First Female President of the APA
Dr. Nadelson has the distinction of being the first female president of the APA. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, educated locally, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Brooklyn College. She received her M.D. from the University of Rochester Medical School (New York) and later received the Benjamin Rush Prize in Psychiatry. She interned at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester (1961–62), and her residency was spent at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center (1962–64) and Beth Israel Hospital in Boston (1964–66). She was in psychoanalytical training in Boston (1964–74) and had a fellowship from Harvard (1965–66).
Dr. Nadelson has taught at Tufts University School of Medicine as Professor and Vice Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry since 1979. She was Director of Medical Student Education at Beth Israel Hospital (1974–79) and was later appointed Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Nadelson has served as a consultant to the Psychiatric Education Branch of the National Institute of Mental Health, a member of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, and the American College of Psychiatrists. She was President of the Association for Academic Psychiatry and was the first woman President of the APA District Branch in the Boston area. She has published a number of books and over 150 articles. Dr. Nadelson is married to an APA member, the late Theodore Nadelson, and has a daughter.
Dr. Nadelson served as President of the American Psychiatric Association (1985–1986).