Dr. Elnajjar’s research focuses on physician and trainee well-being, with an emphasis on scalable digital interventions, peer mentorship models, and culturally responsive approaches to reducing burnout, stigma, and suicide risk. Her work integrates clinical psychiatry, medical education, and health systems innovation to improve access to confidential mental health support and foster resilience across the medical training continuum.

1. Digital Access & Peer Mentorship: My early work, recognized by the American Psychiatric Association Junior Investigator Award, examined the role of telepsychiatry in reducing barriers to mental health care for residents. Building on this foundation, I co-designed and piloted a virtual peer mentorship program at Brown University Health, now advancing to IRB-supported evaluation. This initiative has demonstrated early impact on belonging, stigma reduction, and help-seeking, and received external validation through a $20,000 Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) Digital Health Pitch Competition award.

2. Institutional & National Well-Being Leadership: As an ACGME Well-Being Champion and member of the National Well-Being Workforce, I contribute to shaping national standards in trainee well-being. At Brown, I chair the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s Well-Being Committee, co-led suicide prevention initiatives with Dr. Kelly Holder, and presented institutional innovations at the Brown Suicide Prevention Conference and Well-Being Symposium. These roles reflect my commitment to bridging scholarship and practice in shaping healthier learning environments.

Future Directions:
My near-term research goals include completing formal evaluation of Brown’s peer mentorship model through the Brown Health Education Grant and expanding this work into a multi-institutional trial. I am also preparing an NIH Director’s New Innovator Award (DP2) proposal that will integrate digital therapeutics, equity-driven mentorship frameworks, and national implementation strategies. Over the next 5–10 years, my aim is to establish a comprehensive, scalable framework for trainee well-being that is both measurable and sustainable, combining digital innovations, policy advocacy, and structured mentorship to transform medical education environments.

• APA Junior Investigator Award — Awarded for research on digital therapeutics and peer mentorship ……………… 2021

• Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) – Center for Digital Health Pitch Competition — Awarded $20,000 for scalable digital well-being solutions ……………… 2024

• Clinician Cameo Feature — Brown Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior News (2023). Profiled as “Psychiatrist and Healthcare Hacker” for innovation in digital well-being.

• WELL Toolkit (2021). Contributor and case writer for the Graduate Medical Education office at UPMC; disseminated through the ACGME as a centralized educational resource for resilience, stigma reduction, and confidential access to mental health care.

• Virtual Onboarding Summit for Medical Trainees (March 2021). Organizer and faculty; collaborative event with PsychHub and national speakers, attended by 400+ trainees and faculty to support residency and fellowship transition during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Brown University Well-Being Symposium (2023–2025). Annual presenter and session leader, including Virtual Peer Support Groups for Resident Physicians during Onboarding Transition (2024, 2025) and Creating a Culture of Support for Medical Trainees Seeking Board Exam Accommodations (2025).

• Brown University Suicide Prevention Conference (2024). Collaborator and presenter on stigma-reduction campaigns, confidential referral pathways, and institutional suicide prevention initiatives.

• Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) National Well-Being Workforce (2020–present). Active member with monthly meetings; presented Brown’s pilot virtual peer support project with Dr. Kelly Holder at the 2024 national convening.

• Teaching Excellence Award, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, New York Medical College ……………… 2018

• Diversity Leadership Fellowship, American Psychiatric Association ……………… 2019–2020

• Junior Research Colloquium Award, American Psychiatric Association ……………… 2020

• Elevate Innovation Scholarship in Digital Psychiatry, Psychiatry Congress ……………… 2020

• Resident Psychiatric Educator Award, Association for Academic Psychiatry ……………… 2019–2021

• Resident Recognition Award for Excellence in Family-Oriented Care, Association of Family Psychiatrists ……………… 2021–2022

• DEI Champion Award, Lifespan Physician Group ……………… 2024

• Runner-Up & Injury Focus Award, Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) Digital Health Pitch Competition, Brown University Health ……………… 2024

Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University

Attending Psychiatrist, Adolescent Acute Residential Treatment (ART), Bradley Hospital

Attending Psychiatrist, Children’s Partial Hospitalization Program, Bradley Hospital

Advisory Board Member, Office of Women in Medicine and Science (OWIMS), Brown University

Dr. Elnajjar’s teaching philosophy emphasizes creating psychologically safe, inclusive learning environments that foster resilience, professional identity development, and clinical excellence among medical trainees. Her approach integrates well-being, cultural humility, and innovation in psychiatric education, ensuring that learners are supported not only in their clinical growth but also in their personal development as physicians.

At Brown, she delivers didactic lectures to medical students on immigrant and refugee mental health, facilitates patient simulation cases, and mentors first- and second-year medical students through structured longitudinal programs. She leads the Well-Being Mentorship Onboarding Course for incoming residents and provides supervision for residents and fellows in the Bradley Partial Hospital Program and Hasbro Children’s Hospital. Her teaching also includes novel areas such as AI in psychiatry, peer mentorship models, and strategies for maintaining clinician wellness in high-stress clinical environments.

Nationally, Dr. Elnajjar has chaired and presented workshops at major conferences including the American Psychiatric Association (APA), the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training (AADPRT), and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). She also serves as a mentor in AACAP’s structured mentorship programs for medical students and residents, supporting career development and fostering interest in child and adolescent psychiatry. These roles reflect her commitment to advancing medical education and well-being on both institutional and national platforms.