Robert Lustig, D.O.

I have been a psychiatrist for over twenty-five years, primarily in New York City, which has given me the opportunity to have treated adult patients from across the globe as well across the spectrums of race, class, gender and sexuality that make up the rich tapestry of this global magnet city. I have worked in a wide variety of clinical settings and I have extensive experience in outpatient, inpatient, and recovery focused psychiatry. I have addressed the mental/emotional health needs of persons living with HIV in two specialty care programs and I was a volunteer co-leader of an AIDS therapy support group at GMHC prior to the development of effective treatments for HIV infection.

I am judicious in my recommendations for medication when evaluating new patients and if I think that nonpharmacologic approaches are likely to be no less effective or perhaps more effective than prescription drugs, I describe what alternatives to medication might be helpful and why. Your questions and your thoughts about therapeutic options are welcomed as are those of your psychotherapist.

If you are not yet working with a therapist, I hope that you’ve had a chance to read (on this website) the personal introductions of the Director of Bryant West and those of all of my other colleagues. I was so impressed with these biographies when I first read them that I knew that I would love to join this practice for the opportunity to work with such a diverse group of clinicians who are proud of their professional expertise and so dedicated to developing empathic and compassionate therapeutic relationships with their clients. Here at Bryant West, we are all on the same team, your team, dedicated to your care.

I completed my residency in psychiatry at Long Island Jewish Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine and was appointed a chief resident in my senior year of training. I had also taken an elective at the National Institutes of Mental Health in Bethesda, MD to learn about innovations in psychopharmacology while I was a medical student. As much as I enjoy my work with patients, over the course of my lengthy career, I have equally enjoyed teaching psychiatry to medical students and residents of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.

I know that every person I evaluate or treat is unique and I enjoy discovering that uniqueness over time. If you decide that you would like to work with me, do know that I want to get to know you as you wish to be known and we will work collaboratively to help you achieve the therapeutic goals you are seeking.