Dr. Jorge Alberto Costa e Silva was born on March 26, 1942, in Vassouras in the State of Rio de Janeiro.
Born to Jorge Carvalho da Silva and Etelvina Costa e Silva, he graduated from the State University of Rio de Janeiro’s (UERJ) College of Medical Science in 1966 and later specialized in Scientific Methodology at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
Dr. Costa e Silva commenced his teaching career as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at UERJ’s College of Medical Sciences. After passing a 1979 diploma-based civil service public examination, he took on the role of Full Professor and served as the Head of the Department of Psychiatry and Head of the School of Medical Sciences (1980-1984). During his tenure there, he was instrumental in establishing the university’s Department of Psychiatry and helped to introduce and advance the Department of Social Medicine. At UERJ, he was responsible for founding its international psychiatry program, which, in turn, set the beginning of Brazilian psychiatry’s participation in the international realm.
The physician also spearheaded efforts to establish the Rio de Janeiro-based Santa Casa da Misericórdia General Hospital’s Psychiatric Service (where he holds a seat at the presiding table and helped to manage the institution’s buildings), responsible for aiding low-income segments of the population. As a tribute for his remarkable efforts, the service was named the “Prof. Dr. Jorge Alberto Costa e Silva Psychiatric Service.” Moreover, he chaired the Conselho das Escolas de Medicina do Brasil (the Board of Medical Schools of Brazil).
After passing a diploma-based civil service public examination, Dr. Costa e Silva became a Full Professor and currently holds the position of Professor Emeritus at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio). Additionally, he served as Full Professor at the Souza Marques Medical School for over 20 years.
Other roles fulfilled by Dr. Costa e Silva include Professor and Vice-President for International Affairs at the University of Miami and Professor and Chairman of the International Mental Health Policy and Research Center of the New York University School of Medicine, in addition to being granted the title of Senior Scientist at the International Mental Health Prevention Center in New York.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva was a true pioneer in conducting clinical psychopharmacological studies in Brazil and played a key role in helping to shape and draw up the framework of the Brazilian Ministry of Health’s National Institute of Mental Health
Moreover, he invited internationally renowned professionals in the fields of psychiatry and mental health to provide on-the-job training for psychiatrists and mental health professionals in Brazil. He did not stop there and set up long-lasting scholarship programs that enabled young doctors to study in countries like the United States, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Canada, Switzerland, and Germany, among others.
Dr. Costa e Silva has been awarded the two highest titles granted by the American Psychiatric Association: Honorary Fellow and Distinguished Fellow. He is an Emeritus Fellow at the American College of Psychiatry and an Honorary Member of both the World Psychiatric Association and the Pan-American Psychiatric Association. Furthermore, he is an Honorary Member of over fifty worldwide psychiatric associations, including the Brazilian Psychiatric Association, World Psychiatric Association, and Latin American Psychiatric Association, to name a few.
The distinguished doctor and researcher has published over 300 articles as an author or co-author in Brazilian and international journals and has authored, co-authored, or edited more than twenty books. He joined editorial boards of a number of Brazilian and international medical journals and is a peer reviewer for five international journals.
He has given talks and helped to hold over a 1,000 conferences and workshops both in Brazil and abroad, in addition to lecturing and running programs, seminars, and roundtable discussions in several academic, governmental, and non-governmental educational and research institutions. Furthermore, he is responsible for bringing international congresses to Brazil and organizing events, many of which he presided over. These include the World Congress of Psychomotricity, World Congress of Psychotherapy (1982), World Congress of Social Psychiatry (1986), and the World Congress of Psychiatry (1993).
Among some of his main contributions to help diagnose and treat mental and behavioral disorders, we can point to his participation at the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization (WHO CID-10) Task Forces, which greatly contributed to identifying and including panic disorder in the DSM-III and the CID-10. He further constituted a group led by Dr. Moggen Schou, who is responsible for defining the use of lithium carbonate as a “gold standard” in the treatment of bipolar disorder, in addition to advocating its use to help avoid remissions in cases of unipolar depression. Dr. Costa e Silva partook in this study as a P.I. (Principal Investigator) and the study determined the pivotal role that the dexamethasone suppression test played in diagnosing depression.
He initiated his career as an Executive Secretary (1983-1988) at the Board of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) and later was elected to take on the role of President of that same organization, becoming the first-ever psychiatrist from the Southern Hemisphere to preside over the WPA (1988-1993). During his tenure, he established several international educational programs that have become some of the WPA’s main initiatives. These programs, which take into account different socio-cultural, educational, and linguistic realities, have inspired new, similar programs in various countries.
As President of the WPA, Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva increased the number of associate members, helped to put an end to the former Soviet Union’s inappropriate and abusive use of psychiatry, and put in place an extraordinarily successful scholarship program. Additionally, he established several different departments within the Association, served as the Vice-President of the Department of Research Methods in Psychiatry and as President of the Department for Brain and Pain studies.
As International Director at the World Health Organization (WHO CID-10, 1993), the physician devised a mental health program tailored to underprivileged segments of the population, named “Nations for Mental Health.”
Also at the WHO, Dr. Costa e Silva led a group called “Tobacco and Health”, whose long-term aim was to lower harmful effects on both smokers and non-smokers. One of the group’s main purposes was to prohibit smoking in closed spaces, starting in airplanes. To help leverage this enterprise, the Chairman of the first airline to prohibit smoking in its flights received a special honor. These efforts led to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which mostly every country in the world has adhered to. In 1994, the WHO successfully convinced the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ban smoking at Olympic events.
At the University of New York (NYU), Dr. Costa e Silva helped to create the School of Global Public Health, where, in addition to other projects undertaken, he was responsible for developing a treatment program for teenagers suffering from myopia and which particularly aided youngsters originating from countries such as former Zaire (current Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Zimbabwe. In these countries, young individuals suffering from poor eyesight were unable to attend classes and thus became the main targets for recruitment by armed forces waging war between both nations. To this same end, he implemented a host of programs addressing learning disorders, which were introduced at the Brazilian Research Institute for Neuroscience and Neurotechnology (BRAINN), founded by himself.
A partnership established between Harvard University and the World Health Organization enabled him to run the “Mental Health for Underserved Population” program, aimed at addressing mental health issues faced by underprivileged populations and which, to this day, still benefits thousands of individuals. After an invitation by the then President of Pakistan, Dr. Costa e Silva devised a program whose goal was to help identify and diagnose cases of epilepsy in the country’s rural regions.
He then decided to further expand his efforts beyond the realm of psychiatry, at which time he worked alongside the World Health Organization (Department of Neglected Tropical Diseases) to garner funding and devise a protocol to help extinguish Bouba, a disease that had been eradicated in the 1950s. After verifying new cases, a work group, which benefitted 2.5 million children already plagued by the disease in the continent, was enforced to cure them and end, once and for all, the disease.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva held several important positions in renowned institutions. He served as President of the International Committee for the Prevention and Treatment of Depression, President of the Council on International Psychiatry and Global Health, President of the World Association of Social Psychiatry, President of the International Foundation for Mental Health, and President of the International Federation for Psychotherapy, among other positions. Moreover, he joined the UNESCO-helmed International Council for the Progress of Global Health and took on the roles of Senator and Ambassador of the World Parliament for Security and Peace (W.O.S.) to the United Nations. For four years, he worked as a Senator in the Healthcare area of the International Parliament.
Later on, he invited the President of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies at the time, Prof. Armando Basso, to work alongside the WHO with the goal of devising a Neurosurgery and Public Health Program that gained international recognition for its efforts in garnering funds to purchase medical equipment and for developing surgery methods, particularly in African countries. The World Health Organization established the program in 1995, which remains active to this day.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva also helped to create several International Foundations in which he collaborated with members of royalty, such as the Queen of Spain and the Queen of Sweden, whom he paired with to establish the International Foundation for Mental Health and Neurosciences, as well as the International Street Children Foundation” programs. Together with the former First Lady of the United States, Mrs. Rosalynn Carter, he devised a program for female leaders (bringing together First Ladies from several countries) to help tackle the issue of mental illness, as well as a global program aimed at addressing epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.
He joined work groups that devised ways of identifying and rating mental and behavioral disorders, including depression, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, schizophrenia, and neurocognitive disorders, among other conditions. Furthermore, he worked in programs geared towards diagnosing, providing early treatment, and rehabilitating patients suffering from moderate cognitive disorders as well as those with physical or mental disabilities, which was based on the international description of “disability” as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Dr. Costa e Silva is also involved in furthering the use of Artificial Intelligence to help treat and identify mental disorders. Some approaches he explores include MRIs, high-resolution quantitative electroencephalogram, neuromodulation, virtual reality, neurofeedback, and cognitive neurorehabilitation.
The renowned physician took on the role of Principal Investigator (PI) in a wide number of medical research studies both in Brazil and abroad on diagnosing, treating, and preventing mental illness. To this end, he led clinical research activities on diagnostic criteria, developed assessment tools for psychiatric symptoms, and functional imaging. A particular study worth mentioning was one titled “Default Network System,” which involved the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) technology.
Some of the numerous awards and honors Dr. Costa e Silva has received include the “Chevalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite” from the French government (he additionally serves as its Vice-President in Brazil) and the “Legion d’Honneur,” also awarded by the French government. Furthermore, he has been bestowed honorary doctorates from the National University of Asunción in Paraguay, University of the Republic in Uruguay, and the Brazilian Academy of Philosophy in 2010. He is an Honorary Citizen of both New Orleans in the United States and the City of Hamburg in Germany. He was also awarded the “Medal of Medical Merit” by the President of Brazil and holds the “Doctor Honoris Causa in Humanities” title granted by the International Writers and Artists Association.
The Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem appointed Dr. Costa e Silva as a “Grand Officer” and a “Chevalier de l’Ordre de Malte,” and he additionally held the position of Ambassador at Large at the Principality of Malta. Also, he was honored with the Medal of Medical Merit in the rank of Grand Officer by the Brazilian government, in addition to the Clementino Fraga Medal issued by the Government of the State of Rio de Janeiro. His work was further acknowledged with the “Grand Cross of Justice” of the International Association of Judges in recognition for his contributions to social justice, politics, and world peace, as a consequence of his scientific, educational, medical, and jurisprudential efforts.
In October 1999, during the World Congress of Psychiatry held in Hamburg, Germany, ten renowned psychiatrists from different countries were chosen to be awarded the title of “World Leader in Psychiatry,” with Dr. Jorge Alberto Costa e Silva being the first-ever psychiatrist from the Southern Hemisphere to be bestowed this honor due to his contributions to help further psychiatry during that decade.
He has two work visas issued for his contributions not only to the field of psychiatry, but to mental health in general, that he deems particularly significant: the US Government-issued 0-1 Visa and the Talent Passport from the French Government. Both visas are granted to individuals who display extraordinary skills, such as scientists, researchers, professors, technology experts and inventors.
Alongside several spiritual leaders originating from distinct religions, he devised and put in place a project on Health and Faith under the guidance of the World Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization.
Focusing mostly on a holistic vision of medical practice, (while additionally taking into account scientific, cultural, social, political and economic traits), Dr. Costa e Silva seeks to develop doctor-patient relationships based on social and holistic medicine. This vision can be seen not only in his efforts within the medical realm, but also in the thousands of pupils he took under his wing to educate and in the development of research protocols. This has earned Dr. Costa e Silva a reputation as an ideologue of both medicine (meta medicine) and science, consequently leading to his election as a member – and sole physician – of the Brazilian Academy of Philosophy as well as a full member of the PEN CLUBE association of Brazilian writers, the Brazilian Academy of Medical Writers (ABRAMES). He carries this comprehensive approach almost full-time with him as he travels around the globe, having visited, and aided projects in 142 countries.
In 2018, Dr. Costa e Silva received a special honor awarded by the Brazilian Medical Association for his important contributions to Brazilian medicine.
On April 25, 2019, he was awarded the Cândido Fontoura Collar of Pharmaceutical Industrial Merit for his invaluable contribution to fostering science in Brazil.
As a candidate to become a Full Member at the Academia Nacional de Medicina (National Academy of Medicine – ANM), Dr. Costa e Silva submitted a dissertation titled “Depression: Diagnosis and the Dexamethasone Suppression Test.” He served as Vice-President of the institution twice and was elected its President for the 2017-2019 term on July 6, 2017. He considers it to be the most prominent position in all of his career.
He is a foreign member of the French and Spanish Academy of Medicine, as well as the Academy of Sciences of Sweden. Dr. Costa e Silva also held the positions of both President of the Order of Malta in Brazil and Grand Chancellor of the Sovereign Military Orders of St. John of Jerusalem, Rhodes, and Malta (humanitarian organizations that have 1,000 years of medical and hospital activities, dating back to the time of the Crusades). Finally, he is a member of the Italy-based Constantinian Academy and the Association of Members of the Order of Merit of France, which is linked to the French National Association, in addition to composing the French Renaissance’s Association of Friends.
From the very start, Dr. Costa e Silva has worked as a psychiatrist in public institutions, university hospitals, as well as in his private practice. To this day, he continues to be actively involved in his three main professional passions: patients, students, and research.
He has contributed significantly to scientific and administrative boards and councils, particularly in Europe, where he lives today. As for the United States, he is involved, along with Nobel Prize winner Eric Kandel of the USA, in Brace Pharma’s Scientific Board, a company whose mission is to develop highly innovative medications.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva still works relentlessly in his clinical, scientific, and academic careers, and today is based in Europe (Portugal, France, and Switzerland), where he is a member of several scientific and cultural councils, as well as medical and scientific-related corporate boards. He composes scientific boards and councils of a wide host of medical, scientific, and pharmaceutical organizations and holds a deep connection to French culture, the reason why he works diligently to strengthen France’s cultural and medicinal ties with Brazil and several other countries.
He remains strongly committed to his international efforts, and as President of Brazil’s National Academy of Medicine (ANM), has been responsible for establishing partnerships with the Academies of Medicine of Latin America, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, France, and the United States.
Dr. Costa e Silva visits Brazil regularly and continues to inspire a myriad of healthcare practitioners and university professors with all his expertise.
Perhaps being born to a family of physicians on his father’s side, and on the other side, to a family of artists – his grandmother was a musician, his grandfather was a painter and set designer, and his great-uncle, Jacinto Benavente, won the Nobel Prize for Literature – helps to explain why Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva has such a comprehensive view of science, art, culture, and the humanities.
Academic number: 537
Chair: 43
Member: Holder
Section: Medicine
Election: 23/08/1984
Inauguration: 02/10/1984
President: Aloysio de Salles Fonseca
Greeted by: José Leme Lopes
Academic number: 537
Chair: 43
Member: Holder
Section: Medicine
Election: 23/08/1984
Inauguration: 02/10/1984
President: Aloysio de Salles Fonseca
Greeted by: José Leme Lopes
Dr. Jorge Alberto Costa e Silva was born on March 26, 1942, in Vassouras in the State of Rio de Janeiro.
Born to Jorge Carvalho da Silva and Etelvina Costa e Silva, he graduated from the State University of Rio de Janeiro’s (UERJ) College of Medical Science in 1966 and later specialized in Scientific Methodology at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
Dr. Costa e Silva commenced his teaching career as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at UERJ’s College of Medical Sciences. After passing a 1979 diploma-based civil service public examination, he took on the role of Full Professor and served as the Head of the Department of Psychiatry and Head of the School of Medical Sciences (1980-1984). During his tenure there, he was instrumental in establishing the university’s Department of Psychiatry and helped to introduce and advance the Department of Social Medicine. At UERJ, he was responsible for founding its international psychiatry program, which, in turn, set the beginning of Brazilian psychiatry’s participation in the international realm.
The physician also spearheaded efforts to establish the Rio de Janeiro-based Santa Casa da Misericórdia General Hospital’s Psychiatric Service (where he holds a seat at the presiding table and helped to manage the institution’s buildings), responsible for aiding low-income segments of the population. As a tribute for his remarkable efforts, the service was named the “Prof. Dr. Jorge Alberto Costa e Silva Psychiatric Service.” Moreover, he chaired the Conselho das Escolas de Medicina do Brasil (the Board of Medical Schools of Brazil).
After passing a diploma-based civil service public examination, Dr. Costa e Silva became a Full Professor and currently holds the position of Professor Emeritus at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio). Additionally, he served as Full Professor at the Souza Marques Medical School for over 20 years.
Other roles fulfilled by Dr. Costa e Silva include Professor and Vice-President for International Affairs at the University of Miami and Professor and Chairman of the International Mental Health Policy and Research Center of the New York University School of Medicine, in addition to being granted the title of Senior Scientist at the International Mental Health Prevention Center in New York.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva was a true pioneer in conducting clinical psychopharmacological studies in Brazil and played a key role in helping to shape and draw up the framework of the Brazilian Ministry of Health’s National Institute of Mental Health
Moreover, he invited internationally renowned professionals in the fields of psychiatry and mental health to provide on-the-job training for psychiatrists and mental health professionals in Brazil. He did not stop there and set up long-lasting scholarship programs that enabled young doctors to study in countries like the United States, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Canada, Switzerland, and Germany, among others.
Dr. Costa e Silva has been awarded the two highest titles granted by the American Psychiatric Association: Honorary Fellow and Distinguished Fellow. He is an Emeritus Fellow at the American College of Psychiatry and an Honorary Member of both the World Psychiatric Association and the Pan-American Psychiatric Association. Furthermore, he is an Honorary Member of over fifty worldwide psychiatric associations, including the Brazilian Psychiatric Association, World Psychiatric Association, and Latin American Psychiatric Association, to name a few.
The distinguished doctor and researcher has published over 300 articles as an author or co-author in Brazilian and international journals and has authored, co-authored, or edited more than twenty books. He joined editorial boards of a number of Brazilian and international medical journals and is a peer reviewer for five international journals.
He has given talks and helped to hold over a 1,000 conferences and workshops both in Brazil and abroad, in addition to lecturing and running programs, seminars, and roundtable discussions in several academic, governmental, and non-governmental educational and research institutions. Furthermore, he is responsible for bringing international congresses to Brazil and organizing events, many of which he presided over. These include the World Congress of Psychomotricity, World Congress of Psychotherapy (1982), World Congress of Social Psychiatry (1986), and the World Congress of Psychiatry (1993).
Among some of his main contributions to help diagnose and treat mental and behavioral disorders, we can point to his participation at the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization (WHO CID-10) Task Forces, which greatly contributed to identifying and including panic disorder in the DSM-III and the CID-10. He further constituted a group led by Dr. Moggen Schou, who is responsible for defining the use of lithium carbonate as a “gold standard” in the treatment of bipolar disorder, in addition to advocating its use to help avoid remissions in cases of unipolar depression. Dr. Costa e Silva partook in this study as a P.I. (Principal Investigator) and the study determined the pivotal role that the dexamethasone suppression test played in diagnosing depression.
He initiated his career as an Executive Secretary (1983-1988) at the Board of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) and later was elected to take on the role of President of that same organization, becoming the first-ever psychiatrist from the Southern Hemisphere to preside over the WPA (1988-1993). During his tenure, he established several international educational programs that have become some of the WPA’s main initiatives. These programs, which take into account different socio-cultural, educational, and linguistic realities, have inspired new, similar programs in various countries.
As President of the WPA, Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva increased the number of associate members, helped to put an end to the former Soviet Union’s inappropriate and abusive use of psychiatry, and put in place an extraordinarily successful scholarship program. Additionally, he established several different departments within the Association, served as the Vice-President of the Department of Research Methods in Psychiatry and as President of the Department for Brain and Pain studies.
As International Director at the World Health Organization (WHO CID-10, 1993), the physician devised a mental health program tailored to underprivileged segments of the population, named “Nations for Mental Health.”
Also at the WHO, Dr. Costa e Silva led a group called “Tobacco and Health”, whose long-term aim was to lower harmful effects on both smokers and non-smokers. One of the group’s main purposes was to prohibit smoking in closed spaces, starting in airplanes. To help leverage this enterprise, the Chairman of the first airline to prohibit smoking in its flights received a special honor. These efforts led to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which mostly every country in the world has adhered to. In 1994, the WHO successfully convinced the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ban smoking at Olympic events.
At the University of New York (NYU), Dr. Costa e Silva helped to create the School of Global Public Health, where, in addition to other projects undertaken, he was responsible for developing a treatment program for teenagers suffering from myopia and which particularly aided youngsters originating from countries such as former Zaire (current Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Zimbabwe. In these countries, young individuals suffering from poor eyesight were unable to attend classes and thus became the main targets for recruitment by armed forces waging war between both nations. To this same end, he implemented a host of programs addressing learning disorders, which were introduced at the Brazilian Research Institute for Neuroscience and Neurotechnology (BRAINN), founded by himself.
A partnership established between Harvard University and the World Health Organization enabled him to run the “Mental Health for Underserved Population” program, aimed at addressing mental health issues faced by underprivileged populations and which, to this day, still benefits thousands of individuals. After an invitation by the then President of Pakistan, Dr. Costa e Silva devised a program whose goal was to help identify and diagnose cases of epilepsy in the country’s rural regions.
He then decided to further expand his efforts beyond the realm of psychiatry, at which time he worked alongside the World Health Organization (Department of Neglected Tropical Diseases) to garner funding and devise a protocol to help extinguish Bouba, a disease that had been eradicated in the 1950s. After verifying new cases, a work group, which benefitted 2.5 million children already plagued by the disease in the continent, was enforced to cure them and end, once and for all, the disease.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva held several important positions in renowned institutions. He served as President of the International Committee for the Prevention and Treatment of Depression, President of the Council on International Psychiatry and Global Health, President of the World Association of Social Psychiatry, President of the International Foundation for Mental Health, and President of the International Federation for Psychotherapy, among other positions. Moreover, he joined the UNESCO-helmed International Council for the Progress of Global Health and took on the roles of Senator and Ambassador of the World Parliament for Security and Peace (W.O.S.) to the United Nations. For four years, he worked as a Senator in the Healthcare area of the International Parliament.
Later on, he invited the President of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies at the time, Prof. Armando Basso, to work alongside the WHO with the goal of devising a Neurosurgery and Public Health Program that gained international recognition for its efforts in garnering funds to purchase medical equipment and for developing surgery methods, particularly in African countries. The World Health Organization established the program in 1995, which remains active to this day.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva also helped to create several International Foundations in which he collaborated with members of royalty, such as the Queen of Spain and the Queen of Sweden, whom he paired with to establish the International Foundation for Mental Health and Neurosciences, as well as the International Street Children Foundation” programs. Together with the former First Lady of the United States, Mrs. Rosalynn Carter, he devised a program for female leaders (bringing together First Ladies from several countries) to help tackle the issue of mental illness, as well as a global program aimed at addressing epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.
He joined work groups that devised ways of identifying and rating mental and behavioral disorders, including depression, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, schizophrenia, and neurocognitive disorders, among other conditions. Furthermore, he worked in programs geared towards diagnosing, providing early treatment, and rehabilitating patients suffering from moderate cognitive disorders as well as those with physical or mental disabilities, which was based on the international description of “disability” as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Dr. Costa e Silva is also involved in furthering the use of Artificial Intelligence to help treat and identify mental disorders. Some approaches he explores include MRIs, high-resolution quantitative electroencephalogram, neuromodulation, virtual reality, neurofeedback, and cognitive neurorehabilitation.
The renowned physician took on the role of Principal Investigator (PI) in a wide number of medical research studies both in Brazil and abroad on diagnosing, treating, and preventing mental illness. To this end, he led clinical research activities on diagnostic criteria, developed assessment tools for psychiatric symptoms, and functional imaging. A particular study worth mentioning was one titled “Default Network System,” which involved the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) technology.
Some of the numerous awards and honors Dr. Costa e Silva has received include the “Chevalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite” from the French government (he additionally serves as its Vice-President in Brazil) and the “Legion d’Honneur,” also awarded by the French government. Furthermore, he has been bestowed honorary doctorates from the National University of Asunción in Paraguay, University of the Republic in Uruguay, and the Brazilian Academy of Philosophy in 2010. He is an Honorary Citizen of both New Orleans in the United States and the City of Hamburg in Germany. He was also awarded the “Medal of Medical Merit” by the President of Brazil and holds the “Doctor Honoris Causa in Humanities” title granted by the International Writers and Artists Association.
The Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem appointed Dr. Costa e Silva as a “Grand Officer” and a “Chevalier de l’Ordre de Malte,” and he additionally held the position of Ambassador at Large at the Principality of Malta. Also, he was honored with the Medal of Medical Merit in the rank of Grand Officer by the Brazilian government, in addition to the Clementino Fraga Medal issued by the Government of the State of Rio de Janeiro. His work was further acknowledged with the “Grand Cross of Justice” of the International Association of Judges in recognition for his contributions to social justice, politics, and world peace, as a consequence of his scientific, educational, medical, and jurisprudential efforts.
In October 1999, during the World Congress of Psychiatry held in Hamburg, Germany, ten renowned psychiatrists from different countries were chosen to be awarded the title of “World Leader in Psychiatry,” with Dr. Jorge Alberto Costa e Silva being the first-ever psychiatrist from the Southern Hemisphere to be bestowed this honor due to his contributions to help further psychiatry during that decade.
He has two work visas issued for his contributions not only to the field of psychiatry, but to mental health in general, that he deems particularly significant: the US Government-issued 0-1 Visa and the Talent Passport from the French Government. Both visas are granted to individuals who display extraordinary skills, such as scientists, researchers, professors, technology experts and inventors.
Alongside several spiritual leaders originating from distinct religions, he devised and put in place a project on Health and Faith under the guidance of the World Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization.
Focusing mostly on a holistic vision of medical practice, (while additionally taking into account scientific, cultural, social, political and economic traits), Dr. Costa e Silva seeks to develop doctor-patient relationships based on social and holistic medicine. This vision can be seen not only in his efforts within the medical realm, but also in the thousands of pupils he took under his wing to educate and in the development of research protocols. This has earned Dr. Costa e Silva a reputation as an ideologue of both medicine (meta medicine) and science, consequently leading to his election as a member – and sole physician – of the Brazilian Academy of Philosophy as well as a full member of the PEN CLUBE association of Brazilian writers, the Brazilian Academy of Medical Writers (ABRAMES). He carries this comprehensive approach almost full-time with him as he travels around the globe, having visited, and aided projects in 142 countries.
In 2018, Dr. Costa e Silva received a special honor awarded by the Brazilian Medical Association for his important contributions to Brazilian medicine.
On April 25, 2019, he was awarded the Cândido Fontoura Collar of Pharmaceutical Industrial Merit for his invaluable contribution to fostering science in Brazil.
As a candidate to become a Full Member at the Academia Nacional de Medicina (National Academy of Medicine – ANM), Dr. Costa e Silva submitted a dissertation titled “Depression: Diagnosis and the Dexamethasone Suppression Test.” He served as Vice-President of the institution twice and was elected its President for the 2017-2019 term on July 6, 2017. He considers it to be the most prominent position in all of his career.
He is a foreign member of the French and Spanish Academy of Medicine, as well as the Academy of Sciences of Sweden. Dr. Costa e Silva also held the positions of both President of the Order of Malta in Brazil and Grand Chancellor of the Sovereign Military Orders of St. John of Jerusalem, Rhodes, and Malta (humanitarian organizations that have 1,000 years of medical and hospital activities, dating back to the time of the Crusades). Finally, he is a member of the Italy-based Constantinian Academy and the Association of Members of the Order of Merit of France, which is linked to the French National Association, in addition to composing the French Renaissance’s Association of Friends.
From the very start, Dr. Costa e Silva has worked as a psychiatrist in public institutions, university hospitals, as well as in his private practice. To this day, he continues to be actively involved in his three main professional passions: patients, students, and research.
He has contributed significantly to scientific and administrative boards and councils, particularly in Europe, where he lives today. As for the United States, he is involved, along with Nobel Prize winner Eric Kandel of the USA, in Brace Pharma’s Scientific Board, a company whose mission is to develop highly innovative medications.
Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva still works relentlessly in his clinical, scientific, and academic careers, and today is based in Europe (Portugal, France, and Switzerland), where he is a member of several scientific and cultural councils, as well as medical and scientific-related corporate boards. He composes scientific boards and councils of a wide host of medical, scientific, and pharmaceutical organizations and holds a deep connection to French culture, the reason why he works diligently to strengthen France’s cultural and medicinal ties with Brazil and several other countries.
He remains strongly committed to his international efforts, and as President of Brazil’s National Academy of Medicine (ANM), has been responsible for establishing partnerships with the Academies of Medicine of Latin America, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, France, and the United States.
Dr. Costa e Silva visits Brazil regularly and continues to inspire a myriad of healthcare practitioners and university professors with all his expertise.
Perhaps being born to a family of physicians on his father’s side, and on the other side, to a family of artists – his grandmother was a musician, his grandfather was a painter and set designer, and his great-uncle, Jacinto Benavente, won the Nobel Prize for Literature – helps to explain why Dr. Jorge Costa e Silva has such a comprehensive view of science, art, culture, and the humanities.