Dr. Klimstra graduated summa cum laude from Barnard College, Columbia University with a BA degree, majoring in Biopsychology. She received her MD degree from Yale University School of Medicine in 1988, and stayed at Yale for her adult psychiatry residency, becoming Chief Resident and receiving the Laughlin Fellow Merit Award in 1992. She also completed a PGY-V fellowship year in geriatric psychiatry at Yale University with J. Craig Nelson, MD. After training, she came to the Department of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC) and New York-Presbyterian Hospital (NYPH)/ Westchester Division due to its renowned geriatric psychiatry program, headed by George S. Alexopoulos, MD.  She has remained here ever since, establishing clinical research interests in geriatric psychopharmacology, depression, and cognitive dysfunction while expanding her expertise in clinical geriatric psychiatry and her role and expertise in undergraduate and graduate medical education.
Dr. Klimstra has taught extensively in WCMC’s pre-clinical and clinical psychiatry courses. She has local, national and international leadership experience in undergraduate and graduate medical education and curricular development.
Dr. Klimstra has served as WCMC’s Director of Medical Student Education in Psychiatry and Psychiatry Clerkship Director. She has also served as NYPH’s Associate Vice Chair for Graduate Medical Education, Cornell Campus/ Westchester Division, and Director of Residency Training in Geriatric Psychiatry.

She is an author of papers published in the prestigious geriatric psychiatry journals, the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. She has also authored several book chapters on geriatric mood disorders and inpatient geriatric psychiatry. She has served as an oral board examiner for the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) and currently serves as a committee member for the ABPN's Geriatric Psychiatry subspecialty examination. Dr. Klimstra is very active in the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP); she is a member of the Teaching and Training Committee, a Geriatric Mental Health Foundation mentor to medical students and residents and has served as the Chair of the National Training Directors' Workshop.

Dr. Klimstra has received multiple national and local medical student, resident and geriatric fellow teaching awards including: Faculty Teacher of the Year Award from the NYPH psychiatry residents in 2001, the Excellence in Teaching Award from WCMC in 2002 and 2011, Teacher of the Year Award from the NYPH geriatric psychiatry fellows in 2005, Educator of the Year Award from the AAGP in 2008, a Mentorship Award from the NYPH geriatric psychiatry fellows in 2011 and 2013, selection to the WCMC Senior List in 2012, the American Psychiatric Association’s Nancy C.A. Roeske, M.D. Certificate of Recognition for Excellence in Medical Student Education in 2013 and WCMC’s Charles L. Bardes, MD Teaching Prize in 2013
 

Please note Dr. Klimstra is not accepting new patients.  For referrals, please call  (888) 694-2255.