Kaz J. Nelson, MD
Vice-Chair of Education, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Contact Info
Vice-Chair of Education, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Associate Designated Institutional Official, Graduate Medical Education
MD, University of Minnesota Medical School
Residency, Psychiatry, University of Minnesota
BA, University of Minnesota
Summary
Kaz J. Nelson, MD, is a Fellow of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and serves as Vice Chair for Education in the UMN Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences. Dr. Nelson practices at the University of Minnesota Medical Center and her clinical interests lie in the area of best practices in the diagnosis and management of severe personality disorders, suicide, and psychotherapeutic communication with patients in acute settings. Dr. Nelson also serves in the position of Associate Designated Institutional Official with leadership responsibilities across residency and fellowship programs. Dr. Nelson is an Honors graduate of the University of Minnesota-Morris, and received her medical degree and psychiatry residency training from the University of Minnesota Medical School. Dr. Nelson is the 2018 Minnesota Psychiatric Society "Psychiatrist of the Year" and a "2018 Exemplary Psychiatrist" awarded for the state of Minnesota by the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Dr. Nelson developed an openly accessible podcast with her brother, George, called "The Mind Deconstructed" which aims to serve the general community to demystify and increase understanding of common mental health conditions.
Professional Associations
American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training American Psychiatric Association, Fellow Minnesota Psychiatric Society Association for Academic Psychiatry
Research
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Publications
1.Schreiner M, Klimes-Dougan B, Mueller B, Nelson KJ, Lim K, Cullen K. (2019) “Neurocircuitry Associated with Symptom Dimensions at Baseline and with Change in Borderline Personality Disorder.”Science Direct.
2.Dirlam C, Vallera V, Nelson KJ & Bass DA. (2018) Psychiatry Resident’s Perspective of the “Virtual Preceptor” as an Electronic Medical Record Clinical Education Support Tool. Acad Psychiatry.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-017-0880-4.
3.Cullen KR, Klimes-Dougan B, Westlund Schreiner MK, Carstedt P, Marka N, Nelson KJ, Miller MJ, Reigstad K, Westervelt A, Gunlicks-Stoessel M & Eberly LE. (2018) N-Acetylcysteine for Nonsuicidal Self-Injurious Behavior in Adolescents: An Open-Label Pilot Study. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology. 28(2) 136-144.
4.Garber C, Bernadino M, Tomashek J & Nelson KJ. (2017) The Development and Implementation of a Patient Continuity Conference in a Psychiatry Residency Program Acad Psychiatry (2017).https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-017-0749-6.
5.Bernadino M & Nelson KJ. (2017) FIGHT to remember PTSD. Current Psychiatry. 16(8):17-.
6.Cullen KR, Schreiner MW, Mueller B, Klimes-Dougan B, Eberly LE, Carstedt P, Nelson KJ, Miller M & Lim, KO. (2015) N-Acetylcysteine Restored Impaired Amygdala-Insula Resting State Connectivity in Adolescents with Non-Suicidal Self-Injury. Biological Psychiatry, vol 77(9), pp. 110S-110S.
7.Nelson KJ, Zagoloff A, Quinn S, Swanson HE, Garber C, Schulz SC. (2014) Borderline personality disorder: Treatment approaches and perspectives. Clinical Practice. 2014;11(3):341-9. doi: 10.2217/cpr.14.24.
8.Cullen, KR, Eberly, LE, Klimes-Dougan, B, Mueller, BA, Jappe, L, Westlund, MK, Carstedt, P, Nelson, KJ, Miller, M & Lim, KO. (2014) Behavioral and Brain Changes Associated with the Experimental Use of N-Acetylcysteine for Non-suicidal Self-injurious Behavior in Adolescents. Neuropsychopharmacology. (39)S211-S212.
9.Cullen KR, Klimes-Dougan B, LaRiviere L, Houri A., Westlund MK, Lim B, Bortnova A, Nelson KJ, Miller MJ, Schulz SC, Mueller BA, Eberly LE, & Lim, KO. (2013) N-Acetylcysteine for the Treatment of Non-suicidal Self-injurious Behavior in Adolescents: A Preliminary Study. Neuropsychopharmacology. (38)S385-S386.
10.Ranallo PA, Adam TJ, Nelson KJ, Krueger RF, LaVenture M, Chute CG. (2013) Psychological assessment instruments: a coverage analysis using SNOMED CT, LOINC and QS terminology. AMIA Annual Symposium proceedings / AMIA Symposium. 2013:1333-40.
11.Nelson KJ. (2013) Managing borderline personality disorder on general psychiatric units. Psychodynamic Psychiatry. 41(4):563-74. doi: 10.1521/pdps.2013.41.4.563.
12.Nelson KJ. (2011) How to use patient-centered language in documentation. Current Psychiatry. 10(10):70.
13.Nelson K, Schulz SC. (2011) Pharmacologic treatment of borderline personality disorder. Current Psychiatry. 10(8):30-40.
14.Schulz SC, Moen R, Miller M, Long B, Romine A, Nelson K. (2009) Borderline personality disorder: A review of treatment approaches. Minerva Psichiatrica. 50(4):309-18.
Chapters in Books
1.Loeks Johnson A, Wichser L & Nelson KJ. (2019) Pharmacologic interventions for Antagonism and Related Disorders. In “The Handbook of Antagonism: Conceptualizations, Assessment, Consequences, and Treatment of the Low End of Agreeableness, 1st edition. Miller JW, Lynam D. Academic Press.
2.Homans J & Nelson KJ. (2016) Psychoticism due to Personality Disorders or Stress-Related Phenomena. In "Primer on Schizophrenia and Related Disorders" (Eds. Schulz, SC, Green M, and Nelson, KJ). April 1, 2016, Oxford University Press: New York.
3.Nelson KJ, Miller MJ, Zagoloff A, Westlund M & Schulz SC. (2014) Personality disorders. In: A Concise Guide to Understanding Suicide: Epidemiology, Pathophysiology and Prevention. Nemeroff C, Ruiz P, Koslow SH (eds). Cambridge University Press: United Kingdom.
4.Schulz SC & Nelson KJ. Somatic treatments. In: Textbook of Personality Disorders, Second Edition. Oldham JM, Skodol AE, Bender DS (eds). American Psychiatric Publishing, 2014, 321-343.
Book
1.Primer on Schizophrenia and Related Disorders. Eds. Schulz SC, Green M, and Nelson KJ. April 1, 2016, Oxford University Press: New York.
Teaching
Teaching Areas
Associate Designated Institutional Official, Office of Graduate Medical Education, University of Minnesota Medical School.
Chair, Scientific Foundations Committee, University of Minnesota Medical School.
Vice Chair for Education, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Minnesota Medical School
University of Minnesota Resident Leadership Academy, Co-Director.
"Health and Disease 5: Neuro, Psyche, Otolaryngology and Ophthalmology”, Course Co-Director, University of Minnesota Medical School.
Becoming a Doctor, Communication Thread Director, University of Minnesota Medical School.
Along with collaborators Drs. Lora Wichser and Jonathan Homans, Dr. Nelson developed a framework for effective and therapeutic communication for early learners called the Minnesota Arc.
Clinical
Board Certifications
American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
Clinical Interests
Dr. Nelson practices at the University of Minnesota Medical Center and her clinical interests lie in the area of best practices in the diagnosis and management of severe personality disorders, suicide, and psychotherapeutic communication with patients in acute settings.
Media
Video
The Mind Deconstructed: Mental Health and Wellness with Dr. Kaz and George
In The News
Kaz Nelson on Minnesota Public Radio
Anxiety: When do you ride it out and when do you seek help?
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2019/11/05/anxiety-when-do-you-ride-it-out-and-when-do-you-seek-help
When doctors become patients: Med schools put new emphasis on mental health for residents
Those disturbing thoughts might just be your body's way of protecting you