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David A. Merrill, MD

Offers Video Visits
1301 20th Street, Suite 150
Santa Monica, CA 90404
7833.5 miles away
Medical Groups & Affiliations
Speaks: English
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Pacific Neuroscience Institute

1301 20th Street, Suite 150, Santa Monica, CA 90404

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About David A. Merrill

David A. Merrill, MD, PhD, is an adult and geriatric psychiatrist with double-board certification by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He is director of the Pacific Brain Health Center at Pacific Neuroscience Institute.

Dr. Merrill graduated Phi Beta Kappa completing a double major with Highest Honors in Psychology and High Honors in Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of California, Berkeley. He continued his education in the National Institutes of Health funded Medical Scientist Training Program at the University of California, San Diego. He earned his PhD in Neurosciences at UCSD studying brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) amelioration of age-related cognitive deficits. His graduate studies led to the publication of a seminal work in the field of plasticity and aging in the journal “Nature Medicine.”

He completed his Adult Psychiatry Residency at the University of California, Los Angeles, which included a final year as program Chief Resident. He then completed a two-year combined clinical and research Geriatric Psychiatry Fellowship at UCLA before joining the faculty.

Dr. Merrill has worked for several decades with patients suffering the behavioral health sequelae of age-related neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disorder. His more recent clinical and research work have expanded to include patients with history of head trauma, tumor, and stroke. Through his early adoption of emerging clinical practice technologies, Dr. Merrill has developed a “precision holistic” approach that combines personalized genetic and biomarker data with the best evidenced-based treatments available for alleviating depression and cognitive dysfunction within the context of aging.

Medical School

University of California San Diego School of Medicine, San Diego, CA
2004

Neurosciences Graduate Program

University of California San Diego School of Medicine, San Diego, CA
2002

Internship

UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Psychiatry
2005

Psychiatry

UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
2008

Geriatric Psychiatry

UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
2010

Board Certifications
  • American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Geriatric Psychiatry
  • American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Psychiatry
Pacific Neuroscience Institute
1301 20th Street, Suite 150
Santa Monica, CA 90404

Medical Groups & Affiliations
Saint John’s Physician Partners

Affiliated Locations
Providence Saint John's Health Center
Saint John’s Health Center Cancer Clinic – Santa Monica

Clinical Interests

  • Abortion Recovery Counseling
  • Acute Stress Disorder
  • Addiction Disorders
  • Adjustment Disorder
  • Adult Child Of Alcoholic Codependency
  • Agitation
  • Agoraphobia
  • Alcohol Addiction
  • Alcohol Dependency
  • Alcohol Use Disorder
  • Alcoholism
  • Anorexia Nervosa
  • Antepartum Anxiety
  • Antepartum Depression
  • Antisocial Personality Disorder
  • Anxiety
  • Anxiety Disorder
  • Asthenic Personality Disorder
  • Attachment Based Therapy
  • Attachment Issues
  • Attachment Theory
  • Attention Deficit Disorder
  • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • Atypical Depression
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • Avoidant Personality Disorder
  • Behavior Counseling
  • Behavior Modification
  • Behavioral Disorders
  • Behavioral Issues In Dementia
  • Bereavement
  • Biofeedback
  • Bipolar And Related Disorder Due To Another Medical Condition
  • Bipolar Disorder
  • Body Dysmorphic Disorder
  • Borderline Personality Disorder
  • Brief Psychotic Disorder
  • Bulimia Nervosa
  • Childhood Trauma Victims
  • Children Of Incarcerated Parents Counselling
  • Claustrophobia
  • Communication Disorder
  • Competence
  • Complicated Bereavement Disorder
  • Compulsive Buying Disorder
  • Conversion Disorder
  • Coping Skills
  • Crisis Management
  • Cyclothymic Disorder
  • Delusional Disorder
  • Delusional Misidentification Syndrome
  • Delusional Parasitosis
  • Delusions
  • Dependent Personality Disorder
  • Depression
  • Developmental Disabilities
  • Disruptive Behavior
  • Dissociative Disorders
  • Domestic Abuse
  • Drug Dependence
  • Dysthymic Disorder
  • Eating Disorders
  • Emotion Regulation
  • Empowerment Building
  • Evidence Based Therapy
  • Executive Function Disorder
  • Functional Neurologic Disorder
  • Generalized Anxiety Disorder
  • Geriatric Counseling
  • Geriatric Psychiatric Assessment
  • Geriatric Psychiatry
  • Geriatrics
  • Grief
  • Grief And Loss Counseling
  • Hallucinations
  • Histrionic Personality Disorder
  • Hoarding Disorder
  • Holistic Medicine
  • Hormone Replacement Therapy
  • Human Immunodeficiency Virus (Hiv) Therapy
  • Human Immunodeficiency Virus Counseling
  • Human Immunodeficiency Virus Therapy
  • Hypochondriasis
  • Hypomania
  • Identity Development
  • Illness Anxiety Disorder
  • Impulse Control Disorders
  • Independent Medical Examinations
  • Integrated Behavioral Health
  • Integrative Therapy
  • Intermittent Explosive Disorder
  • Intersectionality
  • Life Counseling
  • Major Depressive Disorder, Single And Recurrent Episodes
  • Mania
  • Manic
  • Medical Comorbidity In Severe Mental Illness
  • Menstrual Disorders In Athletes
  • Mental Disorder
  • Mental Health
  • Mental Health Disorders
  • Metabolic Considerations In Psychotropic Use
  • Mood Disorders
  • Mood Symptoms
  • Motivational Interviewing
  • Mourning
  • Narcissism Personality Disorder
  • Narcissistic Personality Disorder
  • Neglect Counseling
  • Nightmares
  • Novel Coronavirus Related Mental Health Conditions
  • Nutrition
  • Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (Ocd)
  • Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder
  • Online Psychiatrist
  • Panic Attack
  • Panic Disorder
  • Paranoia And Delusional Disorders
  • Paranoid Personality Disorder
  • Performance Psychology
  • Perinatal Mental Health
  • Perinatal Mental Health Disorders
  • Perinatal Mood Disorders
  • Persistent Depressive Disorder
  • Personality Disorder
  • Phobia
  • Physical Disability Counseling
  • Physical Feelings Of Anxiety And Agitation
  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
  • Postpartum Anxiety
  • Postpartum Depression
  • Postpartum Psychosis
  • Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
  • Premenstrual Syndrome (Pms)
  • Problematic Interactive Media Use (Pimu)
  • Psychiatric Disorder
  • Psychopharmacology
  • Psychosexual Education
  • Psychosis
  • Psychosomatic Disorders
  • Psychotherapy
  • Psychotherapy With Evaluation And Management Services (30 Minutes)
  • Psychotic Disorders
  • Remote Patient Monitoring
  • Repetitive Behaviors
  • Schizoaffective Disorder
  • Schizophrenia
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder
  • Self-Acceptance
  • Self-Esteem Building
  • Sexual Dysfunction
  • Sexual Harassment Counseling
  • Single Parenting Counseling
  • Sleep Disorders
  • Smartphone Addiction Disorder
  • Social Media Addiction
  • Solution Focused Therapy
  • Somatic Symptom Disorder
  • Somatization Disorder
  • Somatoform Disorders
  • Stress
  • Stress Disorder
  • Stroke Related Depression
  • Substance Addiction
  • Substance Dependence
  • Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
  • Suicidal
  • Suicidal Ideation
  • Suicide Attempt
  • Suicide Prevention
  • Telepsychiatry
  • Thought Disorder
  • Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
  • Trauma Focused Psychotherapy
  • Trauma Therapy
  • Traumatic Grief And Bereavement
  • Treatment Resistant Depression
  • Trichotillomania
  • Violent Behavior
  • Virtual Care
  • Work Reintegration Therapy