Dr. Sherif Elasyouty, MD

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Get to know Psychiatrist Dr. Sherif El-Asyouty, who serves patients in Santa Barbara, California.

Recognized as an attentive and considerate psychiatrist, Dr. El-Asyouty sees patients with psychiatric issues, chemical dependency issues, chronic pain conditions, and other mental health disorders. His private practice is located in Santa Barbara, California.

A firm believer that it is important to not confuse the person with their illness, he recognizes that communication and refusal skills are a major part of a successful, lasting outcome. His patients have excellent things to say about him, one stating “Dr. El-Asyouty helped me tremendously at a time when I really needed it, and has continued to help me be on the most effective and appropriate medicines for my particular needs. He has a great sense of humor, knows when it might be therapeutic to use it, and has a thoroughly compassionate nature.”

In his current capacity, he is also the Co-Founder & Medical Director of Recovery Road Medical Center with Dr. Joseph Frawley in Santa Barbara, where the highest quality treatment is provided for patients with alcohol and drug addiction, mental health disorders, and/or chronic pain in an outpatient setting.

At the start of his medical career as a graduate of the Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University in Egypt, Dr. El-Asyouty relocated to the United States to serve his residency in general surgery and neurosurgery. He was exposed to a wide array of medical and surgical experiences, yet decided to switch to psychiatry and joined the program at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, where he finished his training in general psychiatry. For additional training in addiction psychiatry, he attended Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. There, he trained under a nationally recognized physician in the field of addiction, Dr. Andy Spickard, III.  

Following his training, Dr. El-Asyouty practiced in Kentucky as a staff psychiatrist in both inpatient and outpatient settings. He last served in Kentucky as the Medical Director of West Lake Behavioral Health Program before moving to Santa Barbara in 2003 and joining the staff at Cottage Hospital. It was also at this time that he opened his private practice. 

Respected in his field, the doctor is board-certified through the American Board of Addiction Medicine, whose mission is to promote the training and certification of an expanding number of physicians in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of substance related disorders in order to help address the enormous public health burden presented by tobacco, alcohol, and other substance use disorders and related conditions. He is also licensed to prescribe Suboxone and to administer Vivitrol.   

Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behavior, cognition, and perceptions. Psychiatrists evaluate, diagnose, and treat patients with mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. They conduct thorough psychiatric evaluations, develop treatment plans, prescribe medication, and evaluate treatment results.

Very involved in the community, Dr. El-Asyouty has made media appearances to talk about awareness concerning drug use among adolescents. He is the winner of the Patients’ Choice Award in 2008, 2013, 2015, 2018, and 2019.

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