About

Tyler A. Durns, MD, is an Assistant Professor (Clinical) in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Utah. He earned his medical degree at the University of Arizona College of Medicine and completed his Adult Psychiatry residency at the University of Utah, where he served as Chief Resident. Dr. Durns further specialized with a fellowship in Forensic Psychiatry at the University of California Davis Division of Psychiatry and the Law. He is board-certified in both Adult and Forensic Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. His clinical interests include treatment-resistant mood disorders, schizophrenia spectrum and related disorders, trauma and other related disorders, borderline personality disorder, existential and behavioral psychotherapies, and advanced psychopharmacology. His forensic interests encompass violence risk assessment, criminal responsibility, psychopathy, malingering, and medical malpractice. Dr. Durns is actively involved in mentoring trainees and is a member of both the clinical adult inpatient and outpatient teams at the University of Utah Huntsman Mental Health Institute. He also founded and serves as the Program Director for the Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship in the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine.

Research topics

• Psychology
• Psychiatry
• Medicine
• Political Science
• Clinical psychology
• Medical education
• Virology
• Medical emergency
• Psychotherapist
• Internal medicine
• Nursing
• Family medicine

Selected publications

• From Fear to Framework: Toward Understanding of Violence and Mental Illness

  FOCUS The Journal of Lifelong Learning in Psychiatry · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Contextualizing Violence Risk Associated With Hallucinogens

  FOCUS The Journal of Lifelong Learning in Psychiatry · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) have remerged as agents of psychiatric and cultural relevance. However, public discourse has outpaced empirical understanding of their effects. Although hallucinogens have demonstrated a potential to treat certain mental disorders, their effect on aggression and violence risk remains inconclusive. This article reviews the historical, medical, legal, and cultural contexts of these popular psychedelic and entactogenic compounds. The impact of substance type, dose, set and setting, psychiatric comorbidity, and environmental factors on violence is reviewed. Prevention and response strategies relevant to hallucinogenic compounds are discussed, including harm reduction, risk assessment, and treatment. Individual risk factors that mediate violence risk for people who consume psilocybin, LSD, and MDMA remain an area for further research.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Preface

  2025-06-19

  other1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• HOPE: A Pilot Study of Psilocybin Enhanced Group Psychotherapy in Patients With Cancer

  Journal of Pain and Symptom Management · 2023 · 56 citations

  • Medicine
  • Psychotherapist
  • Psychiatry
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Book Reviews: Andrew Scull, <i>Desperate Remedies: Psychiatry’s Turbulent Quest to Cure Mental Illness</i>

  History of Psychiatry · 2023-10-09

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Response of US psychiatric programs to the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on trainees

  BMC Medical Education · 2022 · 5 citations

  1st authorCorresponding
  • Political Science
  • Medical education
  • Psychology

  BACKGROUND: Medical training program and hospital response to the COVID-19 pandemic has varied greatly and has impacted trainee well-being. Which factors have specifically related to trainee wellness, however, has not yet been examined in depth. The aim of the study was to understand trainee perspectives on the individual psychiatry trainee programs' hospitals' objective COVID-19 preparedness management. We also sought and to gauge how program changes, and general pandemic-related concerns, have been associated with trainee satisfaction and burnout. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey study of psychiatric trainees was distributed electronically throughout the country via various psychiatry residency program listservs in April 2020. Statistical analyses were performed utilizing simple linear regression. RESULTS: From 352 respondents (346 complete responses and 6 partial responses), the most frequent program changes were "decreased number of rotations requiring in-person patient care" and "increased call hours or duties." Of pandemic-related concerns surveyed, the two greatest were "spreading COVID-19 to family/friends" and "co-residents' burnout and anxiety." A positive relationship was found between trainee satisfaction with perceived COVID-19 departmental response and comfort level of residents/fellows in expressing concerns with attending clinicians and department leadership. CONCLUSIONS: Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, trainees have experienced a variety of changes to trainee program policies and guidelines. Overall, poor communication and trainee dissatisfaction with departmental response correlated with concern of infection and anxiety/burnout. Insights garnered from this study could provide scaffolding for the best practices to reduce trainee physician anxiety/burnout for the current and future pandemics of this variety and magnitude.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Response of US Psychiatric Programs to the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Impact on Trainees

  Research Square (Research Square) · 2021

  1st authorCorresponding
  • Political Science
  • Medicine
  • Family medicine

  Abstract Background: Medical training program and hospital response to the COVID-19 pandemic has varied greatly and has impacted trainee well-being. Which factors have specifically affected trainee wellness, however, has not yet been examined in depth. The aim of the study was to understand trainee perspectives on the individual psychiatry trainee programs’ hospitals’ objective COVID-19 preparedness management, and to gauge how program changes, and general pandemic-related concerns, have impacted trainee satisfaction and burnout. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study of psychiatric trainees was distributed electronically throughout the country via various psychiatry residency program listservs in April 2020. Statistical analyses were performed utilizing simple linear regression. Results: From 352 respondents, the most frequent program changes were “decreased number of rotations requiring in-person patient care” and “increased call hours or duties.” Of pandemic-related concerns surveyed, the two greatest were “spreading COVID-19 to family/friends” and “co-residents’ burnout and anxiety.” A relationship was found between trainee satisfaction with perceived COVID-19 departmental response and comfort level of residents/fellows in expressing concerns with attending clinicians and department leadership. Conclusions: Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, trainees have experienced a variety of changes to trainee program policies and guidelines. Overall, poor communication and trainee dissatisfaction with departmental response correlated with concern of infection and anxiety/burnout. Insights garnered from this study could provide scaffolding for the best practices to reduce trainee physician anxiety/burnout for the current and future pandemics of this variety and magnitude. Trial registration: Not applicable

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Effects of temporary psychiatric holds on length of stay and readmission risk among persons admitted for psychotic disorders

  International Journal of Law and Psychiatry · 2021-03-21

  article1st author
  PublisherDOI

• Do no harm in due process – a historical analysis of social determinates of institutionalization in the USA

  History of Psychiatry · 2021-08-04 · 2 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding

  Involuntary hospitalization has been a fundamental function of psychiatric care for mentally ill persons in the USA for centuries. Procedural and judicial practices of inpatient psychiatric treatment and civil commitment in the USA have served as a by-product of socio-political pressures that demanded constant reform throughout history. The origin of modern commitment laws can best be understood through the lens of cultural paradigms that led to their creation and these suggest caution for future legislative amendments.

  PublisherDOI

• Indications for Psychotherapy in Adults in Later Life

  Cambridge University Press eBooks · 2020-01-09

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding

  Since its inception more than 100 years ago, theories and techniques of psychotherapy have experienced tremendous growth and diversification. There has been a gradual increase in our knowledge of aging as well as in our experience conducting psychotherapy with older adults. Although the core principles of psychotherapy are mostly similar to those pertaining to younger people, certain challenges and themes are unique to this population. These include a diverse range of living environments as well as an increasing need for social integration, adjusting to functional and cognitive decline, accessing services, caregiving, navigating transitions, and managing acute and chronic conditions. An increasing number of older adults are seeking treatment for a broad array of mental health problems, including depression, anxiety, insomnia, personality disorders, cognitive impairment, chronic pain, and substance use. Depending on the patient and the presenting problem, psychotherapy can be used as either a primary or an adjunctive method of treatment.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Lawrence DeLuca

  6 shared

• Kevin Byrne

  Huntsman Cancer Institute

  4 shared

• Anna C. Beck

  Community Living

  4 shared

• Ashley Pickering

  University of Colorado Denver

  4 shared

• Dylan M. Sabb

  University of Colorado Boulder

  4 shared

• Zachary Roward

  Wilford Hall Medical Center

  4 shared

• Brent M. Kious

  University of Utah

  4 shared

• Benjamin R. Lewis

  University of Utah

  4 shared

Labs

• University of Utah HealthPI

Education

• M.D.

  University of Arizona College of Medicine

• Other, Adult Psychiatry

  University of Utah

• Other, Forensic Psychiatry

  University of California Davis Division of Psychiatry and the Law

Awards & honors

• Fellowship in Forensic Psychiatry with the University of Cal…
• Program Director for the Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship in t…