Built on Integrity and Evidence
Dr. Jeff Sugar’s work as a psychiatrist, educator, and forensic expert has always emphasized scientific accuracy, ethical responsibility, and evidence-based practice. His career reflects a consistent commitment to integrating research, clinical care, and teaching with a foundation of professional integrity.
Board Certifications and Licensure
- Board Certified, Psychiatry, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (1991)
- Board Certified, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (1991)
- California Medical License, active (Certificate G-56352)
Research Projects and Evidence-Based Innovation
Dr. Sugar has led or contributed to multiple funded research initiatives that advanced trauma-informed psychiatry:
- PC-CARE for Mothers with HIV (2018–present): Pilot study testing interventions for HIV-positive mothers and their children
- Biomarkers of Early Childhood Trauma (2014–2015): Southern California CTSI-funded project exploring biological indicators of trauma response
- National Child Traumatic Stress Network (2006–2011): Principal Investigator for USC subcontract, developing trauma services and training for children and families
- BC McCabe Foundation Grants (2001–2004; 2004 renewal, total $1.4M): Built Hathaway Children’s Clinical Research Institute infrastructure and developed a longitudinal trauma database for over 100 youth
- SCAATIR Screener: Developed with Julian Ford, PhD — an instrument for rapid trauma/adversity assessment
- Justina: Virtual Adolescent Trauma Patient: Created as a training tool to help mental health professionals learn trauma recognition and therapeutic alliance
- Longitudinal Outcomes Database: Documented trauma histories and treatment responses of ethnically diverse youth in residential care
Publications
Dr. Sugar has authored and co-authored peer-reviewed articles, book reviews, and case studies, including:
- Peritraumatic Dissociation and PTSD in Psychiatrically Impaired Youth (Journal of Traumatic Stress, 2012)
- How Adversity Becomes Disease: The Biological Embedding of Experience (Proceedings of the National Crime Victim Bar Association, 2015)
- Reflective Team Supervision After a Frightening Event on a Psychiatric Crisis Service: A Case Study (Academic Psychiatry, 2012)
- Virtual Patients as a Novel Teaching Tool in Psychiatry (Academic Psychiatry, 2012)
- Virtual Justina: A PTSD Virtual Patient for Clinical Classroom Training (Annual Review of CyberTherapy and Telemedicine, 2008)
- Book Review: Preventing Antisocial Behavior: Interventions from Birth through Adolescence (Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 1994)
Presentations and Conferences
Dr. Sugar has been an invited speaker and presenter nationally and internationally, sharing evidence-based insights on trauma, dissociation, and psychiatric care:
- “Flying Hands and Floating Fingers: Ideomotor Processes in Hypnosis” – Society of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 2020
- “Learn How and Why to Use the SCAATIR” – APSAC Annual Colloquium, 2019
- “Mis(sed) Diagnosis: Trauma, Dissociation, and Psychosis” – APA Annual Meeting, Toronto, 2015
- “Treating Child and Adolescent Dissociative Disorders with Hypnosis” – Lund University, Sweden, 2014
- “Trauma, Dissociation and Somatization in Youth” – ISTSS, 2012
- “PTSD following the Indonesian Tsunami” – Southern California Psychiatric Society, 2006
Professional Integrity and Peer Review
- Invited Reviewer for journals including Adolescent Psychiatry, Pediatrics, Journal of Traumatic Stress, Sage Open, and World Journal of Biological Psychiatry
- Longstanding memberships in professional societies:
- American Psychiatric Association (Distinguished Life Fellow, 2017)
- American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (Outstanding Mentor Award, 2010)
- International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies (Member since 2001)
- Forensic Expert Witness Association (Member since 2008)
Through his research leadership, publications, and national presentations, Dr. Sugar has established a record of integrity and evidence-based practice. His psychiatric evaluations and testimony are consistently grounded in scientific literature, rigorous methodology, and ethical standards.