Psychiatrist in Chief, BC Children's and Women's Hospitals
Associate Professor (Partner), Department of Psychiatry, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia
Head, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia
Investigator, BC Children's Hospital Research Institute and BCCH Brain, Behaviour, Development Theme
Adjunct Member, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University
Corresponding Member, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Positions
Biography
Dr. Roberto Sassi is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Associate Professor (Partner), Head of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the UBC Department of Psychiatry, and Psychiatrist-in-Chief at BC Children’s and Women’s Hospitals. He graduated from medical school at the University of São Paulo, Brazil in 1996. Dr. Sassi completed his residency training in adult psychiatry at the University of São Paulo as well as at the Massachusetts General Hospital / McLean Hospital, Harvard University, in both adult and child & adolescent psychiatry Dr. Sassi has a PhD degree from the University of Sao Paulo, with a postdoctoral fellowship in neuroimaging at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic in Pittsburgh, where he worked on magnetic resonance imaging investigations on bipolar disorder. Prior to joining UBC, Dr. Sassi held faculty appointments at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in Miami, FL and at McMaster University, in Hamilton, ON. Dr. Sassi’s clinical research interests include (1) understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of bipolar disorders in children, adolescents and young adults, including among children at high-risk to develop severe mood disorders, and potential early interventions in this population; (2) the multigenerational transmission of risk for psychopathology, with focus on the interplay of genetic and environmental factors, and (3) implementing measurement-based care in child and youth mental health. Dr. Sassi’s clinical focus is on children, adolescents and young adults with mood disorders.
Areas of Interest
Medical Education
Psychopharmacology
Research (medical, clinical, translational)
Neuroimaging
Epidemiology
Mental Health
Treatment
Psychology
Health Services Research
Cognitive Neuroscience
Genetics
Awards
Certificate of Special Recognition, Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (2021)
Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Faculty Teaching Award, McMaster University Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences (2018)
Jock Cleghorn Excellence in Clinical Teaching Award, McMaster University Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences (2014)
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Junior Scholar Award (2013)
USA National Institute of Mental Health Outstanding Resident Award (2005)

