Academic Medical Centers Department of Psychiatry Chair, Maurizio Fava, MD, Discusses U.S. News & World Report Ranking Mass General #1 and McLean #2
In This Article
- Massachusetts General Hospital and McLean Hospital, both part of the Mass General Brigham Psychiatry Department, have been recognized for their exceptional commitment to advancing mental healthcare. Mass General was ranked #1 in the nation for Psychiatry in 2025–26 by U.S. News and World Report and McLean Hospital has been ranked #2, making it the top psychiatric hospital in the country
- The Mass General Brigham Psychiatry Department leverages cutting-edge research and innovative treatments to provide the best care for patients with psychiatric disorders
- Digital tools and medical devices are among the promising advancements to improve patient outcomes and accessibility to mental health treatments
Once again, Massachusetts General Hospital has been ranked #1 in the nation for Psychiatry in 2026–2027 by U.S. News & World Report and McLean Hospital has been ranked #2. Mass General is also recognized as a top hospital on the 2026–2027 Best Hospitals Honor Roll, with 14 specialties ranked overall.
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The annual U.S. News specialty rankings help connect patients to the right hospital to ensure the best medical care. Mass General's Department of Psychiatry is consistently recognized each year. The Department's #1 ranking in psychiatry reflects the groundbreaking advancements in psychiatric treatment and the profound impact of research on delivering the best patient care.
In this Q&A, Maurizio Fava, MD, chair of the Mass General Brigham Department of Psychiatry, which includes the Psychiatry Departments at Mass General and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, as well as McLean Hospital, discusses the achievement of the Mass General Psychiatry Department being recognized for its unparalleled dedication to advancing mental healthcare.
Q: Can you reflect on Mass General ranking #1 in Psychiatry?
Dr. Fava: This is a tremendous honor for our Mass General Brigham Department of Psychiatry, as it reflects how we are viewed by our peers and colleagues in the field. Over the past two years, we have had the opportunity to merge with McLean Hospital the Departments of Psychiatry of Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, forming the Mass General Brigham Department of Psychiatry. Such a merger has allowed us to leverage the deep expertise of the psychiatry departments across the three hospitals, and, therefore, this may have helped us with the recognition of the Mass General Psychiatry Department as the best when it comes to the mental healthcare of a family member. This recognition is very meaningful to all of us at Mass General Brigham and, in particular, to all of our clinical staff, who are true experts and incredibly devoted to the care of our patients.
Q: What makes the Department of Psychiatry stand out in treating patients?
Dr. Fava: I think the most unique aspect of our Mass General Brigham Academic Medical Centers Department of Psychiatry is our ability to leverage research to improve patient care. Our countless adult and pediatric clinical and research programs across all three campuses, specialized in the care and research of patients suffering from many psychiatric disorders, can bring highly innovative approaches to the bedside. As a result, our patients can access cutting-edge treatments such as the use of psychedelic drugs for depression and substance use disorders, glutamatergic drugs for autism spectrum disorder and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for depression. We are able to achieve these goals through the unwavering support of Mass General Brigham, which has always invested in supporting our growth, including the recent, exciting expansion of our ketamine clinic.
Q: What advancements in psychiatric treatment do you find most promising in the near future?
Dr. Fava: At a time when access to mental health treatments is so challenging, digital approaches to care represent a highly scalable intervention that may effectively address the problem. Our Center for Digital Mental Health, directed by Sabine Wilhelm, PhD, and the McLean Institute for Technology in Psychiatry at McLean Hospital, directed by Justin Baker, MD, PhD, and Rachel Sava, PhD, are at the forefront of delivering new digital tools for the treatment of psychiatric conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and anxiety.
In addition, the current limitations of the standard trial-and-error approach in clinical practice highlight the importance of matching the right patient with the right treatment. Our Center for Precision Psychiatry, directed by Jordan Smoller, MD, ScD, is leading the way in developing electronic health record algorithms to guide treatment decisions in practice, which could markedly improve our patients' outcomes.
The use of devices for the treatment of neuropsychiatric conditions, from depression to neurodegenerative disorders, is also really exciting. Our Mass General Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) Clinical Service, directed by Joan Camprodon, MD, PhD and Tracy Barbour, MD, and our Brigham and Women’s Hospital Center for Brain Circuit Therapeutics, directed by Joseph Taylor, MD, PhD, are advancing both the research and the clinical care in this critical area.
Finally, our Center for Health Outcomes and Interdisciplinary Research, led by Ana-Maria Vranceanu, PhD, is addressing the need to provide behavioral support for patients with neurological conditions in highly innovative ways.
Q: How does research within the Department advance patient care?
Dr. Fava: Our research leaders are also clinicians; therefore, their natural focus is to ensure that their innovations benefit the care of their patients. They get inspired and motivated by the challenges they face in their clinical practice to solve these clinical problems and improve the care of their patients. We at Mass General Brigham refer to that as "research-infused care." A clear example of this is our Center for Women's Mental Health at Mass General, directed by Lee Cohen, MD, and the Division of Women’s Mental Health at McLean Hospital, directed by Shelly Greenfield, MD, MPH, which guide how to best care for women at critical times, such as pregnancy and postpartum. When I see patients in my practice at Mass General, I always ask myself, how can I translate the advances in psychiatric research into a concrete benefit for my patient?
Q: Can you discuss initiatives that have successfully improved mental healthcare at Mass General?
Dr. Fava: Jeffery Huffman, MD, our executive vice chair and world-renowned expert in collaborative care, and his terrific team of experts have clearly had a very positive impact on the psychiatric treatment of primary care patients. The team fosters a close collaboration between primary care providers and our specialists. The opening of our ketamine clinic, directed by Cristina Cusin, MD, has provided tremendous access to this novel treatment to so many patients in need of this.
Learn more about Mass General Brigham's U.S. News & World Report rankings