Dr. Jennifer Payne

Dr. Jennifer L. Payne received her B.S. in biology at Davidson College in Davidson, NC and her M.D. from Washington University Medical School in St. Louis, MO. She completed her residency in psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins Hospital where she served as chief resident during her last year. Dr. Payne then completed a fellowship in mood disorders through the Mood and Anxiety Disorders Program at the NIMH. She joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 2003 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2011.

Dr. Payne is the founder and Director of the Women’s Mood Disorders Center, and in addition to providing outstanding clinical care for women with mood disorders, she also conducts research into the genetic, biological, and environmental factors involved in postpartum depression. She and her colleagues have recently identified two epigenetic biomarkers of postpartum depression and are working hard to replicate this work with NIH funding.

Dr. Payne also serves as the Deputy Representative of the Women’s Caucus to the American Psychiatric Association Assembly; has been named a Distinguished Fellow by the American Psychiatric Association; and served on the Maryland State Perinatal Mental Health Task Force, resulting in state legislation improving resources available for perinatal women and their doctors.