David C. Henderson, MD

Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

David C. Henderson, MD, currently serves as Psychiatrist-in-Chief, Division of Psychiatry, at Boston Medical Center and Professor and Chair, Department of Psychiatry, at Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine. Dr. Henderson previously served as Director of The Chester M. Pierce, MD Division of Global Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Director of the MGH Schizophrenia Clinical and Research Program, and Medical Director of the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma. Dr. Henderson serves as Co-Director of the NIMH T32 MGH-BUSM Global Mental Health Clinical Research Fellowship. He has worked internationally for the past 21 years in resource-limited settings, and areas impacted by mass violence, disasters and complex emergencies. Dr. Henderson has conducted research and training programs in Bosnia, Cambodia, East Timor, Ethiopia, Haiti, Liberia, New Orleans, New York City, Rwanda and Peru, South Africa, and Somaliland among other places. His work has consisted of field studies, needs assessments, mental health policy development and strategic planning, quantitative and qualitative surveys, mental health capacity building programs for specialized and primary health professionals, and skill-transfer program evaluation. In the United States, he has conducted more than 30 randomized clinical trials in severely mentally ill populations. Dr. Henderson has also directed a schizophrenia research training fellowship, and mentored trainees and junior faculty who have progressed to K awards and secured other independent funding. He actively mentors 10 psychiatry residents and 4 postdoctoral fellows on data-driven international research projects

Publications

  • Published 5/20/2026

    Oblath R, Beaugard CA, Herrera CN, Xu C, Syed S, Sadatis C, Duncan A, Gann G, Plange E, Ferguson T, Khan S, Katkhuda F, Henderson DC, Savage J, Morabito MS. Correction: Bridging crisis and care: exploring the role of behavioral health professionals in a police co-response model. Health Justice. 2026 May 20; 14(1). PMID: 42159652.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 4/24/2026

    Carroll HA, Guevara T, Gamarra P, Mukunta C, Dorsey S, Gelaye B, Henderson D, Bird MD, Freier LF. Protocol for a randomized pilot trial of COMPASS, an open-source, culturally adapted cognitive behavioral therapy program for forcibly displaced Venezuelan adults in Peru. PLoS One. 2026; 21(4):e0345837. PMID: 42030335.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 4/15/2026

    Sokoto KC, Masai TW, Gwanya-Mdletye SS, Silaule O, Jili SPP, Tessema SA, Rafique M, Lepkeh G, Amos A, Kariuki K, Solomon Y, Ghebrehiwet S, Valentine SE, Henderson DC, Harris B, Bonginkosi C, Pickersgill M, Manda-Taylor L. A Study Protocol: Engagement of Lived Experience Voices for Analysis of Transformative Evidence in Mental Health Policy & Legislation (ELEVATE-MH). PLoS One. 2026; 21(4):e0346037. PMID: 41984904.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 3/25/2026

    Carroll HA, Guevara T, Gamarra P, Mukunta C, Dorsey S, Gelaye B, Henderson D, Bird MD, Frier LF. Protocol for a randomized pilot trial of COMPASS, an open source, culturally adapted cognitive behavioral therapy program for forcibly displaced Venezuelan adults in Peru. medRxiv. 2026 Mar 25. PMID: 42051574.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 3/12/2026

    Oblath R, Primm AB, Duncan A, Nicole-Herrera C, Thompson A, Ferguson T, Won J, Henderson DC, Norris DM. Repeat Psychiatric Emergency Services Utilization Among Youths Across Emergency Department and Alternative Settings. Psychiatr Serv. 2026 Jun 01; 77(6):533-540. PMID: 41813633.

    Read at: PubMed

View All 197 Publications:   View Full Profile in BUMC

Other Positions

  • Chair, Psychiatry
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
  • Assistant Dean, Diversity & Inclusion
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Websites

Education

  • University of Massachusetts Medical School, MD
  • Tufts University, BS

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