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Wei Du

Wei Du, MD, MS

Professor and Academic Chair of Psychiatry; Senior Vice President, Academic Affairs, Chief Academic Officer and Designated Institutional Official, Tower Health


Department: Psychiatry

Specialties: Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine

Education

  • MS in Physiology and Neuroendocrinology - China Medical University
  • MD - China Medical University

Awards & Honors

  • June Klinghoffer Clinical Educator Award, Drexel University College of Medicine, 2023
  • Golden Apple Award, Drexel University College of Medicine, 2020

Memberships / Professional Affiliations

  • Philadelphia Psychiatry Society, President-Elect (June 2021)
  • American College of Psychiatrists
  • American Psychiatric Association
  • American Society of Addiction Medicine
  • American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology
  • American Association of Department Chairs of Psychiatry
  • Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society

Wei Du, MD, provides direct patient care at the Tower Health 1427 Vine Street Outpatient Clinic and the Drexel Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice.

He worked at Friends Hospital, Horsham Clinic and Hahnemann University Hospital. He was service chief of psychiatry at Hahnemann.

Clinical Services

Psychopharmacology, Addiction treatment

Residencies

  • Psychiatry - Drexel University College of Medicine

Affiliated Hospitals

Friends Hospital

Wei Du, MD, is chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Drexel University College of Medicine, as well as chair of the Department of Academic Psychiatry at Tower Health and the Department of Psychiatry at Brandywine Hospital. He is a professor of psychiatry, and pharmacology and physiology at Drexel University.

He is a diplomate of American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, American Board of Addiction Medicine and American Board of Preventative Medicine. His clinical interests include pharmacological management of schizophrenia, bipolar, addictive disorders, and chronic pain. He provides lectures on advanced psychopharmacology and addiction psychiatry.

Dr. Du was previously involved in NIH-funded research programs examining the effect of prenatal cocaine exposure on behavioral sequelae. He is currently collaborating with Rodrigo España, PhD, at Drexel, examining the involvement of orexin system in opioid withdrawal. He is the former director of the General Psychiatry Residency Program at Drexel University College of Medicine. He currently serves as the program director of Janssen Drexel Fellowship in Psychiatric Drug Development, an innovative training program for early career psychiatrists who are interested in clinical drug development.

Dr. Du is a recipient of multiple awards including a Golden Apple Award for his teaching of medical students and residents. In addition to his academic career, he has led clinical drug development programs for a pharmaceutical company. He has been involved in Phase I, II and III clinical trials. He sits on several national committees in psychiatry, and currently serves as the vice president of Philadelphia Psychiatric Society.

In the Media

“Drexel’s network of medical school campuses outside of Philly is advancing a nationwide trend”
The Philadelphia Inquirer (May 22, 2024)

Medical Cannabis Improves Quality of Life in People With Chronic Pain, Other Conditions
Healthline (May 10, 2023)

Wei Du, MD, professor and chair, was quoted in stories in the Daily Local News and The Unionville Times about Brandywine Hospital’s plan to address the opioid overdose.
(July 2021)

Wei Du, MD, professor and chair, was quoted in stories in ChesCo about telepsychiatry service at Brandywine Hospital.
(April 2021)

Brandywine Hospital Offers Comprehensive Behavioral Health Services During COVID-19 Pandemic
MyChesCo (August 25, 2020)

Virus-killing Robot Works At New Brandywine Hospital Site
West Chester Patch (August 25, 2020)

Americans are more likely to report mental health concerns related to the pandemic than other developed countries, survey finds
Philadelphia Inquirer (August 7, 2020)

Publications

Recent Publications & Abstracts

"Team Based Learning (TBL): Clinical Psychopharmacology"
Du W, Spinner B, Gillean G, Youngman B, and Ahuja A
AADPRT Annual Meeting, Tucson, Ariz., 2014

"Asexuality – The no longer invisible orientation"
Patnaik M, Stanfa C, Varghese C, Kushon D, and Du W
Colloquium of Scholars, Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, Philadelphia, Pa., 2014

"Factors affecting readmissions within 30 Days of discharge in psychiatric patients"
Youngman B, Hicks M, Nader F, Manoharan B, Smith F, and Du W
Colloquium of Scholars, Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, Philadelphia, Pa., 2014

"Comparison of biopsychosocial factors among bariatric patients with and without a significant CDC Trauma Score"
Youngman B, Petrucci R, and Du W
Colloquium of Scholars, Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, Philadelphia, Pa., 2014

“When you hit rock bottom, ketamine to the rescue in treatment refractory depression in elderly population”
Munmun M, Patnaik M, Varghese C, Waldfogel S, and Du W
Case report, APA Annual Meeting, New York, 2014

"Characteristics of substance use patients in an inner city psychiatric inpatient unit – A chart review"
Mathur N, Bauza P, Ogundeji O, Yilmaz E, Mathur G, Gurmu S, Du W, Kushon D
Colloquium of Scholars, Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, Philadelphia, Pa., 2013

"Integrating psychopharmacology and psychotherapy in mood disorders: bipolar disorder"
Sudak DM and Du W
In Integrating Psychotherapy and Psychopharmacology. Irismar Oliveira, I.R., Schwartz, T., and Stahl, S.M. Eds. (In press 2013)

"Methadone-induced severe bradycardia"
Du W, and Frost M
ASAM Annual Meeting (submitted 2012)

Presentations

"Antidepressants and Antipsychotics"
Grand rounds presentation, Department of Neurology, Drexel University College of Medicine, 2014

"Medication Assisted Treatment"
Grand Rounds presentation, Department of Anesthesiology, Drexel University College of Medicine, 2014

"New Treatment Approach in Bipolar Depression"
Psychiatry Resident Lecture, Friends Hospital, 2007

"Striking the Balance of Efficacy and Tolerability of Seroquel"
Project Transition, Sponsored by Astra-Zeneca Pharmaceutical, 2006

"Suicide Assessment in Dual Diagnosis"
The Horsham Clinic, 2006

"Use of Atypical Antipsychotics in Patients with Dual Diagnosis"
Valley Forge Medical Center, PA, Sponsored by Astra-Zeneca Pharmaceutical, 2005

"Atypical Antipsychotics in Treatment of Bipolar Disorder"
Gorges, PA, Sponsored by Astra-Zeneca Pharmaceutical, 2005
Central Montgomery Mental Health, Norristown, PA, Sponsored by Astra-Zeneca Pharmaceutical, 2005