Cheryl Chessick, MD, is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado Denver. She is currently the Director of Women’s Studies and Treatment at the University of Colorado Denver Depression Center and works in the inpatient and outpatient division of the University of Colorado Hospital. She is also the team leader of the Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Consultation Team which includes members from across the Anschutz Medical Campus.
Dr. Chessick received her undergraduate degree from Colorado College in Anthropology in 1982 and her medical degree from the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine (UCDSOM). She completed her Community Medicine Internship and Psychiatric Residency training at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine in 1990. Dr. Chessick maintained a private practice including a clinical appointment with the UCDSOM until she joined the UCDSOM faculty full-time in 2001. Currently, she supervises and teaches both medical students and residents. She has received both local awards and national recognition for her teaching.
Dr. Chessick’s primary area of interest and research is in bipolar disorder, with a particular emphasis on women’s issues including the perinatal period. She has given numerous lectures on the topic and was a sub-investigator for the Systematic Treatment Enhancement Program for Bipolar Disorder (STEP-BD). She is currently developing a perinatal program at the Depression Center as well as within the Obstetrics department of UCDSOM. In addition, she is currently involved in a treatment developmental research project- examining and implementing psychotherapeutic modalities for pregnant bipolar disordered patients. She has published in numerous journals, including Bipolar Disorders, Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, Cochrane Database Systematic Review, Psychiatric Services, The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, ACTA Psychiatrica Scandinavica, and Psychiatric Issues in Emergency Care Settings . She has also served as president for Colorado Psychiatric Society and is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.