Psychiatrist in Burlingame, California Kirk Murphy, Psychiatrist

Dr. Kirk James Murphy is a Psychiatrist in California who has been practicing since 1991. Dr. Murphy had the privilege of learning from global experts in human sexuality as well as mood and anxiety disorders in her UCLA residency training and then to complete his fellowship in Consultation-Liaison and Trauma Psychiatry while practicing with experts in those fields. Dr. Murphy offers patients the benefit of accurate diagnosis using standardized diagnostic instruments; proven, manualized CBT for patients suffering from panic, phobic, obsessive-compulsive, and other anxiety disorders; and evidence-based medication treatment using meds which are free of abuse potential, show proven efficacy, and have excellent safety profiles. His care for patients of UCLA’s oncology, transplant, and surgical trauma teams provides him with a strong foundation to serve patients facing medical burdens in their and their loved one’s lives. Dr. Murphy’s training in cognitive behavioral therapy and psychodynamic psychotherapy (and his opportunity to benefit from psychoanalytic care) provides patients seeking “talking therapy” a clinically eclectic range of therapeutic approaches as indicated. His 30 years of service to patients from the LGBTQ+ community (as well as their loved ones and friends) and his experience of beginning medical school at the start of the AIDS catastrophe and caring for patients affected then and now by HIV enables him to provide supportive, insightful care for LGBTQ+ patients and their allies. In this era of growing climate concerns, Dr. Murphy’s service as medical support to forest preservation groups as well as to a community group which made the precautionary principle the foundation of a new template for school pest management helps him to provide supportive and empathic therapy for patients experiencing distress about climate and other relevant issues. Finally – Dr. Murphy is delighted when the patients he’s working with obtain symptom relief: helping people is why he went into medicine! Outside of work, Dr. Murphy loves to enjoy our natural world at our beaches, forests, parks, and trails whenever he has the chance, and also through gardening at home (he has a weakness for blue flowers and subtropical fruit!). He’s also a lifelong kitty lover, and proud parent to two delightful furry sisters. As time and opportunity allow, he also finds deep satisfaction in supporting groups of good people working to make a better future for us all. Reading for pleasure is a huge part of his indoor life. And – alas – he is very fond of delicious meals, especially those created from California’s endless seasonal riches.