What's New at the APA

• Ramaswamy Viswanathan, M.D., Dr.Med.Sc. began his term as president of the American Psychiatric Association at the conclusion of the 2024 Annual Meeting in New York City. The focus of Dr. Viswanathan's presidential year will be "Lifestyle for positive physical and mental health." You can read more about Dr. Viswanathan and his presidential priorities here.

  Steven Starks, M.D., M.B.A., DFAPA, assumed began his term as the Speaker of the APA Assembly of District Branches at the close of the 2024 Annual Meeting in New York. Starks is board-certified in geriatric psychiatry and serves as clinical assistant professor at the University of Houston's Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine. You can read more about Dr. Starks and other assembly officials here.

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• APA released the results of its 2024 mental health poll showing American adults are expressing increasing anxiousness.  Read more about the poll results here.

·      Check out our recent blogs addressing Gen Z happiness, mental illness in older adults, updates in understanding autism, and alcohol use disorder and social media…

Visit APA's Newsroom for all the latest news releases, statements, blogs, monthly public opinion poll results, and other information.

New Research Debuted at 2024 APA Annual Meeting

The presentation of new and emerging research on the top trends in psychiatry and mental health care is one of the hallmarks of the APA Annual Meeting, and this year in New York City was no different. New research on key predictors of adolescent substance use was unveiled in New York, and will be published in the May issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry. Other new research from the poster sessions on the effect of E-cigarette content on Instagram, stigmatizing language in clinical notes, and how theater improv can help support DEI efforts among Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) health care trainees was also presented at the meeting.

Videos for Sharing

APA's Youtube channel has a plethora of mental health focused videos you can use on social media or share elsewhere. Check out our playlist of Spanish language mental health explainers.

Briefs for Your Newsletter

May Course of the Month – Psychopharmacology Master Class: The Art of Psychopharmacology

This course will address the science of the art of psychopharmacology – highlighting the importance of the doctor-patient relationship, the importance of a patient-centered evaluation, prescribing decisions that facilitate the patient's healthy use of treatment, common errors in prescribing and more. Click here to access the Course of the Month and sign up for updates about this free member benefit.

Calling All Medical Students and Education Directors

The APA Foundation invites applications for its Helping Hands Grants Program. The program provides grants of up to $5,000 to medical schools for mental health/substance use disorder projects, particularly in underserved minority communities. The projects are developed and managed by medical students with community agencies or in conjunction with medical school outreach activities. The deadline is Friday, May 31. Psychiatry education directors are asked to share this information with their medical students. LEARN MORE

May 17, Noon ET: Lithium in Pregnancy: Too Much or Not Enough?

This SMI Adviser webinar will discuss the potential risks of lithium to both the patient and baby throughout pregnancy and the postpartum/lactation period, and how this information might be used to educate patients and determine an appropriate course of therapeutic action. LEARN MORE AND REGISTER

Be a part of APA's Speakers Bureau

APA is seeking members who are active and engaged in Component activities to be a part of APA's Speaker's Bureau. The Speaker's Bureau is aimed at diversifying and broadening APA's bench of public-facing experts. In addition to traditional media requests, APA has a number of other opportunities available for members who are willing to share their expertise. This includes writing blogs on important mental health topics, providing government testimony, and participation in social media events, like Twitter/X chats, Instagram live, and more.

Members of the APA Speaker's Bureau, as an internal influencer group, will also be asked to amplify APA's voice by promoting public education initiatives via social media and engaging during APA social media events.

Simply scan this QR code to access the speaker's bureau form and add your voice.

Note: Any personal information shared is kept strictly confidential and only able to be accessed by APA Communications staff. We ask for this information so that we can get a decent picture of who our experts are and make the best match for a given opportunity. Participation in this project does not guarantee that a member will be contacted for a media interview or other public-facing opportunity.

Please contact James Carty (jcarty@psych.org) with any questions you may have.