David Fawcett PhD, LCSW

David Fawcett, Ph.D., L.C.S.W., is a substance abuse expert, certified sex therapist and clinical psychotherapist in private practice in Ft. Lauderdale specializing in gay men’s health. He has worked in the areas of mental health and substance abuse for more than 30 years in numerous settings, including inpatient and outpatient programs. He currently maintains a private psychotherapy practice and consults numerous agencies, including the the Broward County Health Department and Sunserve, an LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) social services agency. He frequently presents workshops on issues concerning substance abuse, mental health and chronic illness both nationally and internationally.

Dr. Fawcett received a B.A. in anthropology from Miami University of Ohio and worked as Registrar at New York’s Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, which became part of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. While in New York, he received an M.A. in anthropology from Hunter College and an M.Phil. degree, also in anthropology, from the City University of New York Graduate Center. During that time, he did fieldwork among the Hopi Tribe in Arizona and the Zuni in New Mexico, and authored several catalogs, including one for a touring project on Native American painting, as well as a study of Brazilian Indian featherwork, which was part of a larger exhibition that he accompanied to Beijing and Shanghai in the People’s Republic of China after it was displayed at the U.S. Custom House in New York.

He became interested in behavioral health and relocated to Florida in 1986, working in clinical settings treating both substance abuse and eating disorders. He received an M.S.W. from Florida International University and spent the next decade in a community mental health agency working with serious and persistent mental illness. After being diagnosed HIV positive in 1988, he took a special interest in mental health issues and HIV, particularly among gay men. This ultimately led to his becoming Director of the Pride Institute in Ft. Lauderdale, and eventually opening his private practice. In 2004, he received his Ph.D. in Clinical Sexology through a program of the American Academy of Clinical Sexologists. His dissertation on methamphetamine and sexual risk received a research award.

In his practice, Dr. Fawcett addresses a wide range of concerns, including addiction, trauma and issues related to chronic illness, especially HIV/AIDS. He is a national trainer for the HIV Spectrum project of the National Association of Social Workers and presents workshops for professionals both nationally and internationally. He also facilitates workshops for the gay and HIV-positive community at gay men’s health conferences and retreats and national events such as Positive Living, the largest conference for persons living with HIV/AIDS.

Dr. Fawcett has been very active in the South Florida community. He was a founder and Chair of the South Florida Methamphetamine Task Force, a nationally recognized coalition that addressed the meth epidemic through training, prevention and intervention. He went on to found Meth & Men South Florida, recently rebranded as No More Meth, a not-for-profit endeavor that provides a variety of community information and clinical services on a sliding scale. He serves on several boards, including the Board of Governors of the Broward County Commission on Substance Abuse; and Archways, a community mental health center. He has served as a member of community advisory and data and safety monitoring boards for ongoing studies at several universities, supervises clinical interns at Sunserve, and is a member of the National Steering Committee for National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Dr. Fawcett is an advocate for gay men’s health and served as the 2010 Program Co-Chair for the National Gay Men’s Health Summit.

He has won numerous awards and recognition, including Broward Social Worker of the Year in both 2012 and 2015, and the Valuing Our Families Professional Achievement Award in 2013.

In addition to writing for TheBody.com, David’s blog entries have appeared on LifeLube and The Bilerico Project, Florida, and his articles on HIV have been featured in journals such as Positively Aware. David resides in Ft. Lauderdale with his partner.

Professional Credentials

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Florida
• Licensed Clinical Social Worker, California
• Certified Sex Therapist, Florida
• Certified Sex Addiction Therapist (CSAT)
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Level II Therapist
• Diplomate, American Board of Sexology
• Reiki Practitioner (Second Degree)
• Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapist/Certified Hypnotherapist (ACH)

Video courtesy of the HIV & Aging Toolkit, a production of SAMHSA’s HIV/AIDS & Mental Health Training Resource Center.