2024 Connecticut Psychiatric Society Annual Meeting Recap

New Haven, CT – The Connecticut Psychiatric Society (CPS) held its highly anticipated Annual Meeting on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, at the historic New Haven Lawn Club. The event, running from 5:30 PM to 9:00 PM, was a resounding success, drawing members and esteemed guests from across the state for an evening of reflection, celebration, and forward-thinking discussion. 

The evening kicked off with a warm welcome to new and returning members, providing an excellent opportunity for networking and reconnecting with colleagues.  

Attendees were treated to a keynote address by the dynamic Dr. Amanda Calhoun, whose presentation, "The Silenced Stories of Psychiatry & Mental Healthcare," captivated the audience. Dr. Calhoun, a Clinical Fellow at Yale Child Study Center, highlighted the often-overlooked narratives within psychiatry and mental health, emphasizing the impact of anti-Black racism on children's mental health. Her research and advocacy, underpinned by over 30 peer-reviewed publications and numerous op-eds, sparked meaningful conversations about equity and inclusivity in mental healthcare. 

The meeting also honored State Sen. Saud Anwar, a champion for public health, with special recognition, The Distinguished Citizen Award, for his contributions to healthcare and public service. Senator Anwar, who represents the 3rd State Senate District, has an impressive track record of service both as a pulmonologist and a public servant. His humanitarian work, particularly in disaster relief, has earned him recognition and respect across various sectors.  

Other award recipients were Dr. Manu Sharma, who received the Rising Leader Award for his dedication and helpful participation to CPS. Dr. Caylan Bookman received the Service to CPS Award in memory of Cornelis Boelhouwer, MD. This award is presented to a member who has made significant contributions to CPS that brings credit and honor to the organization and whose actions best exemplify the ideals of CPS. 

In a significant highlight of the evening, attendees had the privilege of meeting Dr. Marketa Wills, the incoming CEO and Medical Director of the American Psychiatric Association (APA). Dr. Wills, who is the first Black American and first woman to hold this position, shared her vision for the future of psychiatric care, focusing on innovation, equity, and patient-centered approaches. Her previous role as Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer for Johns Hopkins Health Plans provided her with extensive experience in optimizing clinical and quality outcomes, which she aims to bring to the APA. 

The event also marked the end of Dr. Tichianaa Armah's tenure as CPS President. Dr. Armah was recognized for her leadership and dedication to the psychiatric society, leaving a legacy of progress and advocacy. Dr. Armah will be succeeded by incoming president Dr. Paul Bryant. Dr. Bryant spoke on his vision to provide additional support for early career psychiatrists, work on building alliances with other groups dedicated to helping individuals with mental illness, and take on the issue of mental health parity. 

The meeting concluded with the voting in of the new executive council, setting the stage for the future direction of the CPS. 

Incoming executive council members: 

  • President: Paul Bryant, M.D. 
  • President-Elect: Jessica Abellard, M.D. 
  • Treasurer: Ayala Danzig, M.D. 
  • Secretary: Carla Schnitzlein, D.O. 
  • Immediate Past President, APA Representative: Tichianaa Armah, M.D. 
  • Councilor-At-Large: Andrew J. Gerber, MD, PhD 

Continuing their terms on the executive council are Councilor-At-Large, Ruby Lekwauwa, M.D. and Representatives to the APA Assembly, Caren Teitelbaum, M.D. and Tobias Wasser, M.D. 

The 2024 CPS Annual Meeting was generously supported by several sponsors, including PRMS Professional Risk Management Solutions, Hartford HealthCare Behavioral Health Network, Silver Hill Hospital, and Moses/Weitzman Health System. Their contributions were instrumental in making the evening a memorable and impactful event for all attendees. 

Contact Information:  
Don Knox 
Executive Director 
Connecticut Psychiatric Society 
[email protected] 
720-272-0961 

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Celebrating Connecticut Psychiatrists

Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center, the first Community Health Center in Connecticut, marked its 55th anniversary by celebrating, along with the Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center Foundation, the impact of local community leaders and organizations in the New Haven region.

At a sold-out celebratory event held on Thursday, September 21 at the New Haven Lawn Club, CS-HHC and the CS-HHC Foundation honored Ece Tek, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for Behavioral Health and Addiction Services, CS-HHC, who received the Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center's Innovation Award. Dr. Tek was one of four individuals recognized at this event. 

Read more here...

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Members Share Your News: CPS Member, Christopher Hammel, MD, Opens New Practice

Members Share Your News: CPS Member, Christopher Hammel, MD, Opens New Practice

Polaris Psychiatry is the group practice of Christopher Hammel, MD (owner of Connecticut Psychiatry) and Tonya Ruggieri, MD (Co-Director of the Center for Interventional Psychiatry at the Institute of Living at Hartford Hospital, and a biomedical engineer). We are a new practice focused on interventional psychiatry, initially offering TMS to patients with treatment-resistant MDD. Please contact us to discuss referrals, and we would also be glad to stop by your office to leave business cards and pamphlets for your patients, and/or to talk with you about TMS!

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CPS President, Tichianaa Armah, Advocates for Increased Teleheath Access for Under Resourced Populations

CPS President, Tichianaa Armah, Advocates for Increased Teleheath Access for Under Resourced Populations

On Sept. 12 & 13, DEA hosted the first of two days of public Telehealth Listening Sessions to host presentations by individuals representing various points of view related to the proposed permanent rules pertaining to controlled medications. 186 requests to present either in person or virtually were submitted and 60 were selected. Among those selected was Dr. Tichianaa Armah who spoke on behalf of CT Psychiatrists and the Community Health Center, Inc. She spoke about the importance of telehealth for increased access for under resourced populations and the impact of changes to audio only visits on people of color and monolingual Spanish speaking patients and the elderly. 

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Psychiatric News - Federal Government Takes Parity Discussion to States

Federal Government Takes Parity Discussion to States

After meeting with Department of Labor representatives, psychiatrists in Connecticut are encouraging their colleagues in other states to work with their district branches, report problems they have with insurers, and raise public awareness about parity issues.

For about 15 years, federal law has required insurance companies to cover treatment for mental disorders at the same level as medical/surgical care. Yet Tichianaa Armah, M.D., still has patients who must call a laundry list of psychiatrists before they find someone who is in network, even though the lists were provided by their insurance companies. 

In August, Armah was joined by other psychiatrists and mental health advocates to describe examples like this directly to the people who have taken up the fight to crack down on insurers that are not complying with the federal parity law. Members of the Connecticut Psychiatric Society (CPS) and representatives of other mental health advocacy organizations met with Lisa Gomez, assistant secretary of the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Services Administration (EBSA), to discuss parity. Armah is chief psychiatry officer with Community Health Center Inc. and president of CPS.

Read More From APA Here

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Connecticut Psychiatric Society Elects New Leaders

NEW HAVEN — Dr. Tichianaa Armah, Chief Psychiatry Officer at Community Health Center Inc., assumed the presidency of the Connecticut Psychiatric Society at the society's annual meeting on Tuesday, June 13, at the New Haven Lawn Club. 

She succeeds Dr. John Santopietro, Physician-in-Chief, Hartford HealthCare Behavioral Health Network, and  Senior Vice President, Hartford HealthCare, who becomes the society's immediate past president. 

The society also that evening elected the following officers and councilors: 

  • President-Elect - Paul Bryant
  • Treasurer - Jessica Abellard
  • Secretary - Carla Schnitzlein
  • Councilors - Ruby Lekwauwa, Ayala Danzig
  • APA Assembly Rep. - Tobias Wasser

Read more about all of CPS 2023-24 officers here.

Dr. Armah is the Chief Psychiatry Officer and Vice President of Behavioral Health at the Community Health Center Inc., an organization that provides comprehensive integrated care for the historically under-resourced communities. Most recently, CHC has been a leader in providing COVID-19 testing and vaccinations in Connecticut.

Dr. Armah received her Medical Degree at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and went on to Yale for her residency in Psychiatry. There, she was named the American Psychiatric Association’s Yale Minority Fellow for 2011, and an early organizer of the department's Social Justice and Health Equity curriculum. Today, she remains an Assistant Clinical Professor at their School of Medicine, actively involved in the advocacy tract.

Driven to increase access to quality mental health care for vulnerable populations, she has been active in educating Physicians & Nurse Practitioners. Dr. Armah approaches local communities and patients with her fundamental value of the mind, body, and spirit connection for overall well-being. She can frequently be found at universities, giving talks that encourage the treatment of mental illness with cultural humility, or at podiums or on Zoom discussing mental health. Additionally, she frequents schools and career fairs to speak to students, encouraging more underrepresented minorities to enter the mental (and general) health fields.

ABOUT CPS: The Connecticut Psychiatric Society is a 600-member District Branch of the American Psychiatric Association.  CPS, the voice and conscience of psychiatry in Connecticut, works to ensure access to humane care and effective treatment for people with mental illnesses. It also advocates for an environment where quality psychiatric care is available for all who need it.

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Katherine G. "Kiki" Kennedy Receives Service to CPS Award

NEW HAVEN -- June 16, 2023 -- Katherine G. "Kiki" Kennedy, M.D., of New Haven this week received the Connecticut Psychiatric Society's Service to CPS Award.

Kennedy, an Assistant Clinical Professor at Yale School of Medicine and Chair of the Council on Advocacy and Government Relations for the American Psychiatric Association was recognized for her substantive advocacy work on the society's behalf. New CPS President Tichianaa Armah presented the award to Kennedy at the society's Annual Meeting on Tuesday at the New Haven Lawn Club. 

In memory of Cornelis Boelhouwer, M.D., the Service To CPS award is presented to a CPS member who has made significant contributions to CPS that brings credit and honor to the organization and whose actions best exemplify the ideals of CPS.  

View other CPS award winners through the years here

ABOUT CPS: The Connecticut Psychiatric Society is a 600-member District Branch of the American Psychiatric Association.  CPS, the voice and conscience of psychiatry in Connecticut, works to ensure access to humane care and effective treatment for people with mental illnesses. It also advocates for an environment where quality psychiatric care is available for all who need it.

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At CPS Annual Meeting, Sukhera To Address 'From Hatred To Healing'

NEW HAVEN — June 9, 2023 — Javeed Sukhera, HBSc, MD, PhD, DABPN, FRCPC, will be the featured speaker on "From Hatred to Healing" at the 2022-23 Annual Meeting of the Connecticut Psychiatric Society. The meeting is sponsored by PRMS (Professional Risk Management Services).

Sukhera, the Chair of Psychiatry at the Institute of Living and Chief of the Department of Psychiatry at Hartford Hospital, is an internationally recognized health professions education researcher and thought leader. His research program explores novel approaches to addressing stigma and bias among health professionals and he has also been involved in advocacy and cross-sectoral work in education, policing, and community services.

Dr. Sukhera will review empirical research on an evidence-based model for bias recognition and management in healthcare. During this interactive presentation, he will also invite critical reflection and share stories from lived and living experiences about fostering healing while maintaining a steadfast focus on advancing equity and justice.

The annual meeting is Tuesday, June 13, 2023, at the New Haven Lawn Club, 193 Whitney Ave, New Haven, CT 06511. The annual meeting schedule is below. 

Schedule

  • 5:30 – 6:00 pm Registration
  • 6:00 – 6:15 pm Introductions
  • 6:15 – 7:00 pm Presentation
  • 7:00 – 7:45 pm Reception
  • 7:45 – 9:00 pm Dinner and Business Meeting

Annual Meeting Sponsor

 

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