In May, members of the American Psychiatric Association gathered in San Francisco, California, for the 2026 Annual Meeting.

This year's theme, "Empowering the Psychiatric Workforce: Taking Control of Our Practices One Step at a Time," highlighted both the challenges and opportunities ahead. It invited attendees to focus on what they can do daily to strengthen the profession and the care we deliver. The meeting was a wonderful opportunity to reconnect, share updates, and meet new colleagues.

Several members of our department attended and presented at the meeting this year - explore their many topics in the list below. Many members of our department also showcased their research through poster presentations at the meeting; a full listing of the meeting’s poster sessions can be found here.

Saturday, May 16, 2026

• Cultivating Female Leaders: Creating a Supportive Future in Psychiatry
  Speaker(s): Chair: Ruby Castilla Puentes, MD, DPHIL, MBA  Primary Contact: Ruby Castilla Puentes, MD, DPHIL, MBA  Chair: Amy Alexander, MD  Presenter: Sophia Sanchez-Lopez, MD  Discussant: Pilar Lachhwani, MD
  
• What’s in the Name? Approaches to Enhancing Patient-Centered Care in Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
  Speaker(s): Chair: Akriti Sinha, MD  Primary Contact: Akriti Sinha, MD  Presenter: Byung Kil Kim, MD  Presenter: Dhanviney Verma, MD  Presenter: Dany Lamothe, MD  Presenter: Margaret Tuttle, MD
  
• Mind Over Matter: Resilience Risk and Recovery in Military and Sports Settings
  Speaker(s): Chair: Bhagwan A. Bahroo, MD  Primary Contact: Bhagwan A. Bahroo, MD  Presenter: Daniel P. Morgan, MD  Presenter: Thanh T Nguyen, USN, AD, MD  Presenter: Michael McCarthy, MD  Moderator: David Baron, DO
  
• Safety First: Responsible Integration of Large Language Models in Mental Health Care
  Speaker(s): Moderator: Joshua Cohen, MD, PhD  Presenter: Marlynn Wei  Presenter: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA  Presenter: Eric Lin, MD  Presenter: Sahib Khalsa, MD, PhD 
  
• Training the Next Generation: Building the Field of Academic Sports Psychiatry Education
  Speaker(s): Chair: Mena Mirhom, MD, FAPA  Primary Contact: Mena Mirhom, MD, FAPA  Presenter: Roy L Collins, MD, MPH  Presenter: David McDuff, MD
  
• Bridging the Divide: How the Adult-Child Psychiatry Split Compromises Family-Centered Care in the Perinatal Period
  Speaker(s): Chair: Soudabeh Givrad, MD  Primary Contact: Soudabeh Givrad, MD  Presenter: Misty Richards, MD  Presenter: Amalia Londono Tobon, MD
  
• From Trainee to Trainblazer: Residents and Early-Career Physician-Entreprenuers Catalyzing Psychiatric Innovation
  Speaker(s): Moderator: Steven Chan, MD, MBA  Presenter: Ryan Barnes, DO  Presenter: Lucia Roitman, MD  Presenter: Clara Guo, MD  Presenter: Nathan Carroll, DO, MBA, MPH
  
• The Startup Psychiatrist: Building Mental Health Ventures That Heal
  Speaker(s): Chair: Steven Chan, MD, MBA  Primary Contact: Steven Chan, MD, MBA  Presenter: Peter Yellowlees, MD MBBS  Presenter: Alexander Bystritsky, MD PhD

Sunday, May 17, 2026

• Therapeutic Landscape for Treatment-Resistant Depression (TRD): What’s Available and What’s on the Horizon?
  Speaker(s): Chair: Manish Kumar Jha, MBBS  Primary Contact: Manish Kumar Jha, MBBS  Presenter: Sanjay Mathew, MD  Presenter: Alan Schatzberg, MD  Presenter: Kathryn Ridout, MD, PHD  Presenter: Venkat Bhat, MD  Presenter: Joshua Hubregsen, MD
  
• Nasrallah Family Award: The Global Mental Health Crisis: What Can Neuroscience Do?
  Speaker(s): Primary Contact: Huda Akil, PhD Chair: Alan Schatzberg, MD  Presenter: Huda Akil, PhD
  
• Empowering Psychiatrists in Supporting Student Mental Health
  Speaker(s): Chair: Donna Tran, MD, MPH  Primary Contact: Donna Tran, MD, MPH Chair: Amy Alexander, MD  Presenter: Jaskanwar Batra, MD  Presenter: Meera Menon, MD, FAPA
  
• Catching Faking: Malingering Detection for the General Psychiatrist
  Speaker(s): Chair: James H Armontrout, MD  Primary Contact: James H Armontrout, MD  Presenter: Michael Jan Wise, MBBS, FRCSych IDFAPA  Presenter: Ana Dirago, PhD
  
• Foundations of Early Psychosis Care for Children and Transition-Age Youth
  Speaker(s): Chair: Apurva Bhatt, MD  Primary Contact: Apurva Bhatt, MD  Presenter: Craigan Usher, MD  Presenter: Zhanna Elberg, MD  Presenter: Shannon Pagdon, BA, MSW
  
• Decoding OCD: Diagnostic Dilemmas and Emerging Treatments in OCD
  Speaker(s): Chair: Carolyn I Rodriguez, MD, PhD  Primary Contact: Carolyn I Rodriguez, MD, PhD  Presenter: Peter J van Roessel, MD, PhD  Presenter: Adam Frank, MD, PhD  Presenter: Andrew Lee, MD, PhD  Moderator: Philip Muskin  Moderator: Khutaija Noor, MBBS
  
• A Role for AI to Expand Mental Health Care Assessment and Treatment in an Under-Resourced Community Setting
  Speaker(s): Chair: David Baron, DO  Primary Contact: David Baron, DO
  
• The Neurobiology of Hypnosis
  Speaker(s): Chair: David Spiegel, MD  Presenter: Jose R Maldonado, MD
  
• Food Nutrition and Mental Health: Practical Approaches for Nutrition Counseling with Patients
  Speaker(s): Chair: Michael Compton, MD  Primary Contact: Michael Compton, MD  Presenter: Bessie Staplefoote-Boynton, MD, MPH  Presenter: Jonathan Burgess, MD, MPH
  
• Teaching with Impact: Mastering Teaching and Supervision Skills as Early Career Psychiatrists
  Speaker(s): Speaker: Dhruv Gupta, MD, MS  Speaker: Nhi-Ha Trinh, MD, MPH Chair: Mark Hyman Rapaport, MD  Primary Contact: Mark Hyman Rapaport, MD  Speaker: Emrys Fonseca, MD, MS  Speaker: Laura Roberts, MD  Speaker: Sidney Zisook, MD
  
• Psychiatry in Minority Communities: Advocacy Recruitment Competency and Connection
  Speaker(s): Chair: Amir Ahuja, MD  Primary Contact: Amir Ahuja, MD  Presenter: Vybhav Jagannath, MD  Presenter: Lawrence Fung, MD, PhD  Presenter: Philipa Owusu-Antwi, MD  Presenter: Seena Ounsinegad, MD
  
• Bipolar Illness: An Update on Recent Research
  Speaker(s): Chair: Nassir Ghaemi, MD  Primary Contact: Nassir Ghaemi, MD  Presenter: Michael Ostacher, MD MPH  Presenter: Roger McIntyre, MD  Presenter: Joshua Eloge, MD
  
• What’s New in AI and Mental Health: Research Engagement and Safety
  Speaker(s): Chair: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA  Primary Contact: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA  Presenter: Karthik Sarma, MD PhD FAMIA  Presenter: Derrick Hull, PhD  Presenter: Scott Kollins, PhD
  
• Carving Meaningful Fulfilling Career Paths in Psychiatry: Association of Women Psychiatrists’ Presidential Session
  Speaker(s): Chair: Richa Bhatia, MD  Primary Contact: Richa Bhatia, MD  Presenter: Carol Bernstein, MD  Presenter: Rashi Aggarwal, MD  Presenter: Leslie Gise, MD  Presenter: Nikole Benders-Hadi, MD
  
• 10 Years of Stanford CHIPAO: How the Use of Theatrical Vignettes Addresses Mental Health Stigma in Asian Communities
  Speaker(s): Chair: Janet Lee-Coomes, MD, MS  Primary Contact: Janet Lee-Coomes, MD, MS  Presenter: Rona Hu, MD  Presenter: Ivy Song, MD  Presenter: Richard Ha, DO  Presenter: Eun Kyung Lee, MD
  
• Beyond the Hype: Constructive Pathways for AI in Mental Health Services Research
  Speaker(s): Chair: Victor Lushin, MD, PhD  Primary Contact: Victor Lushin, MD, PhD  Presenter: Kathryn Ridout, MD, PhD  Presenter: Shannon Wiltsey Stirman, PhD  Presenter: Tamar Krishnamurti, PhD  Presenter: Molly Jacobs  Presenter: Nicole Marlow
  
• Addiction Psychopharmacology
  Speaker(s): Chair: Jeffrey DeVido, MD  Presenter: Petros Levounis, MD;MA  Presenter: Smita Das, MD, PhD, MPH  Presenter: Carla Marienfeld, MD
  
• Reproductive Psychiatry Made Practical: Managing Mental Health Across Menstrual Cycle Pregnancy and Menopause?
  Speaker(s): Chair: Sarah Nagle-Yang, MD  Primary Contact: Sarah Nagle-Yang, MD  Presenter: Soudabeh Givrad, MD  Presenter: Katherine Unverferth, MD  Presenter: Marissa Beal, DO  Presenter: Megan Howard, MD
  
• Grow Your Practice with AI: Advanced Clinical Workflows Governance and Digital Growth
  Speaker(s): Chair: Steven Chan, MD, MBA  Primary Contact: Steven Chan, MD, MBA  Presenter: John Luo, MD  Presenter: Darlene King, MD  Presenter: Peter Yellowlees, MD MBBS  Presenter: Nishi Bhopal, MD

Monday, May 18, 2026

• Master’s Course in Clinical Psychopharmacology
  Speaker(s): Chair: Alan Schatzberg, MD Chair: Charles DeBattista, MD  Presenter: Rona Hu, MD  Presenter: Manpreet Singh, MD MS  Presenter: Rafael Pelayo, MD  Presenter: Charles Nemeroff, MD, PhD
  
• Creating Community Collaborations: Institutional Barriers Creative Solutions and Residents’ (Mis)adventures in Workforce Training
  Speaker(s): Chair: Shruti Rajan, MD  Primary Contact: Shruti Rajan, MD  Presenter: Benjamin Belai, MD  Presenter: Nathan Kyle Jamison, MD  Presenter: Jacob Johnson, MD  Presenter: Megan Tan, MD
  
• Neuropsychiatric Masquerades - Medical and Neurological Conditions That Present with Psychiatric Symptoms
  Speaker(s): Chair: Jose R Maldonado, MD  Primary Contact: Jose R Maldonado, MD  Presenter: Yelizaveta Sher, MD  Presenter: Matthew Gunther, MD;MA  Presenter: Benjamin Hoover, MD  Presenter: Filza Hussain, MD  Presenter: Mira Zein, MD, MPH
  
• Intervening Early in Psychosis: Building and Maintaining a Collaborative Team Approach
  Speaker(s): Chair: Kate V Hardy, ClinPsychD  Primary Contact: Kate V Hardy, ClinPsychD  Presenter: Steven Adelsheim, MD
  
• Advances in Precision Mental Health: From Data to Diagnosis & Treatment
  Speaker(s): Moderator: Yiqi Anabelle Lin, MD  Presenter: Carl D. Marci, MD  Presenter: Kazutaka Okuda, MD  Presenter: Leanne Williams, PhD  Presenter: Justin Baker, MD, PhD
  
• Management of Severe Mental Illness During Pregnancy and the Postpartum Period
  Speaker(s): Chair: Mariella Suleiman, MD  Primary Contact: Amanda Koire, MD, PhD  Presenter: Mary-Anne Hennen, MD  Presenter: Amanda Koire, MD, PhD  Presenter: Veerle Bergink, MD, PhD
  
• Curbsides and E-Consults: Empowering the Psychiatric Workforce to Empower Our Colleagues
  Speaker(s): Chair: Abhisek Khandai, MD  Primary Contact: Abhisek Khandai, MD  Presenter: Adrienne Taylor, MD  Presenter: Diana Robinson, MD  Presenter: Mira Zein, MD, MPH
  
• “Tell Me About Your Use of Chatbots”: A Clinician’s Guide to Integrating AI Use Into the Patient Interview
  Speaker(s): Primary Contact: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA  Moderator: Saneha Borisuth, BA Chair: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA  Presenter: Darja Djordjevic, MD, PhD  Presenter: Akanksha Dadlani, MD, MPH  Presenter: Karthik Sarma, MD PhD FAMIA
  
• Psychiatrists as Co-Designers of Safe AI: A Practicum in Evaluating LLM-Based Chatbots
  Speaker(s): Primary Contact: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA Chair: Darja Djordjevic, MD, PhD Chair: Nina Vasan, MD, MBA  Presenter: Duncan Eddy, PHD  Presenter: Max Lamparth, PhD  Presenter: Kiana Jafari, PHD
  
• Caregivers in Crisis: A Psychiatric Call to Action From the APA Foundation
  Speaker(s):  Primary Contact: Dana Harris  Chair: Mark Hyman Rapaport, MD  Presenter: Smita Das, MD, PhD, MPH  Presenter: Christina Irving  Presenter: Kevin L. Nichols  Presenter: Dana Harris

Tuesday, May 19, 2026

• Reframing Mental Health for AAPI Patients: Unique Strengths Challenges and Insights Into Effective Counseling Across Cultures and Generations
  Speaker(s): Chair: Apurva Bhatt, MD  Primary Contact: Apurva Bhatt, MD  Presenter: Miles Reyes, MD  Presenter: Apurva Bhatt, MD  Presenter: So Min Lim, DO  Discussant: Rona Hu, MD
  
• Lessons in Resilience and Building a Sustainable Career for Clinicians and Researchers: A Distinguished Psychiatrist Lecture
  Speaker(s): Chair: Carolyn I Rodriguez, MD, PhD  Primary Contact: Carolyn I Rodriguez, MD, PhD
  
• Meet the Professor: Approach to the Sleepy Patient
  Speaker(s): Chair: Ruth Benca, MD  Primary Contact: Ruth Benca, MD Chair: Clete Kushida, MD, PhD
  
• Monoamines and so Much More: How Lifestyle Interventions Target Novel Hypotheses of Depression
  Speaker(s): Chair: Douglas L Noordsy, MD  Primary Contact: Douglas L Noordsy, MD  Presenter: Jonathan Burgess, MD, MPH
  
• Recent Innovation in Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Research
  Speaker(s): Chair: E Sherwood Brown, MD, PhD;MBA  Primary Contact: E Sherwood Brown, MD, PhD;MBA  Presenter: Maria Prom de Illanes, MD  Presenter: Gen Shinozaki, MD  Presenter: Hermioni Amonoo, MD, MPP
  
• Association of Family Psychiatrists: Lifetime Achievement Award for Contributions to Family Psychiatry (Inaugural Event)-Carlos Sluzki
  Speaker(s): Chair: R. Gogineni, MD  Presenter: Carlos E. Sluzki, MD  Presenter: Manijeh Daneshpour, MA, PhD  Discussant: Ira Glick, MD
  
• The Evolution of Sports Psychiatry at International and National Levels
  Speaker(s): Chair: Malte Claussen, MD  Primary Contact: Malte Claussen, MD  Presenter: Ira Glick, MD  Presenter: Pamela Weatherbee, MD  Presenter: Ottavio Vitolo, MD  Presenter: David Prossor, MD
  
• Thriving in Multiple Roles: Women Psychiatrists Speak on Work Life and What Sustains Us.
  Speaker(s): Chair: Carol Bernstein, MD  Primary Contact: Carol Bernstein, MD  Presenter: Christina Mangurian, MD  Presenter: Donna Marie Sudak, MD  Presenter: Uchenna Barbara Okoye, MD, MPH  Moderator: Anita Everett, MD  Moderator: Isheeta Zalpuri, MD
  
• Integrating Neurobiology and Psychiatric Nosology – DSM in the Next Era
  Speaker(s): Chair: Jonathan E Alpert, MD, PhD  Presenter: Leanne Williams, PhD  Presenter: Kenneth Wengler  Presenter: Anand Kumar, MD  Presenter: Tory Eisenlohr-Moul, PhD
  
• Bipolar Disorders Treating Comorbid Conditions: Substance Use Disorders
  Speaker(s): Chair: Michael J. Ostacher, MD, MPH  Primary Contact: Michael J. Ostacher, MD, MPH  Moderator: Dora-Linda Wang, MD  Moderator: Catherine Crone, MD
  
• Clinical Sleep Medicine for the Psychiatrist
  Speaker(s): Chair: Ruth Benca, MD  Primary Contact: Ruth Benca, MD Chair: Andrew Krystal, MD  Presenter: Rafael Pelayo, MD Chair: Ruth Benca, MD  Presenter: Liza Ashbrook  Presenter: Rochelle Zak  Presenter: Norah Simpson, PhD
  
• Preparing the Psychiatric Workforce: Recognizing and Treating Cannabis Use Disorder in Older Adults
  Speaker(s): Chair: Badr Ratnakaran, MBBS  Primary Contact: Badr Ratnakaran, MBBS  Presenter: Rehan Aziz, MD  Presenter: Parnika Saxena, MD  Presenter: Gerald Busch, MD
  
• Psychedelics as Psychiatric Treatment: Hope or Hype?
  Speaker(s): Chair: David Alan Gorelick, MD  Primary Contact: David Alan Gorelick, MD  Presenter: Kevin P Hill, MD, MHS  Presenter: Smita Das, MD, PhD, MPH
  
• What’s Your Dosha? Ayurvedic Phenotypes for Targeted Treatment in Major Depression
  Speaker(s): Chair: Sudha Prathikanti, MD  Primary Contact: Sudha Prathikanti, MD  Presenter: Jeffrey Woods, MD  Presenter: Alice Dong, MD  Presenter: Kerry-Ann Pinard, MD  Presenter: Vanika Chawla, MD

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

• Bringing Precision Medicine to C-L Psychiatry: Emerging Biomarkers and Targets in Neuropsychiatric Disorders
  Speaker(s): Chair: Durga Roy, MD  Primary Contact: Durga Roy, MD  Presenter: Gen Shinozaki, MD  Moderator: Shannon Ford, MD  Presenter: Davin Quinn
  
• When the Psychiatrist Takes a Mental Health Day: Generational Perspectives on Professionalism
  Speaker(s): Presenter: Kalpana Nathan, MD Chair: Mimi Yen Li, MD  Primary Contact: Mimi Yen Li, MD  Presenter: Marysol Encarnacion, MD  Presenter: Anthony Daggett, MD, PhD
  
• Loneliness Across Lifespan: The Consequences on Mental Health and Strategies to Overcome the Public Health Epidemic
  Speaker(s): Chair: Badr Ratnakaran, MBBS  Primary Contact: Badr Ratnakaran, MBBS  Presenter: Sahil Kapoor, MD  Presenter: Parnika Saxena, MD  Presenter: Antoinette Shappell, MD
  
• Thriving Without Burning Out: Strategies for Sustainable Success and Mental Wellness for Early Career Psychiatrists
  Speaker(s): Speaker: Vedrana Hodzic, MD  Discussant: Marketa Wills, MD, M.B.A.  Speaker: Smita Das, MD, PhD, MPH Chair: Lorenzo Norris, MD
  
• From Promise to Practice: Psychedelic Research for Everyday Psychiatry
  Speaker(s): Chair: Trisha Suppes, MD  Primary Contact: Trisha Suppes, MD  Moderator: Dora-Linda Wang, MD  Moderator: Ronald Winchel, MD