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Leslie Suen, MD, MAS

Photo of Leslie Suen, MD, MAS
Title(s)Assistant Professor, Medicine
SchoolSchool of Medicine
Address2540 23rd Street, #4316
San Francisco CA 94110
Phone628-206-6007
PronounsShe/Her/Hers
ORCID ORCID Icon0000-0003-4786-356X Additional info
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    Collapse Biography 
    Collapse education and training
    UCSF2022Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion Training
    UCSF2022National Clinician Scholars Program (NCSP) VA Scholar
    UCSF2020Stimulating Access to Research in Residency Program (StARR)
    UCSF2019UC Primary Care General Internal Medicine Residency (UCPC)
    UCSFM.D.2016Medicine

    Collapse Overview 
    Collapse overview
    Leslie W. Suen, MD, MAS is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the San Francisco General Hospital Division of General Internal Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She is a primary care and addiction medicine physician–researcher whose work focuses on developing, implementing, and evaluating low-barrier, patient-centered models of care for people who use drugs, particularly those who face structural barriers such as homelessness, criminalization, and stigma.

    Dr. Suen was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She attended Cornell University for her undergraduate degree in Biological & Environmental Engineering and completed medical school, UC Primary Care Internal Medicine Residency, and research training through the National Clinician Scholars Program at UCSF. She leads a diverse portfolio of NIH-funded research, including a K23 career development award and multiple projects that examine innovative approaches to treating opioid use disorder. Her policy and implementation work includes collaborations with local and state agencies, expanding access to low-barrier treatment, and strengthening addiction treatment capacity across safety-net systems.

    Clinically, she practices in adult primary care and in both inpatient and outpatient addiction treatment at San Francisco General Hospital and in the San Francisco Department of Public Health. She is also an affiliate faculty member within the UCSF Pain and Addiction Research Center (PARC), UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative (BHHI), UCSF Action for Research Center for Health (ARC), the UCSF Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies (IHPS), and the UCSF Partnerships for Research in Implementation Science for Equity (PRISE) Center.

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    Collapse Bibliographic 
    Collapse selected publications
    Publications listed below are automatically derived from MEDLINE/PubMed and other sources, which might result in incorrect or missing publications. Researchers can login to make corrections and additions, or contact us for help. to make corrections and additions.
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    Altmetrics Details PMC Citations indicate the number of times the publication was cited by articles in PubMed Central, and the Altmetric score represents citations in news articles and social media. (Note that publications are often cited in additional ways that are not shown here.) Fields are based on how the National Library of Medicine (NLM) classifies the publication's journal and might not represent the specific topic of the publication. Translation tags are based on the publication type and the MeSH terms NLM assigns to the publication. Some publications (especially newer ones and publications not in PubMed) might not yet be assigned Field or Translation tags.) Click a Field or Translation tag to filter the publications.
    1. Envisioning a Humane and Accessible US Methadone Treatment System: Generating Policy and Practice Recommendations From the Liberate Methadone Movement. Subst Use Addctn J. 2025 Oct 26; 29767342251377189. Krawczyk N, Scott J, Miller M, Coulter A, Ferguson A, Frank D, Jordan A, Joudrey P, Kimmel SD, Levander XA, Potee R, Roberts KE, Russell D, Simon R, Sue KL, Suen LW, Vincent L, Voyles N, Simon C. PMID: 41139383.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    2. Linkage to substance use disorder treatment through syringe services programs and the criminal legal system: A Cross-Sectional Study. Am J Prev Med. 2025 Oct 14; 108150. Suen LW, Megerian CE, Browne EN, Chung EO, Akiba CF, Williams J, Humphrey JL, Wenger LD, Ray B, Lambdin BH, Kral AH. PMID: 41101402.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    3. Innovative Approaches to Buprenorphine Initiation Amid the Overdose Crisis-Injecting Hope. JAMA Netw Open. 2025 Aug 01; 8(8):e2527020. Suen LW, Rosenwohl-Mack S. PMID: 40815517.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    4. Outpatient Initiation of 7-Day Injectable Buprenorphine: A Direct-to-Inject Case Series. Subst Use Addctn J. 2025 Oct; 46(4):1064-1069. Rosenwohl-Mack S, Suen LW, Logan AA, Peterson D, Snyder HR. PMID: 40183345; PMCID: PMC12353995.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    5. Barriers to Buprenorphine Treatment Among People Experiencing Homelessness: A Qualitative Study from the Provider Perspective. J Urban Health. 2025 Apr; 102(2):465-475. Masson CL, Knight KR, Levine EA, Spillane JA, Liang YCA, Suen LW, Chen MM, Zevin B, Schwartz RP, Coffin PO, Sorensen JL. PMID: 40148731; PMCID: PMC12031702.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    6. Prescribing Psychostimulants for the Treatment of Stimulant Use Disorder: Navigating the Federal Legal Landscape. J Addict Med. 2025 Jul-Aug 01; 19(4):347-349. Suen LW, Coffin PO, Boulton KE, Carr DH, Davis CS. PMID: 39846466.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    7. Early Results of Implementing Rapid Methadone Titration for Hospitalized Patients: A Case Series. J Gen Intern Med. 2025 Sep; 40(13):3104-3110. Martin M, Baisey T, Skinner S, Ly L, Slown K, Harter K, Nguyen OK, Steiger S, Suen LW. PMID: 39804553; PMCID: PMC12508316.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    
    8. Treatment of Inpatient Opioid Withdrawal with Short-Acting Full Agonist Opioids at a Safety-Net Hospital. J Gen Intern Med. 2025 Sep; 40(12):2890-2895. Steiner G, Suen LW, Martin M, Skinner S, Crouch P, Nguyen OK, Slown K, Logan A. PMID: 39762677; PMCID: PMC12463741.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    9. Outpatient Low-Dose Initiation of Buprenorphine for People Using Fentanyl. JAMA Netw Open. 2025 01 02; 8(1):e2456253. Suen LW, Chiang AY, Jones BLH, Soran CS, Geier M, Snyder HR, Neuhaus J, Myers JJ, Knight KR, Bazazi AR, Coffin PO. PMID: 39853975; PMCID: PMC11762237.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 4     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    10. Methadone's Moment. JAMA. 2024 Dec 17; 332(23):1969-1970. Incze MA, Simon C, Suen LW. PMID: 39418049.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    
    11. Induction to Methadone 80 mg in the First Week of Treatment of Patients Who Use Fentanyl: A Case Series From an Outpatient Opioid Treatment Program. J Addict Med. 2024 Sep-Oct 01; 18(5):580-585. Steiger S, McCuistian C, Suen LW, Shapiro B, Tompkins DA, Bazazi AR. PMID: 39150067; PMCID: PMC11446640.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    12. Methadone's Resurgence in Bridging the Treatment Gap in the Overdose Crisis: Position Statement of AMERSA, Inc (Association for Multidisciplinary Education, Research, Substance Use, and Addiction). Subst Use Addctn J. 2024 07; 45(3):337-345. Suen LW, Incze M, Simon C, Englander H, Bratberg J, Groves Scott G, Winograd R. PMID: 38804606.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 4     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    13. Withdrawal during outpatient low dose buprenorphine initiation in people who use fentanyl: a retrospective cohort study. Harm Reduct J. 2024 04 09; 21(1):80. Jones BLH, Geier M, Neuhaus J, Coffin PO, Snyder HR, Soran CS, Knight KR, Suen LW. PMID: 38594721; PMCID: PMC11005253.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 5     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    14. Radical hospitality: Innovative programming to build community and meet the needs of people who use drugs at a government-sanctioned overdose prevention site in San Francisco, California. Int J Drug Policy. 2024 Apr; 126:104366. Wenger LD, Morris T, Knight KR, Megerian CE, Davidson PJ, Suen LW, Majano V, Lambdin BH, Kral AH. PMID: 38492432; PMCID: PMC11160962.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    15. Cannabis donation as a harm reduction strategy: a case study. Harm Reduct J. 2024 03 06; 21(1):58. Duhart Clarke SE, Victor G, Lynch P, Suen LW, Ray B. PMID: 38449029; PMCID: PMC10916026.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimals
    16. Patient and Staff Perspectives on the Impacts and Challenges of Hospital-Based Harm Reduction. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 02 05; 7(2):e240229. Fraimow-Wong L, Martín M, Thomas L, Giuliano R, Nguyen OK, Knight K, Suen LW. PMID: 38386317; PMCID: PMC10884877.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    17. Missed Opportunities: Substance Use Hotline Operator Uncertainty of State Buprenorphine Prescribing via Telemedicine. J Addict Med. 2024 Jan-Feb 01; 18(1):78-81. Haley DF, Agoos ER, Yarbrough CR, Suen LW, Beletsky L. PMID: 38126704; PMCID: PMC10873116.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    18. Methamphetamine Toxicities and Clinical Management. NEJM Evid. 2023 Dec; 2(12):EVIDra2300160. Coffin PO, Suen LW. PMID: 38320504; PMCID: PMC11458184.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    
    19. Implementing Heart Plus: Design and Early Results of a Novel Comanagement Clinic for Patients With Stimulant-associated Cardiomyopathy. J Card Fail. 2024 Jul; 30(7):869-876. Davis JD, Bepo L, Suen LW, Mclaughlin MM, Adamo M, Abbs E, Lemke G, Azari S. PMID: 37984791.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    20. Cocaine Use is Associated With Increased LVMI in Unstably Housed Women With Polysubstance Use. Subst Abus. 2023 10; 44(4):323-329. Ravi A, Vittinghoff E, Wu AHB, Suen LW, Coffin PO, Hsue P, Lynch KL, Win S, Kazi DS, Riley ED. PMID: 37830512; PMCID: PMC11131938.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    21. "Get in and get out, get on with life": Patient and provider perspectives on methadone van implementation for opioid use disorder treatment. Int J Drug Policy. 2023 11; 121:104214. Suen LW, Steiger S, Shapiro B, Castellanos S, Joshi N, Lambdin BH, Knight KR. PMID: 37778132.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    22. Impact of a high-volume overdose prevention site on social and drug disorder in surrounding areas in San Francisco. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2023 11 01; 252:110969. Davidson PJ, Wenger LD, Morris T, Majano V, Browne EN, Lambdin BH, Suen LW, Kral AH. PMID: 37748424.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 4     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    23. Evaluating oxygen monitoring and administration during overdose responses at a sanctioned overdose prevention site in San Francisco, California: A mixed-methods study. Int J Drug Policy. 2023 11; 121:104165. Suen LW, Wenger LD, Morris T, Majano V, Davidson PJ, Browne EN, Ray B, Megerian CE, Lambdin BH, Kral AH. PMID: 37652815.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    24. Telehealth Policy, Practice, and Education: a Position Statement of the Society of General Internal Medicine. J Gen Intern Med. 2023 08; 38(11):2613-2620. Chen A, Ayub MH, Mishuris RG, Rodriguez JA, Gwynn K, Lo MC, Noronha C, Henry TL, Jones D, Lee WW, Varma M, Cuevas E, Onumah C, Gupta R, Goodson J, Lu AD, Syed Q, Suen LW, Heiman E, Salhi BA, Khoong EC, Schmidt S. PMID: 37095331; PMCID: PMC10124932.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 15     Fields:    Translation:HumansPHPublic Health
    25. The Howard Street Method: A Community Pharmacy-led Low Dose Overlap Buprenorphine Initiation Protocol for Individuals Using Fentanyl. J Addict Med. 2023 Jul-Aug 01; 17(4):e255-e261. Noel M, Abbs E, Suen L, Samuel L, Dobbins S, Geier M, Soran CS. PMID: 37579105.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 4     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    26. Multiple substance use and blood pressure in women experiencing homelessness. Addict Behav Rep. 2023 Jun; 17:100483. Suen LW, Vittinghoff E, Wu AHB, Ravi A, Coffin PO, Hsue P, Lynch KL, Kazi DS, Riley ED. PMID: 36875801; PMCID: PMC9975611.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2  
    27. A Mixed-methods Evaluation of an Addiction/Cardiology Pilot Clinic With Contingency Management for Patients With Stimulant-associated Cardiomyopathy. J Addict Med. 2022 Dec 16. Leyde S, Abbs E, Suen LW, Martin M, Mitchell A, Davis J, Azari S. PMID: 36729467.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    28. A Mixed-methods Evaluation of an Addiction/Cardiology Pilot Clinic With Contingency Management for Patients With Stimulant-associated Cardiomyopathy. J Addict Med. 2023 May-Jun 01; 17(3):312-318. Leyde S, Abbs E, Suen LW, Martin M, Mitchell A, Davis J, Azari S. PMID: 37267175; PMCID: PMC10242504.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    29. Prevalence and factors associated with neck injection among people who inject drugs in San Francisco, California. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2022 Dec 01; 241:109686. Duhart Clarke SE, Megerian CE, Suen LW, Wenger LD, Lambdin BH, Davidson PJ, Kral AH. PMID: 36402050.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    30. Triple Threat: Response to the Crises of COVID-19, Homelessness, and Opioid Use Disorder With a Novel Approach to Buprenorphine Delivery: A Case Series. J Addict Med. 2022 Nov-Dec 01; 16(6):733-735. Samuel L, Caygill-Walsh R, Suen LW, Mohebbi S, Geier M. PMID: 35245914; PMCID: PMC9653064.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    31. Scoping review of managed alcohol programs. Harm Reduct J. 2022 07 25; 19(1):82. Smith-Bernardin SM, Suen LW, Barr-Walker J, Cuervo IA, Handley MA. PMID: 35879719; PMCID: PMC9311344.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 9     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    32. A Seat at the Table. Acad Med. 2022 07 01; 97(7):952-953. Suen LW. PMID: 34732648.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    
    33. Federal and State Regulatory Changes to Methadone Take-Home Doses: Impact of Sociostructural Factors. Am J Public Health. 2022 04; 112(S2):S143-S146. Wyatt JP, Suen LW, Coe WH, Adams ZM, Gandhi M, Batchelor HM, Castellanos S, Joshi N, Satterwhite S, Pérez-Rodríguez R, Rodríguez-Guerra E, Albizu-Garcia CE, Knight KR, Jordan A. PMID: 35349318; PMCID: PMC8965186.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    34. Structural Adaptations to Methadone Maintenance Treatment and Take-Home Dosing for Opioid Use Disorder in the Era of COVID-19. Am J Public Health. 2022 04; 112(S2):S112-S116. Suen LW, Coe WH, Wyatt JP, Adams ZM, Gandhi M, Batchelor HM, Castellanos S, Joshi N, Satterwhite S, Pérez-Rodríguez R, Rodríguez-Guerra E, Albizu-Garcia CE, Knight KR, Jordan A. PMID: 35349324; PMCID: PMC8965183.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 9     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    35. Rapid Overlap Initiation Protocol Using Low Dose Buprenorphine for Opioid Use Disorder Treatment in an Outpatient Setting: A Case Series. J Addict Med. 2022 Sep-Oct 01; 16(5):534-540. Suen LW, Lee TG, Silva M, Walton P, Coffin PO, Geier M, Soran CS. PMID: 35149614; PMCID: PMC11006272.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    36. Emergency department visits and trends related to cocaine, psychostimulants, and opioids in the United States, 2008-2018. BMC Emerg Med. 2022 02 04; 22(1):19. Suen LW, Davy-Mendez T, LeSaint KT, Riley ED, Coffin PO. PMID: 35120449; PMCID: PMC8814795.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 18     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    37. Effect of an Unsanctioned Safe Consumption Site in the United States on Syringe Sharing, Rushed Injections, and Isolated Injection Drug Use: A Longitudinal Cohort Analysis. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2022 02 01; 89(2):172-177. Suen LW, Davidson PJ, Browne EN, Lambdin BH, Wenger LD, Kral AH. PMID: 34723925.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 11     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    38. Do Ask, Tell, and Show: Contextual Factors Affecting Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Disclosure for Sexual and Gender Minority People. LGBT Health. 2022 Feb-Mar; 9(2):73-80. Suen LW, Lunn MR, Sevelius JM, Flentje A, Capriotti MR, Lubensky ME, Hunt C, Weber S, Bahati M, Rescate A, Dastur Z, Obedin-Maliver J. PMID: 35073205; PMCID: PMC8968837.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 13     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    39. Factors associated with smoking cessation attempts in a public, safety-net primary care system. Prev Med Rep. 2022 Apr; 26:101699. Suen LW, Rafferty H, Le T, Chung K, Straus E, Chen E, Vijayaraghavan M. PMID: 35145838; PMCID: PMC8802046.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3  
    40. Reduced Emergency Department Visits and Hospitalisation with Use of an Unsanctioned Safe Consumption Site for Injection Drug Use in the United States. J Gen Intern Med. 2022 11; 37(15):3853-3860. Lambdin BH, Davidson PJ, Browne EN, Suen LW, Wenger LD, Kral AH. PMID: 35020166; PMCID: PMC8753940.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 13     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    41. Transition from Oxycodone to Buprenorphine/Naloxone in a Hospitalized Patient with Sickle Cell Disease: A Case Report. J Gen Intern Med. 2022 04; 37(5):1281-1285. Leyde S, Suen L, Pratt L, DeFries T. PMID: 34993878; PMCID: PMC8971332.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 4     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    42. "The idea is to help people achieve greater success and liberty": A qualitative study of expanded methadone take-home access in opioid use disorder treatment. Subst Abus. 2022; 43(1):1143-1150. Suen LW, Castellanos S, Joshi N, Satterwhite S, Knight KR. PMID: 35499469; PMCID: PMC9710250.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 24     Fields:    Translation:HumansPHPublic Health
    43. System-Level Quality Improvement Initiatives for Tobacco Use in a Safety-Net Health System During the COVID-19 Pandemic. J Prim Care Community Health. 2022 Jan-Dec; 13:21501319221107984. Chung K, Rafferty H, Suen LW, Vijayaraghavan M. PMID: 35748431; PMCID: PMC9234926.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    Translation:HumansPHPublic Health
    44. Factors Associated with Pain Treatment Satisfaction Among Patients with Chronic Non-Cancer Pain and Substance Use. J Am Board Fam Med. 2021 Nov-Dec; 34(6):1082-1095. Suen LW, McMahan VM, Rowe C, Bhardwaj S, Knight K, Kushel MB, Santos GM, Coffin P. PMID: 34772764; PMCID: PMC8813175.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    45. Improved syringe disposal practices associated with unsanctioned safe consumption site use: A cohort study of people who inject drugs in the United States. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2021 12 01; 229(Pt A):109075. Kral AH, Lambdin BH, Wenger LD, Browne EN, Suen LW, Davidson PJ. PMID: 34654588.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    46. Non-fatal stimulant overdose among homeless and unstably housed women in San Francisco, California. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2021 11 01; 228:109085. Davy-Mendez T, Vittinghoff E, Dilworth SE, Suen LW, Braun C, Coffin PO, Satre DD, Riley ED. PMID: 34600248; PMCID: PMC8595709.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 5     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    47. National Prevalence of Alcohol and Other Substance Use Disorders Among Emergency Department Visits and Hospitalizations: NHAMCS 2014-2018. J Gen Intern Med. 2022 08; 37(10):2420-2428. Suen LW, Makam AN, Snyder HR, Repplinger D, Kushel MB, Martin M, Nguyen OK. PMID: 34518978; PMCID: PMC8436853.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 57     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    48. What Sexual and Gender Minority People Want Researchers to Know About Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Questions: A Qualitative Study. Arch Sex Behav. 2020 10; 49(7):2301-2318. Suen LW, Lunn MR, Katuzny K, Finn S, Duncan L, Sevelius J, Flentje A, Capriotti MR, Lubensky ME, Hunt C, Weber S, Bibbins-Domingo K, Obedin-Maliver J. PMID: 32875381; PMCID: PMC7497435.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 77     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    49. Thinking Outside the Visit: Primary Care Patient Perspectives on Helpful Advance Care Planning Methods. J Gen Intern Med. 2020 06; 35(6):1903-1905. Suen LW, Leyde S, Min K, Volow A, Rabow M, Sudore RL. PMID: 31654349; PMCID: PMC7280388.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
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