Carol L. Alter, MD
Dr. Alter is the Director of Policy and Community Outreach and an Associate Professor in the Georgetown University Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Alter is a psychiatrist with over 20 years experience in diverse settings in healthcare including clinical practice, research, administration, healthcare delivery and the pharmaceutical industry. Her clinical and academic areas of interest focus on the psychiatric care of patients with cancer. She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed manuscripts, monographs and book chapters related to psychosomatic medicine and access to psychiatric care.
Dr. Alter has been an active participant and leader in several professional organizations, including the American Psychiatric Association where she participates in several committees related to Psychosomatic Medicine, managed care and reimbursement, the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine, where she is currently the Past-President and the American Psychosocial Oncology Society, where she serves as a consultant to its Board of Directors. She played an instrumental role in both the development and the implementation of the 2007 Institute of Medicine report: Cancer Care for the Whole Patient through her advocacy for the report’s completion and as a founder of the Alliance for Quality Psychosocial Cancer Care, a consortium of over 30 professional and patient advocacy organizations focusing on implementation of the report.
Among numerous honors, she received a Special Recognition Award from the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine in 1997 for her advocacy work and the Public Service Award from the American Psychosocial Oncology Society in 2009.
Dr. Alter received her medical degree from the George Washington University in 1985 and did her psychiatric training at the Mayo Clinic, Cornell University Medical College and the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
