J. Wesley Boyd, MD, PhD

Delighted to co-author this piece with Hana Abbasian and Avani Nooka, 2 recent graduates of the Master’s in Bioethics program at Harvard Medical School. It’s an important piece that advocates pumping the ethical brakes on yet another new tech development that many might endorse whole hog without too much thought, because it’s new, techie, and therefore “sexy.” Super proud of the piece and so delighted to have amazing co-authors!

About J. Wesley Boyd, MD, PhD:

Dr. J. Wesley Boyd is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and bioethicist, devoted to providing thoughtful, comprehensive care grounded in the humanities, medicine, and ethics. With academic training in philosophy, religious studies, and medicine—including degrees from Yale University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—Dr. Boyd blends a rich scholarly background with decades of frontline experience as a psychiatrist at Cambridge Health Alliance, a Harvard-affiliated hospital.

Dr. Boyd holds a faculty appointment at Harvard Medical School and has taught at the highest levels in medicine, psychiatry, and the humanities, including past faculty appointments at Smith College, Mt. Holyoke College, Harvard College, and Harvard Divinity School. He is also an award-winning educator, widely published author, and national voice on social justice, human rights, access to care, and physician well-being.

Dr. Boyd offers:

• Psychiatric consultations
• Medication management
• Psychotherapy
• Physician health consultations
• Legal reviews

Initial appointments are conducted virtually, with ongoing arrangements as needed. Patients must be located in Massachusetts or Texas at the time of their appointments. Dr. Boyd’s fee structure can be found below.

If you would like to join Dr. Boyd’s waiting list, please contact him at wesboydmdphd@gmail.com or call 781-343-1881.

Fee structure:
• Initial psychiatric evaluation: $750 (90 minutes)
• Individual psychotherapy sessions (w/ or w/o med management): $500 (50 minutes)
• Medication management sessions: $250 (25 minutes)
• Legal Consultation: $3500 retainer, which covers the first 3.5 hours. $1000/hour thereafter

Insurance
• Wes Boyd is not in-network with any insurance providers.
• He can assist you in receiving out-of-network insurance reimbursement by providing a receipt for services.

Payment options
• Venmo
• Credit Card
• Debit Card
• Check

Many health care organizations send patients a digital PHQ-9 depression questionnaire in the days leading up to an appointment. However, some organizations deliberately remove the final question of the PHQ-9, which asks about suicide.

When they omit the last question, organizations are doing so out of fear of legal liability.

In this piece Kyle Fitzpatrick, Geoff Engel, and I contend that omitting the question about suicide is unethical, unsupported by evidence, and rooted in stigma.

It is crucial that organizations ask the most important question in behavioral health care. Everyone deserves as much.

You can read the piece here:

I’m grateful to Kyle for reaching out several months back to discuss this important topic.

**Kyle and Geoff are both former students of mine–I’ve been beyond fortunate to have had so many amazing students and trainees over the years.

Covered our recent paper in the American Journal of Bioethics — Empirical. The podcast is here. Super proud of our work and that 4 of my co-authors on this important paper are former students of mine.

It’s critical of our findings–but not our methodology–and I’m fully supportive of vigorous debate. What an honor! https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/bioethics-is-becoming-just-another-social-justice-political-movement

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/feb/28/texas-pediatrician-support-healthcare