Christine E. Petrich, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry, passed away on Jan. 24. Dr. Petrich was one of the hospitalists on psychiatry inpatient service at University Hospital.
A summa cum laude graduate of Texas A&M University, Dr. Petrich received her medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine in 2010. During her time at Baylor she received the Hilde Burch Award for Excellence in Psychiatry. She completed her residency in general psychiatry in 2014 at Harvard Longwood in Boston. She then completed a fellowship in forensic psychiatry in 2015.
Dr. Petrich joined the Department of Psychiatry in July 2015 and “immediately brought her enthusiasm and excellent clinical expertise to the inpatient unit of University Hospital,” said Ron Rodriguez, M.D., Ph.D., interim dean of the School of Medicine, in an email announcing her death.
“Dr. Petrich was very dedicated to her students, residents and patients and had a wide range of interests,” Dr. Rodriguez added. “She was a bright star in the psychiatry department and will be greatly missed by her colleagues, students and patients.”
Steven R. Pliszka, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Psychiatry, said Dr. Petrich “loved teaching, and on rounds she was always eagerly teaching and explaining the fine points of psychiatry to residents and students.” And, he added, even though she was a board certified forensic psychiatrist and could have had a lucrative private practice, Dr. Petrich “was committed to serving the community.”
She is survived by her husband, Paul, and her sons, Logan and Evan.
Funeral arrangements are pending.