Dr. Zeina Chemali is an expert clinician, double boarded in Neurology and Psychiatry who has dedicated her life’s work to the practice of clinical neuropsychiatry, and education, in the US and in support of programs in other countries. In the US she previously served as Director of the Neuropsychiatry Clinics and Training in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology at MGH, providing patients and families in the US with the highest quality of care.
Dr. Chemali has worked in the global sphere for more than 4 decades and within the Pierce Division at MGH for fifteen years. Within the Pierce Division Dr. Chemali directed the Global Neuropsychiatry Outreach program and in 2016 launched the Middle East Desk for Clinical and Public Affairs with Arabic as the primary language. In 2025 she was named Vice Chair of Education at Cambridge Health Alliance. Today she continues as Director of Global Implementation of Programs in Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences within the Pierce Division at MGH.
She is at heart an educator and mentor of medical students, interns, residents, fellows, and other care providers, supporting the development of cross-disciplinary scholars. Dr. Chemali has taught and mentored in PhD programs as well as neuroscientists, nurses, neuropsychologists, rehabilitation specialists. She has supported neuropsychiatry education in the US and around the world, including programs at the University of São Paulo in Brazil (today the first neuropsychiatry unit in South America), American University of Beirut (AUB) Medical Center, and in many countries in Africa. Her collaboration at AUB helped secure ACGME-I accreditation in Neurology and Psychiatry and she continues to work with the Department of Neurology educating residents on behavioral neurology, attending clinics for memory disorders, and staffing outpatient disparity specialty clinics where patients and refugees with very low income come to seek care.
In addition to her work in Lebanon, Dr. Chemali continues to advise on curriculum development at the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) in Rwanda, Mbarara University Science and Technology in Uganda, and at Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital, in addition to having developed a new dual residency program in Neurology and Psychiatry at the University of Hargeisa, Somaliland. This is a model for programs across Africa. In Ethiopia, Dr. Chemali has led development of a master’s in Community Psychiatry that has graduated 100+ professionals, transforming national mental health services and strategy. She today continues to consult with governmental entities, Ministries of Health and Social Affairs, and international NGOs on national mental health strategies, Alzheimer’s capacity building, brain health and women’s empowerment. She has been awarded multiple awards pertaining to her humanitarian work in Africa and the Middle East.
In the US, as Vice Chair for Education at Cambridge Health Alliance, she collaborates with the department Chair on strategic planning for a multidisciplinary community of trainees and faculty, shaping the future of education, and aligning clinical, research, and training efforts while supporting to the department’s various initiatives.
Reflecting on her journey Dr. Chemali notes that, “Education is key to all we do. Education is progress. Education opens doors and builds nations. In terms of recommendations to the next generation of US mental health clinicians who aspire to integrate a global perspective in their work, “the world is waiting for what you’ll offer it. The opportunities are endless, and you can make them as unique to you as you want. Sleeves up, get out there and make your mark”.