Risa B. Weisberg, PhD

Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

Risa B. Weisberg, PhD, is a Professor of Psychiatry at the Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine and an Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry and Family Medicine at the Alpert Medical School, Brown University. Additionally, Dr. Weisberg is the Chief Clinical and Scientific Officer of RealizedCare, a digital health company developing interventions for common behavioral health problems including chronic pain, substance use, anxiety, and depression.

Dr. Weisberg's research focuses on developing and testing behavioral health interventions that can be more easily implemented and scaled. Her work encompasses interventions for chronic pain, opioid use disorder, anxiety disorders, depression, chronic medical conditions, and sexual and reproductive health. Her treatment development and clinical trial work has been funded by the National Institute of Health, as well as by industry and foundation grants, for over 20 years. Currently, she is the principal investigator on a NIDA-funded clinical trial examining the effectiveness of a behavioral treatment for primary care patients with chronic pain and opioid use disorder. She has also served as PI and Co-Investigator on two large-scale, longitudinal studies, examining the nature and course of anxiety disorders; the Harvard/Brown Anxiety Research Project (HARP) and the Primary Care Anxiety Project (PCAP).

Publications

  • Published 10/23/2025

    Hayaki J, Weisberg RB, Bendiks S, Karzhevsky S, Pierce C, Dunn A, Herman DS, Anderson BJ, Stein MD. Identification of Opioid Medications Among Persons With Opioid Use Disorder and Chronic Pain. Subst Use Addctn J. 2026 Apr; 47(2):354-361. PMID: 41131819.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 11/15/2024

    Moitra E, Stein MD, Busch AM, Pinkston MM, Bray JW, Abrantes AM, Baker JV, Weisberg RB, Anderson BJ, Uebelacker LA. Health Care Service Utilization Among People with HIV, Chronic Pain, and Depression: Utilization and Cost Outcomes from the HIV-PASS Study. AIDS Behav. 2025 Mar; 29(3):725-732. PMID: 39546145.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 10/24/2024

    Haley DF, Stein MD, Bendiks S, Karzhevsky S, Pierce C, Dunn A, Herman DS, Anderson B, Weisberg RB. Associations of discomfort intolerance, discomfort avoidance, and cannabis and alcohol use among persons with chronic pain receiving prescription buprenorphine for opioid use disorder. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2024 Dec 01; 265:112472. PMID: 39488941.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 8/22/2024

    Garland EL, Recasens M, Taple BJ, Donaldson GW, Weisberg RB. Virtual reality-based Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE-VR) as an adjunct to medications for opioid use disorder: a Phase 1 trial. Ann Med. 2024 Dec; 56(1):2392870. PMID: 39172534.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 6/13/2024

    Stein MD, Bendiks S, Karzhevsky S, Pierce C, Dunn A, Majeski A, Herman DS, Weisberg RB. Study protocol for the Treating Opioid Patients' Pain and Sadness (TOPPS) study - A randomized control trial to lower depression and chronic pain interference, and increase care retention among persons receiving buprenorphine. Contemp Clin Trials. 2024 Aug; 143:107608. PMID: 38878997.

    Read at: PubMed

View All 93 Publications:   View Full Profile in BUMC

Websites

Education

  • State University of New York at Albany, PhD
  • Tufts University, BA

View all profiles