Career and work
Bhushan served as California’s Acting Surgeon General in 2022. From 2019 to 2022, she was the California Office of the Surgeon General’s first Chief Health Officer. [3]
She trained at Columbia University, Harvard Medical School and Johns Hopkins and serves on Stanford’s adjunct faculty and NAMI’s Board of Directors. [3]
What has been publicly discussed
Sources and other resourcesExpand to view the sources used in this profile and resources to learn more.
Sources used for this profile
The following sources contain information that supports the claims made on this page.
Los Angeles Times“I am California’s acting surgeon general. And I have bipolar disorder” Bhushan describes her illness, recovery, experiences of stigma and reasons for speaking openly.
article or webpageNAMI“Hope Starts With Us: Stigma & Mental Health Equity” Bhushan discusses her first diagnosis of depression, antidepressant treatment, activation and later bipolar-spectrum diagnosis.
article or webpageNAMIDevika Bhushan Covers her career, education, advocacy and work with NAMI.
article or webpage
View all 6 sources
NAMI“Thriving on the Bipolar Spectrum” Bhushan and Sara Schley discuss stigma and stereotypes surrounding bipolar disorder.
article or webpageInternational Society for Bipolar Disorders2025 Keynote Abstracts Identifies Bhushan's diagnosis as bipolar II disorder.
article or webpageDevika Bhushanpregnancy and postpartum planning Bhushan discusses working with her psychiatrist to protect her sleep and reduce relapse risk.
article or webpage
Learn more
Recommended books and other resources about Devika Bhushan and their experiences.
- “Lessons Learned From My Journey with Bipolar Disorder”Article · International Bipolar Foundation
Bhushan gives a first-person account of living with bipolar disorder.
- “Bipolar Disorder: Beyond the Label”Discussion · NAMI
A longer discussion featuring Bhushan and others with lived experience of bipolar disorder.