Chair, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Joe P. Tupin Professor of Psychiatry
Helen C. Kales is not currently accepting new patients. For assistance finding a UC Davis doctor, please call 800-2-UCDAVIS (800-282-3284).
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences - Behavioral Health Center
2230 Stockton Blvd.
Sacramento, CA 95817
Dr. Kales is a fellowship-trained, board-certified geriatric psychiatrist. She has special clinical interest in the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia.
Dr. Kales' research focuses on Dementia care (improving delivery of care and reducing caregiver burden), assessment and management of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, psychotropic pharmacoepidemiology, later-life depression and racial disparities in later-life mental health and dementia treatment.
General Psychiatry
B.A., Summa Cum Laude, Spanish Language and Literature, Biochemistry minor, Bucknell University, Lewisburg PA 1987
M.D., University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester NY 1992
Geriatric Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor MI 1992-1996
Geriatric Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor MI 1992-1998
Selected as the recipient of the Geriatric Psychiatry Research Award, American College of Psychiatrists, 2020
Lancet expert panel article “Dementia prevention, intervention and care” in the top 25 of the 2018 Altmetric Top 100, 2018
Selected as an Expert Commissioner for the Lancet Global Standing Panel on Dementia Prevention, Intervention and Care (one of three U.S. physicians), 2016
Selected for inclusion to Best Doctors in America, 2013
Selected for inclusion in Hour Magazine (Detroit) Top Docs, Alzheimer’s, 2013
To view a list of Dr. Kales' publications, please visit her PubMed page.
Maust DT, Strominger J, Kim HM, Langa KM, Bynum JPW, Chang CH, Kales HC, Zivin K, Solway E, Marcus SC. Prevalence of Central Nervous System-Active Polypharmacy Among Older Adults With Dementia in the US. JAMA. 2021 Mar 9;325(10):952-961. doi:10.1001/jama.2021.1195. PMID:33687462.
Ballard C, Kales HC, Lyketsos C, Aarsland D, Creese B, Mills R, Williams H, Sweet RA. Psychosis in Alzheimer's Disease. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2020 Oct 13;20(12):57. doi:10.1007/s11910-020-01074-y. PMID:33048274.
Livingston G, Huntley J, Sommerlad A, Ames D, Ballard C, Banerjee S, Brayne C, Burns A, Cohen-Mansfield J, Cooper C, Costafreda SG, Dias A, Fox N, Gitlin LN, Howard R, Kales HC, Kivimäki M, Larson EB, Ogunniyi A, Orgeta V, Ritchie K, Rockwood K, Sampson EL, Samus Q, Schneider LS, Selbæk G, Teri L, Mukadam N. Dementia prevention, intervention, and care: 2020 report of the Lancet Commission. Lancet. 2020 Aug 8;396(10248):413-446. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30367-6. Epub 2020 Jul 30. PMID:32738937.
Kales HC, Lyketsos CG, Miller EM, Ballard C. Management of behavioral and psychological symptoms in people with Alzheimer's disease: an international Delphi consensus. Int Psychogeriatr. 2019 Jan;31(1):83-90. doi:10.1017/S1041610218000534. Epub 2018 Aug 2. PMID:30068400.
Gerlach LB, Kales HC. Managing Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2018 Mar;41(1):127-139. doi:10.1016/j.psc.2017.10.010. Epub 2017 Dec 7. PMID:29412841.
Sirey JA, Banerjee S, Marino P, Bruce ML, Halkett A, Turnwald M, Chiang C, Liles B, Artis A, Blow F, Kales HC. Adherence to Depression Treatment in Primary Care: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Psychiatry. 2017 Nov 1;74(11):1129-1135. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.3047. PMID:28973066.
Kolanowski A, Boltz M, Galik E, Gitlin LN, Kales HC, Resnick B, Van Haitsma KS, Knehans A, Sutterlin JE, Sefcik JS, Liu W, Petrovsky DV, Massimo L, Gilmore-Bykovskyi A, MacAndrew M, Brewster G, Nalls V, Jao YL, Duffort N, Scerpella D. Determinants of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia: A scoping review of the evidence. Nurs Outlook. 2017 Sep-Oct;65(5):515-529. doi:10.1016/j.outlook.2017.06.006. Epub 2017 Jun 16. PMID:28826872.
Kales HC, Gitlin LN and Lyketsos CG. The DICE Approach: Guiding the Caregiver in Managing the Behavioral Symptoms of Dementia, Michigan Publishing, University of Michigan Library. 2018.
Kales HC. Neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia: general approach and non-pharmacologic treatment. Rabins P, Steele C, Lyketsos CG (eds). Practical Dementia Care, Oxford. 2016.