Biana Kotlyar, MD

Biana Kotlyar, MD, served as the founding president for the CMS-WIMS Executive Committee. She completed her psychiatry residency at the Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University in 2015. In her third year of residency, she was appointed chief resident of medical student education, and, in her final year, she was the overall chief resident. This experience solidified her passion in medical student education and her desire to take a leadership role in education. She was awarded “Outstanding Resident Award” for her teaching, dedication and leadership in 2013 and “Outstanding Medical Student Chief Resident” for her dedication and enthusiasm in 2014.

Following residency, Dr. Kotlyar became an attending, and eventually the Medical Director, at Columbia St. Mary’s community hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she was an adjunct assistant professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin. While in this position, she also served as Site Director for students and residents, while simultaneously fulfilling her passions for inpatient psychiatry and consult-liaison service.  She was awarded the “Outstanding Teaching Award” by the Medical College of Wisconsin in 2016. 

In 2019, she obtained her dream job at Rosalind Franklin University as the Education Director for Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. When she is not working as the Education Director, she continues her clinical work as a psychiatrist at Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center. Here she continues her work as an attending psychiatrist in consultation-liaison services and electroconvulsive therapy, where she is one of the core faculty for the CMS psychiatry residents and interim Site Director for the medical students. In her role as Education Director, Dr. Kotlyar oversees the Psychiatry Clerkship. Most recently she started a Psychiatry Sub-Internship, in which she takes great pride. 

Dr. Kotlyar feels that her greatest achievements, however, were in 2016, 2018, and 2021 when each of her daughters (Sophia, Ivy, and Sienna) were born.

What initially got you into the field of psychiatry?
I originally went to medical school to be a pediatrician. Psychiatry was so far off in my mind as an option, so I scheduled my clinical psychiatry rotation first and I loved it. I never felt tired even after working an 11 hour day and I compared that to all of my other rotations. I believe that’s what helps me avoid burnout; I feel that I am doing what I am passionate about and that it’s meaningful. It’s an incredible privilege and honor to be able to do the work I do. 

Who are some people that had the most significant impact on your career along the way?
My psychiatry preceptor, Dr. Stevenson from Shreveport, Louisiana, taught me that the maintenance phase of treatment can be just as difficult to treat since the patient recovering from an acute episode may now have to repair and rebuild many relationships with friends, family, and work. Beyond diagnosing and prescribing, it is critical that we support patients through dark and difficult times and celebrate with them all their victories. 

During my residency, I was drawn to strong women in psychiatry. Dr. Vaidya and Dr. Moss, with their biological and neurological minded knowledge, and Dr. Zaror, with her mastery of psychotherapy, were incredible mentors.  They helped guide me and advised me to follow my career passion but also how integral it is to commit to my family and personal goals as well. I remember walking away from each supervision session feeling inspired and motivated. I hope to be able to provide some of that same mentoring experience to the residents and medical students that I serve as a mentor now.

What is one of your biggest accomplishments in work?
Patient care victories and awards for teaching and mentoring are amazing. But I really love the look on a resident’s face when they are on rounds and they use ECT to treat a catatonic patient and the patient starts to wake up and something clicks in that resident and now they can see themselves maybe doing this as a career. I am so lucky to see that transformation and I love being a part of students finding their career passions.

How do you maintain a work-life balance?
Someone once said you have to learn how to juggle work and personal life. But you have to recognize which balls are plastic and which are glass because eventually one of the balls is going to drop. You never want a glass ball to fall. Occasionally, a plastic ball will fall and that’s okay. You can pick it up and resume juggling. A plastic family ball may fall and you may miss having dinner together or a ballet recital because there was a glass work ball and a patient’s care required you to stay at work longer. The key is to recognize which balls are plastic and which are glass. Let yourself have some grace when things don’t work out perfectly, it may be better at the end than you ever imagined. 

Also, you have to say “no” to things that do not advance your career or aren’t enjoyable. This extends to personal life too. My worth as a mother is not affected by whether I cooked the meal or picked it up on my way home. Learn to pick out the important things and minimize the things that don’t matter.

What is some advice you would give to women who want to pursue a career in science and medicine?
Be true to yourself and your decisions; don’t look back. If you made the best decision you could have based on the information you had at the time, there’s no point in being a Monday-morning quarterback. Move on and let all that experience teach you and guide you as you move forward. Also, don’t do it alone. Create a team around you that is built on trust and respect. 

What is a fun fact about yourself?
I never plan what I am going to do on vacation. Whenever I go to a new place, I never have an itinerary. I like to plan out when I am going to be spontaneous.