Dr. David Feifel is a psychiatrist and neuroscientist whose devoted his career to developing more effective treatments for mental illness. He is a Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry, at UC San Diego, and President/Founder of Kadima Neuropsychiatry Institute in La Jolla, California.
After earning an MD and a PhD in neurobiology from the University of Toronto, Dr. Feifel completed a psychiatry residency at UCSD, and then joined UCSD’s Psychiatry Department, rising through the academic ranks to full professor.
During his two decades at UCSD, Dr. Feifel ran a NIH-funded translational research program. He established several pioneering clinical programs including the world’s first ketamine infusion program for depression in 2008 and one of the first TMS treatment programs. He has published over 150 peer-reviewed papers, and his work has been featured in many popular publications including the New York Times and Time magazine. Dr. Feifel sits on several expert committees and boards, including the Clinical TMS Society Board of Directors, the National Network of Depression Centers task force on Ketamine and psychedelic therapy and the American Society of Ketamine providers (ASKP). expert faculty committee.
In 2017, Dr. Feifel founded Kadima Neuropsychiatry Institute, with the vision of creating a center specializing in providing patients with the most advanced treatments while also facilitating the development of ever better ones through research and innovation. Novel treatments recently studied at Kadima include psilocybin, LSD, 5-MeO-DMT and R-ketamine. Through “Project Africa,” Kadima is also helping health officials in Rwanda bring ketamine and psychedelic therapy to that country.