Faculty and Staff

Professor Alexander Bystritsky, M.D., Ph.D. graduated from Pavlov Medical Institute (currently Pavlov Medical University) in St. Petersburg, Russia (former Soviet Union) with M.D. degree in 1977 and then his Ph.D. in Pharmacology in 1979. In 1976 his paper won the Gold Medal for the Best Student Scientific Paper and Maria Petrova National Award in Neuroscience.

After he arrived to New York, he worked for one year as an Associate Researcher in the NYU Department of Psychiatry prior his admission to the NYU-Belleview residency program in Psychiatry. He completed his residency in 1985 and moved to UCLA as a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar. Dr. Bystritsky has... More

Dr. Distler assists with the administration of the Anxiety Disorders Clinic and supervises psychiatry residents in both CBT and medication management. She earned her MD and PhD from the University of Chicago. Her PhD studies focused on the genetic and molecular basis of anxiety. She completed her psychiatry residency at UCLA, where she was the chief resident in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic and participated in clinical and basic research on anxiety and depression. Dr. Distler has several clinical duties in addition to her work in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic. At UCLA, she treats college students with mental illness and is the Associate Medical Director of the UCLA Aftercare program, where... More

Dr. Schraufnagel assists with the administration of the Anxiety Disorders Clinic and provides training and supervision to the psychiatry residents in the clinic. He completed his doctoral studies in Clinical Psychology at the University of Washington and completed his predoctoral clinical internship at the Seattle Veterans Affairs hospital. Dr. Schraufnagel received specialized training in the treatment of anxiety and related disorders as a postdoctoral fellow at the Anxiety Center of the Evidence Based Treatment Centers of Seattle. Dr. Schraufnagel is in private practice in Beverly Hills.

David Kronemyer is currently a Clinical Faculty and Research Scientist at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, primarily at the Anxiety and Related Disorders Center. As a clinician, he is part of a multi-disciplinary team working under Dr. Alexander Bystritsky providing outpatient therapy and medication management for persons with anxiety disorders. As a researcher, he works on clinical trials of new methods of treating anxiety and mood disorders using technologies such as non-invasive brain stimulation and novel pharmaceuticals.

Raphael Rose is one of the faculty psychologists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Gennady Musher is Board-Certified in Psychiatry and Neurology. He began his psychiatry career nearly 30 years ago. He completed his PhD in psychiatry in 1988 and he served his residency at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. Dr. Musher has 25 years experience in psychopharmacology treatment of multiple psychiatric disorders. He is also an expert in the treatment of resistant depression with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and specific training in neuromodulation techniques. Since 1998, he has been in private practice, and since 2017, is a clinical instructor in the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences.

Norman Spivak studies neuroscience at UCLA. He has been involved with the research efforts of this group since October 2014. In his role at the Brain Stimulation Laboratory, he is looking at the efficacy of neuromodulation of psychiatric conditions, focusing on magnetic, electrical, and ultrasound stimulation technology. He is also responsible for training and coordinating all the undergraduate research assistants. He aspires to one day conduct his own research as an investigator. In his spare time, he enjoys listening to popular music and cooking.

Tamara Bailey is chief psychology (PhD) extern at the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Emil Soorani is one of the faculty psychiatrists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Tanya Vapnik is one of the faculty psychologists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Jamie Feusner is one of the faculty psychiatrists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Dr. Trozzolino received her doctorate in clinical psychology from USC and has specialized in applying Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) to a variety of disorders her entire career. Presently,in addition to her private practice, Dr. Trozzolino is an Assistant Professor in the UCLA Department of Psychiatry where she supervises the training of Psychiatry residents in the treatment of anxiety disorders, including OCD, Panic Disorder, Social Anxiety, Generalized Anxiety, and Post-Traumatic Stress. Her special interest is in the treatment of OCD.

Dr. Plotkin received his doctorate in clinical psychology from UCLA and was a member of the UCLA Anxiety Disorders Behavioral Research Program, under the direction of Michelle Craske, Ph.D. Presently, Dr. Plotkin is the director of David Plotkin, Ph.D. and Associates and is also a clinical instructor in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, UCLA Semel Institute and Hospital. He teaches and supervises psychiatry residents in the administration of cognitive behavioral therapy at the UCLA Anxiety Disorders Outpatient Clinic. In addition to his clinical and teaching positions, Dr. Plotkin has conducted research and coauthored studies in the areas of panic disorder,... More

Richard Ross is one of the faculty psychiatrists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Melanie Zermeno is one of the faculty psychiatrists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Michael E. Cameron is one of the faculty psychologists who supervises residents and psychology externs in the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.