Dan W. Haupt, MD

Dan W. Haupt, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry, is regarded by the residents in his department as an excellent physician and talented educator. Colleagues call his compassion for patients and their families exemplary and inspiring, reporting that he truly views patient care as a duty and a privilege.

Haupt earned his bachelor’s degree from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Ore., in 1991 and his medical degree from the University of Vermont College of Medicine in 1997. During his residency at Washington University, Haupt was honored with the Eli Robins Award for excellence in clinical psychiatry, teaching and research.

Haupt then joined the faculty at Washington University and received a National Institutes of Health career development award for clinical research on adverse metabolic consequences of psychotropic medications. During that time, his ongoing love of resident education led him to pursue a larger role in clinical training and teaching. Since then, he has twice won the School of Medicine’s faculty excellence in teaching award from the psychiatry residents.

Due to his many roles — directing two busy hospital consult services, teaching and patient care at BJC Behavioral Health’s downtown clinic and the Wohl Clinic — Haupt helps train three-quarters of the nearly 40 psychiatry residents at any given time. He also plays an increasing role in the education of medical and surgical residents, both with scheduled lectures and informal didactic sessions as he helps residents manage complex medical, surgical and psychiatric comorbidities on the consult service.

Haupt says he owes a debt of gratitude to his now-deceased mentors, including Washington University faculty Samuel B. Guze, MD, Ray E. Clouse, MD, Daniel P. Schuster, MD, and Abdullah M. Nassief, MD, whose guidance profoundly enriched his career. He especially seeks to incorporate Guze’s mantra that psychiatry is a branch of medicine into all his interactions with physicians throughout the hospital and community.