By Jon Moskin
When Tara Collins started medical school, she was told that the vast majority of students intending to specialize in a particular medical discipline change their minds by the time they graduate. “Not me,” Dr. Collins said. “I was psychiatry all the way.”
And over twenty years later, the new Medical Director for Psychiatry at SFCJL continues to defy expectations and certain staid conventions.
While her traditional professional credentials are impeccable: medical school at Emory University and psychiatry residency at UCSF, where she later taught, she has also integrated holistic approaches into her practice to further promote emotional health and wellness.
In her life outside of her psychiatric practice, when she is not hiking, backpacking, or cycling with her family, she is a certified yoga teacher and an Ayurvedic Health Counselor.
In short, Dr. Collins has range. And not just as a medical professional, but in peripatetic life experiences that have taken her from her childhood in Cleveland to Howard University (where she graduated summa cum laude) to an ashram in Bali. And all of it, from her east meets west training to the lessons she learned in her grandparents’ living room, fueled her passion for geriatric psychiatry.
“It was always so great just listening to my grandparents and older relatives talking about the lives that they’ve lived and everything that they’ve experienced… So, it’s no accident that I love caring for the geriatric population today. They actually like to have genuine conversations and form meaningful connections. And that’s wonderful. Plus, they aren’t glued to their phones. So, whatever I contribute to their well-being, I feel like I get the same in return. Even more so.”
Dr. Tara Collins
Embedded in Dr. Collins’ passion for treating seniors is a dedication to changing perceptions and correcting misunderstandings about aging and mental health.
“There’s this thought that we’re just inevitably going to get older and lose our memory, not be able to do things, or enjoy a fulfilling and rewarding life. I think in some respects a lot of people just see this as normal aging, and I’m like, no, no, no! That’s not normal aging. And this is something that can be treated.”
Though she hates to generalize when it comes to mental health issues facing our seniors, the fight against depression, anxiety, and social isolation is a clear priority in her battle for wellness. And while every patient in her care has their own needs, she cares for each one of them through a holistic approach.
“There’s another misconception that we just give people meds and that makes them all better. And that’s not it at all. Of course, it may be part of it, but we’re helping people learn skills, form connections, gain insights, and make positive changes for their lives and their lifestyles. There’s so much more to it than just pills.”
Furthermore, her holistic approach to wellness is not reserved exclusively for SFCJL patients and residents: Staff wellbeing and teamwork are equally important priorities in her new role.
“We have an amazing, multidisciplinary team, and recognizing that none of us knows everything is so important. Our nurses have skills and training that I don’t have. Our recreational therapists and psychotherapists have skills and training and experiences that I don’t have, and our wonderful social workers have skills and training and experiences that I don’t have… One of the first things I taught residents when I was on the faculty at UCSF was that if they became people who just write orders and dictate what to do and never listen to anyone, they would be bad doctors. We’re all contributing equally here… and that includes families because that can be such an important piece. And our patients can’t get better unless all of us are working together.”
Dr. Tara Collins is the new Medical Director for Psychiatry at the San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living, bringing extensive clinical and leadership experience across inpatient, outpatient, forensic, and crisis psychiatry. A summa cum laude graduate of Howard University, she attended Emory University School of Medicine, completed her Psychiatry residency at UCSF, where she was Chief Resident of Intensive Services and a fellowship in Forensic Psychiatry. Dr. Collins has held leadership roles, including acting Medical Director at the UCSF Citywide Program and Secretary of the Northern California Psychiatric Society. Known for integrating holistic approaches into her practice, she leads workshops in integrative psychiatry and wellness and is also a certified yoga teacher and Ayurvedic Health Counselor. Outside of medicine, she enjoys hiking, backpacking, and cycling with her family.