Emergency Psychiatrist--Harvard Faculty
Contact this Expert Witness
- Phone: (617) 462-6938
Specialties & Experience of this Expert Witness
General Specialties:
PsychiatryKeywords/Search Terms:
psychiatric emergencies, risk assessments, suicide, violence, substance use, standard of care, involuntary commitment, chart documentation, medical clearance, supervision of trainees and non-physician staff, restraints, crisis intervention, anxiety and depression, psychosis, involuntary holds, wrongful admission/dischargeEducation:
MD, Dartmouth Medical SchoolYears in Practice:
36Number of Times Deposed/Testified in Last 4 Yrs:
0Additional Information
Dr. Suzanne A. Bird is a board-certified psychiatrist with over 25 years of clinical, teaching and leadership experience in emergency psychiatry. She served as director of Psychiatric Emergency Services at Cambridge Hospital (a Harvard-affiliated community teaching hospital in Cambridge MA) for 16 years and ran the Acute Psychiatry Service in the Emergency Department at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for nearly 12 years. In addition to her clinical leadership roles, she is an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School, with extensive experience as an educator; training and supervising psychiatric residents, nurse practitioners and social workers, as well as medical students and junior faculty members. She has managed and overseen the management of thousands of patients in acute crisis and is recognized for her expertise in suicide and violence risk assessment, medical clearance of patients with acute psychiatric presentations, decisions around involuntary commitment, agitation management and restraint use, and standards of care in emergency psychiatric practice and documentation. Dr. Bird is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and has won numerous awards over the course of her career including being named Outstanding Psychiatrist for 2025 by the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society. Dr. Bird has consulted on numerous legal cases, providing in-depth record reviews and expert opinions, and has also testified in court. Drawing on decades of front-line clinical practice and academic experience, she offers balanced, authoritative opinions and is available to assist both plaintiff and defense counsel with consultation, case review, and testimony.