She is the author of five books, including Weekends at Bellevue: Nine Years on the Night Shift at the Psych ER, a memoir documenting her experience as the weekend head of the psychiatric emergency room at Bellevue Hospital in New York City[1][2] An advocate for the appropriate use of consciousness expanding substances as part of mental health treatment, she is a medical monitor for MAPS studies, which involve, in part, developing psychedelics into prescription medication.

[citation needed] She attended the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in the Biological Basis of Behavior, a series of courses combining the study of psychology and neural sciences, with a concentration on psychopharmacology.

A principal investigator in a research study examining a new medication for schizophrenia, Holland earned a National Institute of Health Outstanding Resident Award in 1994.

[7] In describing the book, The New York Times wrote: "Dr. Holland brings readers into the psychiatric emergency room, where she was in charge on weekends for nine years.

[11][12] In addition to serving as a forensic consultant for drug-related cases,[5] Holland is a frequent lecturer, and has appeared as a drug and behavior expert on CNN, National Geographic Channel, Fox, VH1, MTV and Good Morning America.