From the moment Lindsay Oberleitner, Ph.D. saw OUWB’s emphasis on teaching future physicians, the assistant professor — and one of the school’s newest faculty members — knew she wanted to be part of it.

Oberleitner joined the Department of Foundational Medical Students in December 2020. She teaches in behavioral sciences.

Her background includes serving as faculty at Yale University School of Medicine and Western Connecticut State University.

Originally from metro Detroit, Oberleitner said she knew OUWB would be a great fit for her from the time she first interviewed.

“It’s really important to me to feel like my values align with the place that I’m working and that was a really big push for me in this position,” she said.

“When I met with everyone on the interview I saw how much everybody valued the students getting a good, solid education.”

Oberleitner received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Albion College, and her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Wayne State University, with a focus on clinical health psychology.

She then completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Yale University School of Medicine. She continued as faculty at the Yale University School of Medicine until 2019, with involvement in the Divisions of Substance Abuse and Law and Psychiatry.

At Yale she was the associate director for a forensic addiction clinic, where she provided administrative and clinical supervision for an interdisciplinary team, and co-developed a prison re-entry addiction initiative with an identified focus on opioid overdose prevention.

Oberleitner also has provided clinical training and seminars on the intersections of chronic health problems, criminal justice, and addiction at Yale School of Medicine for psychology and psychiatry trainees.

From 2019-2020 she was faculty at Western Connecticut State University where she was integral in the course development for a newly developed graduate program in Addiction Studies.

A common theme has been present for Oberleitner throughout her career, she said.

“I care a lot about doing work — whether it’s training students or doing research — that directly impacts clinical care,” she said.

Oberleitner's primary research interests are the intersections of substance use disorders and chronic health conditions, with a specific interest in how these issues are manifested in criminal justice populations.

Oberleitner is interested in developing treatments that effectively target the role of emotions, trauma, and gender differences in individuals with co-occurring addiction, chronic health conditions, and/or criminal justice involvement.

Further, she is interested in research and efforts to strengthen and expand the interdisciplinary addiction treatment workforce, as well as best practices in improving the integration of interdisciplinary approaches and patient-centered communication to clinical practice in graduate/medical training programs.

OUWB has been a “really welcoming environment,” said Oberleitner, who — together with her husband, David — has three children between the ages of 1 and 7 years old.

“Everyone’s been so kind in reaching out and trying to make starting a new job during the pandemic as smooth as possible,” she said. “People have really found creative ways to make everything feel welcoming and warm.”

Oberleitner added that she has “really been struck by how much my expectation —related to focus on students — has really rang true.”

For more information, contact Andrew Dietderich, marketing writer, OUWB, at [email protected]. 

To request an interview, visit the OUWB Communications & Marketing webpage.

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