Elisabeth Kunkel

Elisabeth Kunkel is a Professor and Joyce D. Kales, MD, University Chair in Community Psychiatry at Pennsylvania State University. She serves as Vice Chair for Community Behavioral Health and Chief Medical Officer for both the Division of Adult Inpatient Services and Division of Child Inpatient Services at the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute, while also participating in the Penn State Neuroscience Institute.

Her education includes a First Class Honors BSc in Psychology (McGill University, 1975-1979), MDCM (McGill, 1979-1983), Psychiatry Residency at NYU Langone (1983-1987), and fellowships in Psycho-oncology (Memorial Sloan-Kettering, 1987-1989) and Administrative Psychiatry (American Association of Chairs, 2009-2010).

Research focuses on administrative psychiatry, psycho-oncology, patient satisfaction, and mental health equity. Recent work addresses voting rights for psychiatric patients and pandemic impacts on psychiatric acuity.

Key awards include the Robert Welder Teaching Award (1993, 2001), Roberts Mentorship Award (2012), and Dean’s Faculty Mentoring Award (2009).