Cutting-Edge Psychiatric Treatments Under One Roof

Psilocybin and Psychedelics Research and Treatment

A centerpiece of the new institute is the Center for Excellence for Psilocybin Research and Treatment. Developed in partnership with the company COMPASS Pathways, the center will be a hub for investigating psilocybin therapy for psychiatric illnesses. As the first site designated a center of excellence, Sheppard Pratt will be the first in the world to enroll patients for a phase III clinical trial of psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. 

Experts at the center are also studying psilocybin treatment in bipolar type II depression, chronic suicidal ideation, and anorexia. “These are illnesses for which there are very few treatment options,” Aaronson says. “Could psychedelics help ease that burden?”

He and his colleagues are also investigating other leading-edge medications, including esketamine. A derivative of the anesthetic ketamine, esketamine was approved by the FDA in 2019 for treatment-resistant depression. Though it’s not technically a psychedelic at the receptor level, it can trigger brief perceptual changes and is often discussed in the same category as psilocybin and other psychedelic compounds. 

With funding from SAMHSA, the institute is launching an esketamine clinic to provide this treatment to patients and conduct additional research on its use. 

Integrating Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy

When undergoing psilocybin or esketamine treatment, patients also receive therapy before and after the dosing to help them prepare for and then integrate the experience. Aaronson and his colleagues at Sheppard Pratt plan to investigate how various forms of therapy might improve outcomes. 

“One of the most interesting things about psychedelics research is that it’s the remarriage of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy,” Aaronson says. “These interventions make the brain more plastic. We’re creating new treatments that may be able to help people change their thinking process.” 

Advances in Neuromodulation 

Sheppard Pratt has a long history of providing neurostimulation, and it was one of the first sites in the nation to provide TMS to patients with major depressive disorder. The new institute now serves as a home for the established TMS and ECT programs. Both options are available to people with hard-to-treat depression. 

ECT may also be used to treat other conditions, including:

• Catatonia
• Postpartum psychosis 
• Schizophrenia 
• Self-injurious behaviors 
• Severe obsessive-compulsive behavior complicated by depression
• Suicidality

Institute researchers are a lead site for a Medicare-funded study investigating vagus nerve stimulation in patients with bipolar and unipolar depression who have not responded to multiple antidepressants. Positive results will lead to third-party support for routine availability of this technology.

While such new psychiatric treatments hold great promise, there is an element of skill in determining when, how, and to whom they should be offered. “A big problem in psychiatry is that we often don’t have randomized trials that clearly show which treatment is best for which patient,” Aaronson says. “But at Sheppard Pratt, we have a lot of clinical experience to point us toward the right paths.” 

In addition to providing clinical services and conducting research on advanced diagnostic and therapeutic tools, Aaronson says the institute will educate other providers about advances in interventional psychiatry. “Increasingly, we’re going to be talking about interventional psychiatry. This field is no longer just dispensing medications and talking to people — we’re offering new interventions and other somatic treatments,” Aaronson says. 

“I’ve been a clinician in this area for 40 years, and I can honestly say there are more interesting things going on now than at any time in my career.”