcett, MD, 1934-2022". www.rush.edu. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  17. ^ "DBSA Mourns the Loss of Dr. Jan Fawcett, First Medical Advisor". Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
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