GAP CL#676 pdf

POST-MEETING SPRING 2026

FUTURE MEETINGS 2026

November 12-14

America’s Think Tank for Mental Health

www.ourgap.org

2027

April 8-10 November 11-13 2028

April 6-8 November 9-11 All meetings scheduled

CIRCULAR LETTER #676

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Eighty Years of GAP: From Legacy to Leadership in a Changing World

at the Sonesta Hotel

As the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry approaches

White Plains, New York

its eightieth anniversary, we find ourselves at a meaningful juncture—one that invites both thoughtful reflection and renewed commitment to our purpose. Since its founding in 1946, GAP has distinguished itself as one of the most forward-looking and intellectually independent voices in American psychiatry. Defined by a steadfast commitment to scientific inquiry, social responsibility, and principled analysis, our organization’s history is not merely a measure of longevity but a testament to sustained engagement with the most urgent clinical and societal challenges of each era.

GAP’s origins lie in a small but visionary group of young psychiatrists returning from

GAP OFFICERS:

the profound disruptions of World War II. They shared a conviction that psychiatry must

President

extend beyond the clinical space to confront the broader structural and social forces

Sy A. Saeed, M.D. saeeds@ecu.edu

shaping mental health. Their early work—addressing issues such as desegregation, the development of community mental health systems, and ethical standards in practice— broke new ground at a time when many of these topics were overlooked or avoided. This

President-Elect

founding ethos—an insistence that psychiatry engage honestly and courageously with the

Gail E. Robinson, M.D.

realities of the world—has remained the defining thread throughout GAP’s eight decades

gail.robinson@utoronto.ca

of work.

Treasurer David A. Sasso, M.D. david.sasso@gmail.com Secretary Katherine Kennedy, M.D. katherine.kennedy@yale.edu Past President Robert P. Roca, M.D. rroca2@jhmi.edu

Over the years, GAP has provided a steady and critical voice during periods of major transformation within both society and the field of psychiatry. From the civil rights movement and the complexities of deinstitutionalization to the emergence of family systems theory and evolving perspectives on substance use and human sexuality, GAP committees have consistently delivered thoughtful, independent analyses that have shaped professional and public discourse alike. In many respects, GAP has served as a conscience for the field—willing to raise difficult questions and explore them with intellectual rigor, humility, and clarity.

In recent years, this tradition has been tested by a series of unprecedented global and societal disruptions. Yet throughout these challenges, GAP has demonstrated remarkable (continued...)

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Message from the President Continued. adaptability and resilience. Despite the lasting impacts

Our committees continue to meet these challenges

of the COVID-19 pandemic and a period marked by

with the depth, scholarship, and seriousness they

heightened sociopolitical uncertainty, our committees

demand. Their work—anchored in clinical expertise and

have continued their work with dedication, our

enriched by attention to social context—remains one

governance structures have remained strong, and our

of GAP’s greatest strengths. As we look to the future,

intellectual contributions have not faltered.

it is essential that we continue to support, elevate, and

The swift transition to virtual and hybrid meeting

disseminate this work, ensuring that GAP remains a

formats—initially a response to necessity—has

trusted and influential source of insight in a rapidly

evolved into a lasting strength. These innovations

transforming world.

have expanded access, deepened engagement, and

As we enter our ninth decade, our responsibility is

modernized our collaborative practices, ensuring

not simply to honor our past but to carry forward the

that GAP continues to thrive as a vibrant intellectual

principles that have defined us. Intellectual rigor, social

community in an ever-changing environment.

awareness, and the courage to engage difficult and

Among the most significant achievements of this period

often controversial issues in the service of the public

is the full endowment of all fourteen GAP Fellowships.

good must continue to guide our efforts. We must

This milestone represents far more than financial

remain attentive to emerging societal forces, responsive

stability; it is a powerful investment in the future of the

to the evolving needs of our communities, and steadfast

organization. Our Fellows bring fresh perspectives, diverse experiences, and a spirit of intellectual boldness that reflects the vision of our founders. The Fellowship

in our commitment to thoughtful, humane, and forwardthinking psychiatry.

I extend my deepest gratitude to every member,

program now stands at the center of GAP’s long-term

committee chair, Fellow, and donor whose dedication

strategy, ensuring a strong and dynamic pipeline of leadership that will sustain the organization’s relevance,

and generosity sustain this organization. GAP has

vitality, and impact for generations to come.

always been, at its core, a community of volunteers united by a shared belief: that psychiatry can and must

Our mission remains clear and urgent: to advance

contribute to a more just and humane society. That

psychiatric thought, to confront complex social issues,

belief continues to guide us, providing both direction

and to produce rigorous committee products that inform and guide the field. These commitments carry

and inspiration as we move forward.

particular weight in today’s context, marked by political

Eighty years on, GAP is not simply enduring—it is

polarization, economic instability, growing public mental

evolving. Together, we will continue to advance the

health needs, and the lingering effects of the pandemic.

thoughtful, principled, and socially engaged psychiatry

At the same time, rapid technological change, the

envisioned by those who founded this remarkable

psychological dimensions of climate-related stress, and shifts in how individuals connect, work, and access care present new and evolving challenges.

organization, ensuring that their legacy remains a living force for progress in the years ahead.

These are precisely the kinds of multifaceted issues that call for the interdisciplinary, ethically grounded perspective that GAP was created to provide.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

Sy A. Saeed, MD, President Pa g e 2

2026 Circular Let ter #676

ANNOUNCEMENTS: From the PMC Committee The Planning, Marketing, and Communications Committee is seeking nominations for two important positions: The Dear Abby Plenary Speaker and the next Distinguished Guest.

THE DEAR ABBY AWARDEE AND SPEAKER The Dear Abby Award is given every two years, with the next award slated for April 2027. The awardee presents at the Plenary on Friday night of the meeting, which would be April 9, 2027. The purpose of this notice is to solicit nominations now to be considered at the GAP meeting in November.

The GAP Dear Abby Award was established in 2014 to honor Pauline and Jeanne Phillips and the longtime association between Dear Abby and GAP. The Dear Abby Award is given to an individual or organization that has contributed to innovation in mental health and the advancement of psychiatry. The contribution could be in patient care, research, public awareness, or advocacy, but will be in keeping with GAP’s mission of working on the interface between psychiatry and society, and Dear Abby’s mission of spreading education and awareness of mental health issues.

This award is now given every other year in April.

GAP Committees recommend awardees to the Planning, Communications, and Marketing Committee, which selects the awardee. GAP pays travel, hotel, and a $1,000 honorarium.

Prior awardees are: Judge Steve Leifman (2015), Richard Kogan (2016), Caitlin Ryan (2018), David Kaczynski (2019), Mieram Bendat (2021), and Jonathan Metzl (2024).

THE DISTINGUISHED GUEST This is a new program funded primarily by the Cotswold Foundation of Villanova, Pennsylvania. The program selects a distinguished person from an entirely different field to attends our meetings and cross-fertilize ideas.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

The fund supports the guest in attending four or more GAP meetings and meeting with various committees. A new guest should be selected every other year. Please consider people from different fields, such as other areas of health care, government, the military, the clergy, business, and any other field that would help our think tank think broadly.

The first guests have been a couple, George and Elin Abercrombie. They have applied business acumen to help develop public service programs. Mr. Abercrombie is the retired CEO of a major pharmaceutical company, and Mrs. Abercrombie has been an activist studying accessibility to treatment. Their first two meetings at GAP have gone well.

MindWork Group Friends, I just wanted to thank everyone for their interest in MindWork Group at our Spring meeting. We are proud of the little corner we have carved out in a challenging treatment landscape where psychiatrists can be at the center of care, leading teams, running groups, providing individual therapy, and delivering TMS and psychopharmacology.

With 25 hours of treatment per week and nearby supportive housing, we are a great community-based option for people needing more intensive treatment or stepping down from inpatient or residential care. We also offer a 2-week intensive assessment where people meet with multiple doctors and our entire treatment team, get psychological testing, and an internal medicine evaluation. This is a great option when there is diagnostic uncertainty, but also when people need intensive treatment but aren’t ready to commit to more than two weeks.

To discuss potential referrals, please email me at tfranklin@mindworkgroup.com or call/text 443 613-2698.

Thanks for your support, Thomas Franklin, MD

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2025 Circular Let ter #676

COMMITTEE REPORTS ADDICTIONS Hello to all. We missed those who couldn’t make it and hope to see you all at the Fall Meeting. We have two new members on our Committee, Dr. Greg Bunt and Dr. Arun Prasad.

COMMITTEE REPORTS: Addiction_______________ 4

We also had 2 other invitees who attended and hopefully will join. Greg, Collins, and I had a great meeting and discussion about next steps.

Adolescence____________ 4

As you know, our institution is public-facing, and we do what we do by engaging the public through different modalities, including social media. In that vein, Gregg and I recorded a live Substack under Doctor’s in Dialogue–a GAP Substack–talking about Recovery and what does that even mean today.

It will be edited, beautified, and uploaded.

Child____________________ 4

There were several interesting attendees, including the APA CEO, Marketa Wills, with whom I had dinner and a long conversation about a wide range of topics. Also had dinner with Adrian Preda, Editor of Psychiatric News, with whom we would like to collaborate on publishing an article, likely on decriminalization, behavioral addiction, or cannabis as medicine, in that order of interest.

Disaster, Trauma, & Mental Health_________ 9

I also had a conversation with the Directors of the Fellowship—have to follow up on that—about the possibility of attaching a Fellow to our Committee.

Professionalism & Ethics_________________ 9

Aging___________________ 5 College Student_________ 6 Consultation Liason _____ 7 Cultural_________________ 8

Gender and Mental Health___________ 9 Planning, Marketing, & Communications______ 9

Psychiatry & Law_______ 10 Psychiatry & Media_____ 10 Psychiatry & Religion___ 15

ADOLESCENCE

Psychopathology_______ 19

Present: Dan Becker, Stephan Carlson, Gordon Harper (visiting), Liwei Hua (virtually), Jean Wittenberg.

Psychopharmacology___ 19

The following is a description of discussions that occurred across the 3 half-days of committee meetings and at other times during the conference.

Social Justice___________ 20

APPLICATIONS OF AI This discussion was led by Stephan Carlson, who has developed impressive expertise with a number of sophisticated large language models. They have the capacity to organize information in many different ways that can be very useful to this committee.

Psychotherapy_________ 19 Systems Innovation & Transformation_______ 20 Technology & Psychiatry___________ 21 Work & Organization____ 23

Possible applications of AI for the Committee on Adolescence: 1.

Improving our website page, appearance, and content.

2. Emphasize that we are a think tank focusing on adolescent mental health.

3. Creating presentations with strong video and audio content for inclusion on the website continued...

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

HEALTH EQUITY (HEALTH PRECARITY) We are developing a paper comparing and analyzing issues of health inequities in Canada and the US. There is no question that inequities exist in both countries, although comparisons may be difficult because factors associated with healthcare and health promotion differ significantly. The paper has significant strengths.

DIAGNOSIS OF BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER IN YOUTH AND STIGMA Led by Dan Becker, we are exploring how stigma associated with a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder leads to underdiagnosis, which in turn may impact the provision of optimal treatment.

We discussed the book “Healthy Aging in Psychiatry: Enhancing Brain Health and Emotional Well-Being,” which our committee is writing with colleagues, and reviewed the status and progress of the individual chapters.

YOUNG MOTHERS AND THEIR EXPERIENCE OF INEQUITIES IN THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM We have organized a research group in Toronto with co-PIs Professor Carmen Logie, Canada Research Chair in Global Health Equity and Social Justice with Marginalized Populations in the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work at the University of Toronto, and Jean Wittenberg of GAP. We are seeking responses from young mothers, or women who were young mothers, describing their experiences with healthcare for themselves and their children. Jeanne Phillips, author of Dear Abby and a distinguished guest and supporter of GAP, is collaborating with us by inserting an invitation to respond in the Dear Abby column. We will conduct a qualitative analysis of responses.

We are also exploring possible collaboration with the Child Psychiatry Committee.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

Due to the overlap of the AAGP and GAP meetings this year, only Bob Roca and Helen Kyomen were present at the Spring 2026 GAP Committee on Aging meeting.

All members and guests were remembered, and their ongoing contributions were appreciated. Despite the limited attendance, a meaningful interchange occurred, during which experiences and insights were shared that, I believe, deepened the process and meaning underlying our committee’s work.

RESILIENCE AND SUICIDALITY We continue to make progress on this paper, led

by Liwei Huang, from the perspective of resilience development and its failure in the context of suicidality.

Discussion showed great interest in the approach.

COLLABORATION WITH OTHER GAP COMMITTEES We continue to seek possible collaboration with the Climate Committee at GAP. We began to discuss whether there might be a project looking at how adolescent skepticism could be seen as a healthy developmental force to combat climate change and support environmental protection.

AGING

We also discussed the development of the paper, “Humane Intelligence in Geropsychiatric Care: Relational Artificial Intelligence, Clinical Wisdom, and the Moral Grid Operational Index,” which was printed in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry this month, April 2026. General sessions addressing AI in older adult healthcare and the framework of Humane Intelligence are being presented at the 2026 AAGP and APA annual meetings. As a reminder, Chip Reynolds, Editor of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, encouraged us to mention the journal whenever we refer to the paper.

In addition, even before these presentations, Springer had expressed interest in a potential book on AI and Healthy Brain Aging. Of course, our current priority is to complete the present book, but I would welcome any thoughts about this possible future project.

Although we missed our full committee gathering at this GAP meeting, there were, in some ways, blessings in disguise. The circumstances made it necessary for me to meet and speak with others throughout the meeting.

A few of those conversations felt especially meaningful and relevant to our broader mission. continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

I met a kind colleague who shared that he was traveling to Poland the following day to meet with 40 Ukrainian ministers who had been serving people deeply affected by the war. He showed me his phone, which contained numerous attack warning notifications. The people there live with fear, but also with great resilience and belief in themselves, their lives, and their families. He also showed me photos of parts of the country that remained intact. The architecture was classic, and the landscape was beautiful. The ability to appreciate such beauty, even amid the possibility of destruction, conveyed a quiet, enduring strength of spirit.

I also spoke with another thoughtful colleague who described growing up in a country where the divide between those with resources and those without was very wide. He said his father had taught him that when a person rises, they must concurrently help lift those who are less fortunate. If the more fortunate wait for others to seek help, the divide may widen to the point that meaningful connections become far more difficult.

He also reflected on the importance of rising above narrow constraints in order to broaden one’s vision and capacity to help. In his view, the threads connecting applied science, psychology, philosophy, neuroscience, and spirituality are essential to integration and development.

These are only a few brief examples of interactions with GAP members from other committees. I remain grateful to belong to an organization of thoughtful and erudite people who act with warmth and heart to make a difference. It is a remarkable experience to be in the same room with so many such individuals and to speak with them frankly, as fellow human beings—mere mortals on this shared journey of life.

CHILD Present: Dorothy Stubbe, Eunice Yuen, Gabrielle Shapiro, Bud Vana, Susan Daily, Jonathan Dowben (virtually) Fellow: Melissa Peace Guests: Cathryn Galanter, Jessica Sandoval, Emma Banasiak

He also spoke about geriatric psychiatry. In psychiatry more broadly, concepts such as truly individualized care, preventive and palliative approaches, including aspects of deprescribing, and the incorporation of both pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic approaches are often discussed and taught. In geriatric psychiatry, however, the stakes are so high that we must implement these principles, not merely study or discuss them.

I also met Joanne Ahola, who contributed to the Lancet article about the Peruvian dissident who was tortured and imprisoned but ultimately vindicated through the human rights work of psychiatrists and lawyers. That article had been circulated through the GAP listserv.

Joanne shared that the vindicated individual chose to remain in Peru in order to help her people. I asked Joanne to lead a plenary session on this experience G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

and also asked Jack Drescher to consider it for a future plenary.

THE COMMITTEE IS WORKING ON JOURNAL-LENGTH ARTICLES 1. Revisiting the “Good Enough Mother” in the Digital Age, to be submitted to World Psychiatry, to be completed in two months. Targeted at practicing psychiatrists and psychiatry residents.

2. Navigating the Digital Landscape: Perspectives from Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists Across Asia is to be completed in two months and submitted to WPA News, targeted at practicing psychiatrists.

3. Navigating Regulation and Policy on Youth Digital Use. A cross-national qualitative interview series to be completed in six months and targeted to practicing psychiatrists. This will be submitted to World Psychiatry.

4. Applying Erickson’s Psychosocial Stages of Development to Youth Sports: Key Lessons for Parents and Families is due in two weeks and is intended for the general public. This will be a Psychology Today blog.

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continued...

2026 Circular Let ter #676

COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

5. Medication Prior Authorizations and Their Impact

Ludmila also proposed a collaboration with the

on Mental Health Provider Practices: Looking at the

Committee on Adolescents and the Committee on

Evidence on Task Burden, Need, and Other Practice

Technology. This aligns with GAP leadership’s desire to

Implications. The first draft is in preparation and

promote inter-committee collaboration.

is expected to be completed within 3-4 months, targeted at practicing psychiatrists and psychiatry residents. This will be submitted to NEJM Catalyst.

We will be collaborating with the GAP Systems

CONSULTATION LIAISON

Innovation & Transformation Committee.

Present: Doctors Viswanathan, Pinkhasov, Quraishi

6. New considerations of school avoidance: What do parents need to know? This project will be

Virtual: Doctor Sales

completed in 3-4 months and submitted to

Guest: Doctors Becker, Hallo, Landinez (NP)

Psychology Today.

BEHAVIORAL EMERGENCY IN GENERAL HOSPITAL EVIDENCE-BASED MANAGEMENT ALGORITHM MANUSCRIPT TYPE

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Invitation of new GAP Members. We have invited two

Systematic literature review article, first draft

guests to commit to regular membership: to provide an update and review of the submitted manuscripts, and to

mostly completed.

discuss new project topics.

The anticipated audience: practicing psychiatrists,

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS:

psychiatry residents, psychologists/other mental health

Start working on the projects listed above.

professionals

FOCUS FOR NEXT MEETING:

The Committee would like the manuscript to be published in The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease

Updates on ongoing projects.

or Journal of the Academy of C-L Psychiatry.

WAYS MEMBERS CAN HELP: Contribute to the ongoing and newly-discussed projects.

WAYS THE PUBLICATIONS BOARD CAN HELP: Late-stage guidance during manuscript production and submission.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED:

COLLEGE STUDENT

1.

and literature reviews related to Delirium, Mania,

The College Health Committee met asynchronously

Substance Use/Withdrawal, Psychosis (incl.

on April 17. We communicated via email and text to

Parkinson’s), Broset/PAS Tools, De-escalation/

decide on future directions. Brunhild Kring announced

Safety, Ethical issues. Whether to have more than

her retirement from GAP, and we have decided that

one paper focusing on specific disorders, such as

Ryan Flanagan and Ludmila De Faria will co-chair

delirium.

the committee.

2. Begin work on a manuscript on a viewpoint article

Ludmila authored a blog post addressing the need for systemic change in colleges to tackle the mental health crisis among students. The piece is undergoing internal revision by the committee before submission to the

on lifestyle interventions by CLPsychiatrists, for Journal of the Academy of C-L Psychiatry. Start work in June 2026. continued...

Editorial Board for review and feedback.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

Review of different sections of the manuscript

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2026 Circular Let ter #676

COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

3. Blog in Psychology Today—Role of C-L Psychiatry in medical-surgical patients. Start work in June 2026.

E. HOW TO INTEGRATE SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH IN PSYCHIATRIC DIAGNOSIS. A cluster approach with responding to the review

4. Resume work on a manuscript on the refusal of

process, to be completed by November 2026, and to be

lifesaving medical treatment motivated by suicidal ideation, for the Journal of the American Academy of

submitted to Psychiatric Services.

Psychiatry and the Law in June 2026.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED:

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS:

We discussed all 5 products.

Monthly virtual meetings or regular email

A. The first project was initiated by GAP Fellow Sasini

communications to make progress

Bentota, who had discussed it with Francis Lu, her mentor, before the meeting. We started outlining the

FOCUS FOR NEXT MEETING: Discuss the full near-final draft of three manuscripts and

paper’s content.

a blog. Discuss other ideas for publication.

B. The second project stems from a situation in the home city of one of our members that raises important theoretical questions about the role of each type of service within the range of implementation strategies available to a large, diverse urban center. We discussed

CULTURAL

the general implementation strategies available to a

Present: Fung, Lu, Becker, Erickson, Lewis-Fernandez

large, diverse, urban center. We continue to discuss

Via Zoom: Aggarwal

the focus of the piece, given the evolving politics of

Ittleson Consultant via Zoom: Gomez-Carrillo

the condition.

A. CURRENT MINDFULNESS-BASED PSYCHOTHERAPIES AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO ORIGINAL MEDITATION-BASED PRACTICES IN ASIA

C. The third project, a revised draft of the article, outlined the next steps to complete the first draft.

D. In the fourth project, we discussed the activities of APA communities working on the DSM (current and

First draft in preparation. To be completed by March

future) and planned a paper responding to current

2027 to be submitted to a psychotherapy journal.

approaches to addressing social determinants of health

B. HOW TO BEST SERVE A DIVERSE URBAN COMMUNITY? COMPARISON OF THE ROLES OF ETHNIC-FOCUSED MENTAL HEALTH CLINICS AND CULTURALLY SENSITIVE GENERAL MENTAL HEALTH PRACTICES

and cultural factors in the DSM’s future. We will discuss the topic with DSM leadership and start preparing the first draft.

E. For the fifth project, we discussed the reviewers’

Topic under discussion with a completion date unclear.

comments and decided to revise the paper for

C. VALUES- AND RELATIONSHIP-BASED CULTURAL FORMULATION APPROACH

resubmission to a different journal. The first author will work on the revision for the next meeting.

The first draft will be mostly completed by September

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS:

2026 and submitted to a cultural mental health journal.

We will meet again virtually in July 2026 to discuss

D. ROLE OF CULTURE AND SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF MENTAL HEALTH IN THE FUTURE DSM

the projects, particularly A, C, D, and E. — Sasini will start writing the first draft of the page

To be completed by November 2026 for submission to a

continued...

general psychiatric journal G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

with Francis’s help.

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

— Kenneth will continue to work on the draft of the paper.

— Roberto will write the first draft of the paper.

— Blake will review the piece for Psychiatric Services.

FOCUS FOR NEXT MEETING: Discuss all 5 products, especially A, C, D, and E. Complete a full first draft of C. Write a first draft of D. Revise E. WAYS MEMBERS CAN HELP: References would be helpful.

DISASTER, TRAUMA, & MENTAL HEALTH I would summarize the work as centering on continued interpersonal engagement with the committee members; the introduction of a possible additional venue for disseminating the Disaster Mental Health knowledge base through Communities of Practice with TUFH.org; and a discussion of a possible committee statement.

GENDER AND MENTAL HEALTH Present: Shelby, Nkechi, and Sophie ( via Zoom) for the Gap meeting.

Updating the Committee on Women’s Mental Health

PROFESSIONALISM & ETHICS Present: Miguel Alampay, Ted Fallon, Karen Gennaro, Karen Greenberg, Randy Howe, Michelle Hume, Mansoor Malik, Robert Nesheim, Madeline Teisberg, Jon van Loon Fellow: Pablo Romano Guests: George Abercrombie, RPh, MBA, Distinguished Guest, Former CEO Roche & Adjunct Professor, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University; Consideration of medical ethics with respect to the pharmaceutical industry

THE LATEST DATA ON MEDICAL AID IN DYING IN THE US AND WHAT IT TELLS US Anticipated date of completion: Summer 2026 to be in The Journal of Clinical Ethics Anticipated audience: practicing psychiatrists, psychiatry residents, training directors, psychologists, and other mental health professionals and policy makers.

RESILIENCE AFTER MORAL INJURY: A SCOPING REVIEW OF COPING MECHANISMS AND PATHWAYS TO MORAL REPAIR. The first draft is mostly complete, and subsequent drafts are underway for completion in 2026. This will be targeted to practicing psychiatrists, psychiatry residents, training directors, psychologists/other mental health professionals, the general public, and members of the Military.

MANUSCRIPT TO BE SUBMITTED: JAMA/NEJM, Ethics literature, Psych literature, Military literature, Psychology Today, and lay press.

WAYS THE PUBLICATION BOARD CAN HELP: Review our draft when we submit it.

PLANNING, MARKETING, & COMMUNICATION Our committee discussed new fundraising ideas and reviewed the success of the Distinguished Guest Program.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Review “Resilience After Moral Injury: A Scoping Review of Coping Mechanisms and Pathways to Moral Repair” Review May APA Annual Meeting presentation, “The Most Recent US Data on Medical Aid in Dying (MAID): Vulnerability, Protection, Access and Justice” continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

PSYCHIATRY & LAW

NEW PROJECTS: • Ethical challenges and progress in pharmaceutical industry practices: balancing business needs with patient care and social responsibility

Members attending: Jacob M. Appel, Peter Ash, Susan Hatters-Friedman, Rick Frierson, Deborah GiorgiGuarnieri, Ryan Hall, Beesh Jain, Phillip Resnick, Fellow: Jinit Desai (virtual)

• Plan for Substack Doc-to-Doc with expert on AI in mental health treatment, Dr. John Touros • When (if ever) is it appropriate to violate HIPAA, mandated-reporter, and/or state licensing regulations in the best interest of the patient (and family)?

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: • Revise draft of “Moral Injury” article; Committee to continue review.

PROJECTS—MULTIPLE TITLES Project Information: A series of articles on bias in forensic psychiatry.

Anticipated date of completion: Fall 2026-Spring 2027 Status: Several articles submitted for publication.

Others are under development.

• Prepare different versions of the “Moral Injury” article for professional literature and lay press.

Anticipated audience: Practicing psychiatrists, psychiatry residents, other mental health professionals

• Collaborate with George Abercrombie on medical ethics and the pharmaceutical industry.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: The Committee reviewed several articles for submission.

• Prepare short patient vignettes illustrating the tensions between following regulations vs. carrying out best practices in clinical decision-making.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Committee members will complete their articles.

FOCUS FOR NEXT MEETING: During the next meeting (Fall 2026), the committee will review the final drafts of articles.

• Connect with Kevin Simon, MD, Boston’s first Chief Behavioral Health Officer, on regulations vs. best practices.

• Reach out to John Touros and prepare an interview for Substack.

• Finalize presentation on Medical Aid in Dying for APA Annual Meeting on May 19, 2026

PSYCHIATRY & MEDIA

• Dr. Mansoor Malik to receive Chester Pierce Award and deliver award lecture at APA Annual Meeting in San Francisco on May 18, 2026

SUBSTACK • Opportunity to do a Doctors in Dialogue on Saturday; will plan to coordinate today.

• Regular virtual collaboration among Committee members on projects above.

FOCUS FOR NEXT MEETING: Finalize “Moral Injury” article and move forward on New Projects listed above.

WAYS MEMBERS CAN HELP: Hoping to have George Abercrombie join us again in November.

Guest: Adrian Preda, Editor in Chief of Psych News,

• Dr. Drescher mentioned growing his following, with the opportunity to gain paid subscribers.

• Could encourage this as a venue for consistent posts from committees • Discussion that there is some confusion about Blog vs. Substack, given that there are some written blog Substacks, but we are just focusing on Doctors in Dialogue. continued...

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2026 Circular Let ter #676

COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

•

Dr. Preda noted that you can either have everything on a centralized site or use many different platforms.

— Dr. Drescher noted the challenge of limited knowledge about GAP and the difficulty of growing presence.

• Provides information for posting across Instagram

PODCAST • Per Amy Franklin, there is an opportunity to make Doctors in Dialogue a podcast.

• Have an editor for YouTube.

— Also, posting short videos on social media to drive engagement.

• Have done 2 so far that are uploaded, and they have gone well.

• Have a budget for 6 total podcasts.

• Open to all topics for future presentations.

• Dr. Preda noted that they have an ongoing podcast initiative, though there was a question about the outreach of video vs. audio.

• Dr. Saltz noted the American Psychoanalytic Association Podcast, which has also recently moved to video and ultimately cross-posted on YouTube.

• Amy Franklin notes it has been successful so far, and she has the opportunity to see the statistics and who has then gone to the GAP website through embedded links.

BLOG • Submissions are slowing down.

• The most recent blog got around 1000 hits.

• Ok to have blog posts from a non-GAP member if in coordination with a GAP member.

• Reinforce that this is an opportunity to promote published works to better communicate to the broader world.

• Dr. Preda noted an opportunity to expand the Psychiatry News blog, potentially in collaboration with GAP. • Dr. Drescher noted the possibility of reposting/ reusing blog posts.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

MEDIA INVOLVEMENT • Amy Franklin noted that it could be useful to have a roster of people to present on the news.

• Noted that many people have been media trained already through GAP • Dr. Drescher notes that APA has extensive media training, but GAP does not.

— Notes that rapid availability is key to involvement • Amy Franklin noted that there are many evergreen topics that may not be as time-sensitive • Great opportunity for proliferating the GAP name • Dr. Saltz mentioned staying on X.com to ensure expert opinion is still widely expressed online.

RECRUITMENT • Discussion with Dr. Saltz and Dr. Drescher about Dr. Daniel Knoepflmacher from Cornell joining our committee • Previously involved in script writing in his former life, as well as working as a training director.

• Dr. Saltz did media training with him and the residents.

• Currently a member of the psychotherapy committee, Dr. Drescher noted that there is no issue with changing committees with committee approval.

COMMITTEE HISTORY • Discussion of some committees floundering, others growing/evolving.

• The Education Committee, for instance, could not maintain membership.

• Dr. Drescher plays a role in providing first aid to struggling committees.

PLENARY DISCUSSION • Dr. Bernstein described this year’s panel on young leaders.

• Dr. Smalls-Mantey noted there are questions about skills taught/not taught in training, what makes a good leader, should national organizations formalize continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued. training and development during training, what does effective leadership look like, balancing compassion/ advocacy with administrative realities, essential skills for the future, leadership myths, advice for others, etc.

• Dr. Simon, Dr. Smalls-Mantey, and Dr. Talley will present their perspectives.

GAP SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE • There is a Twitter account, but it is not being used regularly.

• Amy Franklin does not have access to LinkedIn to log in.

• No current Instagram

• Dr. Preda noted could do a special report on leadership in psychiatry in Psych News.

• Discussed the need for a social media manager;

SPEAKING OUT PUBLICLY • Dr. Saltz notes that there has been poor advocacy in psychiatry in the past and a need for fulfillment.

funding earmarked for this would be helpful.

• When new GAP posts/publications come up, Dr. Drescher posts on personal and professional Facebook pages, shares with many groups, and

— Noted that there have been times when her institution has told her to leave out her institutional affiliation, Dr. Freedman has had similar experiences.

shares more broadly on his social media.

• Amy Franklin noted links to share on social media through emails, but GAP members have not been

• The Goldwater Rule leads people not to speak out publicly against leadership.

taking advantage of this and posting.

Fellows Plenary

• Dr. Freedman noted that some in the media are asking for mental health practitioners to speak out.

• Dr. Chevinsky raised updates from fellows, a potential AI topic for fellows’ plenary.

• Dr. Ungar noted that some institutional prohibitions have gotten in the way of speaking out.

• He also mentioned that fellows might be more in support of creating their own projects rather than

• Dr. Ungar noted that there is sometimes a balance between the blowback from speaking out and the moral injury of staying silent.

necessarily doing a plenary.

• Dr. Drescher mentioned that this plenary was not always a fellow role and could likely return to the

PLENARY IDEAS • No plenary planning is necessary for the upcoming meeting, but we will also be able to have some influence on the Dear Abby Plenary.

Media Committee planning these sessions.

AI and Psychiatry • Per Dr. Saltz, the media is very interested in the

• Discussion of whether things might change in terms of the fellows’ plenary if we change to alternating groups of 10 fellows

intersection of AI and psychiatry.

• Discussion about relationships between individuals and chatbots, potential erotic chatbot projects

• Potential options for an alternative project other than plenary for fellows

• Dr. Bernstein raised a question about trusting the

• Dear Abby, Plenary includes a $1000 plenary and is broadly about the intersection between mental health and the larger world.

• Dr. Saltz raised many concerns about the use of AI,

• The most recent Dear Abby presenter, the brother of the Unabomber, was a very moving speaker.

media, given AI concerns. including excessive validation and the inability to assess the safety of AI-generated comments.

• Dr. Preda noted that guardrails for AI can make it feel

• Discussion of social media, difficulty separating from our phones, and struggles with work/life balance.

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

COLLABORATION WITH APA

— They also accept outside contributions, which now make up around 30% of the content.

• Dr. Preda noted that a monograph could be helpful, given APA’s high turnover, and suggested that a venue such as GAP might be better suited to tackle this problem, which could be supported by the APA Foundation.

— Review around 20 articles per week.

• Discussed the option for a dedicated online blog/ option vs an ongoing column — Dr. Preda noted that Psych News would be happy to host regular blog posts.

• Dr. Bernstein noted that task forces could tackle this, but the national staff is the real backbone of the organization.

— Dr. Drescher discussed concerns about leaving Psychology Today, given the platform’s size for disseminating information.

• Dr. Drescher notes that APA used to publish GAP monographs, but stopped because they did not sell well.

— Dr. Drescher noted an opportunity to cross-post evergreen topics.

• Dr. Drescher noted that prior funding by another outside group for the LGBTQ+ group could mimic the APA Foundation’s involvement.

• Dr. Preda suggested that we could use fellows for blog posts, for the resident corner.

— Discussed potential conflict with blog posts on Psychology Today

• Could utilize the writing staff from APA in collaboration with GAP

COLLABORATION WITH PSYCH NEWS • Dr. Preda notes that Psych News has also lost profitability and believes that collaboration with GAP could be a means to achieve mutual profitability.

• Discussed different audiences potentially, concern that Psych News might be more geared to psychiatrists, whereas Psychology Today is for a lay audience — Dr. Preda discussed international visibility and the possibility of expanding to laypeople as well as psychiatrists.

• Dr. Preda noted that Special Reports in Psych News would be a great place for the committee to publish.

• Dr. Drescher notes this would require board consultation.

• Psych News is a newspaper that used to be published twice a month and was then changed to monthly, which works poorly for a tabloid.

— Plan to become a magazine as of January of next year, will feature more long-form content, and will come out every other month.

— Will also have shorter articles posted online in keeping with the prior news focus — Will be mailed out along with the journal — Prior discussion about whether to opt out of the Green Journal or the magazine, but leadership opposed cutting off this benefit — Five members total in terms of the editing team running Psych News G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

• A question came up about cross-posting and whether that would be allowed from Psychology Today, though Psych News would allow it.

• It could be a place for a perspective on a Psychology Today blog post that already exists.

Guests: Adrian Preda, Steven Sharfstein, Daniel Knoepflmacher

MEMBERSHIP COSTS • Discussed the cost of membership being over $1000, and that it may be beneficial to have a decreased cost for younger members to keep up membership • Dr. Saltz mentioned the Mental Health Liaison Group, which works on liaising with organizations about bills going through Congress to get folks to sign on continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

— You need to pay a certain amount to be a part of this collective

• Dr. Preda asked about the distinction from the American College of Psychiatry, which is also

• Dr. Saltz mentioned a potential benefit of listing what you get for your $1000 membership

similarly exclusive and requires LORs from members

— Dr. Chevinsky mentioned concerns about not having a clear understanding of what the vision of this organization is and the reason for membership here

— They lose money on the conference, but have

— Noted niche of accreditation and PRITE a lot of money saved up, and have around $8-million in their coffers — They also offer more prestige, certificates, etc.

— Opportunities to publish/write

DEAR ABBY AWARD: PROPOSED POTENTIAL SPEAKERS

— Dr. Preda noted that it is all about networking for him, and he does not want the brand to be diluted, the quality of members

1.

Supreme Court Justice Jackson

2. Athlete speaker, via Dr. Mena Mirhom

— Dr. Freedman mentioned the longitudinal connection to people over time, which is what he finds valuable

3. Dr. Elyn Saks 4. Dr. Suzanne Vogel-Scibilia

— Dr. Friedman noted that the small size of this group is an asset

5. Dr. Milissa Kaufman 6. David Sedaris

— Dr. Drescher noted that it is a country club, and it is a $3000 investment in your professional development

7.

Glenn Close

8. Andrew Solomon

— Dr. Saltz mentioned it is a think tank that is exclusive and requires an invitation

9. Temple Grandin

— Dr. Smalls-Mantey mentioned similar thoughts about exclusivity and being a think tank

11. Jane Pauley

— Dr. Freedman mentioned that a lot of the benefit and growth is in the small groups

13. Kay Jamison

10. Jennifer Lewis

RECRUITMENT • Dr. Drescher mentioned that we could make talking points about the benefits of being here for recruitment

12. Howie Mandell

14. Vivek Murthy 15. Alister Martin 16. Richie Torres 17. April Simpkins

— Dr. Preda mentioned concerns about expanding too widely

18. Dr. Judith Joseph

— Dr. Drescher mentioned this is mostly committee work, could continue to keep the small group feel and expand/split off groups — There are around 200 members, not all come to every meeting

• Dr. Sharfstein highlighted the importance of the Media Committee’s recommendations.

• Kiki Kennedy recommended Supreme Court Justice Jackson, who recently gave grand rounds at Yale.

• Discussed the possibility of having a book to sell if

— Dr. Drescher noted he is not too concerned about getting too big, as it has never happened before G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

— Dr. Freedman mentioned that the book signing would be a draw for members.

• Dr. Judith Joseph (runs a lab for pharmaceutical trials, first trial on high-functioning depression, wrote a book on this topic)

• Date is April 9, 2027 • Dr. Smalls-Mantey noted that an athlete presentation could be interesting, such as through her connection with Dr. Mena Mirhom, who may be able to suggest some athletes to present

DANIEL KNOEPFLMACHER: • Has been more recently interfacing with the media as part of his work at Cornell • Noted potential interest in joining the media committee, discussed that he would need permission from his chair (Kiki Kennedy) to join this committee.

• Dr. Preda mentioned Dr. Elyn Saks as a possibility.

— Dr. Saltz notes having a possible connection to get in touch.

MEETING LOCATIONS

— Has done a lot of work in patient rights in mental health, given her own history of schizophrenia, in remission on clozapine • Dr. Drescher recommended Dr. Suzanne Vogel-Scibilia.

• Discussed concerns with switching to an alternative location • Mentioned Baltimore as a potential alternative • General agreement with remaining at the current venue with slightly increased cost

• Dr. Preda recommended Dr. Milissa Kaufman, MD, PhD, at McLean.

DOCTORS IN DIALOGUE • Dr. Drescher discussed potential doctors in dialogue about challenges in addiction with recovery and how it is defined.

— A psychiatrist diagnosed with DID, with experience with DID, and working with trauma patients.

• Dr. Saltz noted that it is unclear who is leading the charge on mental health policy and that there are concerns about the current direction in this country.

— History of bipolar disorder and work with NAMI

• David Sedaris also speaks about his own struggles with OCD. • Glenn Close speaks about her sister and mental health.

PSYCHIATRY & RELIGION

• Andrew Solomon is known to Dr. Saltz and Dr. Drescher.

Committee: Psychiatry and Religion Members Attending: Margaret Bishop-Baier, MD, Brian Fallon, MD, Salman Majeed, MD, Joseph Merlino, MD (via Zoom), Jenifer Nields, MD (via Zoom), Michael Norko, MD, MAR (chair), James Phillips, MD Guest: Mary Lynn Dell, MD, DMin, MHA

• Temple Grandin is also a great speaker about ASD. • Jennifer Lewis, an actress with bipolar disorder • Kay Jamison could be reached by someone at Johns Hopkins who has previously given grand rounds.

1. FAITH COMMUNITIES AND THE WELL-BEING OF LGBTQ YOUTH (Publication on the importance of faith communities in efforts to reduce suicide and other negative mental health outcomes for LGBTQ youth

— Psychologist with bipolar disorder • Alister Martin (Commissioner of Health - New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene) • Richie Torres (congressman) • April Simpkins (mother of Miss America, who died by suicide) has become an advocate.

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Project leader: Dr. Norko

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

The Second Edition of the booklet is now available for free download on the GAP home page. 1,000 copies of the 2nd Edition have been printed and are available from the GAP Office and from Dr. Norko.

Also now posted on the GAP website is a Toolkit for faith communities to use, consisting of a fact sheet, a PowerPoint presentation, a short introductory video (13 minutes), a facilitator’s guide, and a flyer template.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: The group reviewed the booklet’s marketing and uptake.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: The booklet may need to be updated in the future as new data becomes available. The current booklet will be promoted to ADPRT and the ACAP Religion Committee.

Mike will also contact Jeanne Phillips to ask if she would inform her readers about its availability.

2. DEAR ABBY, RELIGION-SPIRITUALITY AND MENTAL HEALTH SURVEY Project Leaders: Dr. Saunders, Dr. Norko, Dr. Dell

The plan is to begin with a qualitative analysis of individuals who identified as SBNR and reported belonging to an SBNR community. We will explore free-text responses to subjects’ descriptions of those communities and compare mental health outcomes for SBNR subjects who did and did not report belonging to an SBNR community. Psychiatry & Religion Report April 2026 –5/1/26. Later possible papers include: spiritualreligious practice during COVID, and LGBTQ+ and mental health/religion-spirituality. Dr. Saunders has also been in contact with the Union Presbyterian Seminary in Virginia; they are interested in funding a project on child spirituality that would involve contacting individuals from the original study who agreed to be contacted.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: First draft of paper #1 by November 2026. Paper #2 will await Dr. Saunders’ return to the committee.

3. BIOGRAPHICAL ESSAYS ON MENTAL HEALTH ATTRIBUTES OF MAJOR RELIGIOUS FIGURES:

FAST TRACK: Journal articles. Potential journals: J Sci Study Religion, J Rel &Health, and JNMD

Project Leader: Dr. Phillips FAST TRACK:

Anticipated audience: practicing psychiatrists, psychiatry residents, training directors, psychologists & other MHPs

A series of journal articles

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Reviewed the status of the project. We continue to focus on two papers that do not require additional funding:

Dr. Phillips continues his interest in St. Teresa of

1) Description of people who identify as spiritual but not religious (SBNR), but also say they are affiliated with a religious tradition in terms of religious practice and beliefs (Dr. Norko is the lead on this paper; he will work on this manuscript now that the LGBTQ Youth WellBeing Toolkit is completed). The September 2025 PEW report & Many Religious Nones; Around the World Hold Spiritual Beliefs; will be considered in this manuscript.

2) Religion-spirituality and mental health, comparing respondents who identify as religious but not spiritual, SBNR, both religious and spiritual, and neither religious nor spiritual (Dr. Saunders is the lead. A Data Use Agreement between Yale and Columbia was finalized in June 2025, so the data can be analyzed at Columbia).

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Potential journals: JNMD WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Avila and the boundary between religious mystical experience and psychosis.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Dr. Phillips to draft St. Teresa manuscript before next meeting.

4.PASTORAL INTERVENTION IN DYNAMICALLYORIENTED THERAPY Project Leader: Dr. Nields FAST TRACK: A moving description of the challenges a patient from years ago faced.

Potential journals: Psychodynamic Psychotherapy

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: The manuscript was published by Psychodynamic Psychotherapy in December 2025, entitled “A Portrait and Reflections on Illness, Mourning, Holding and the Music of the Consulting Room. Dr. Merlino wrote a commentary/editorial about Dr. Nields’ manuscript, also published in the December issue. Unfortunately, these manuscripts were not approved by the Publication Board and thus were published without the GAP imprimatur.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: No further work.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Dr. Majeed to arrange a date/time with Amy Franklin for recording.

7. MENTAL HEALTH OF CLERGY Project Leader: Dr. Merlino FAST TRACK: Journal article Anticipated audience: practicing psychiatrists, other MHPs, clergy

5. KING SAUL AND PTSD Project Leader: Dr. Stone

Potential journals: TBD

FAST TRACK: An analysis of whether there are merits to diagnosing King Saul.

Potential journals: TBD WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Dr. Stone was unable to attend.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Dr. Stone to follow up with Dr. Kudler to discuss possible collaboration on the PTSD aspects of this project. (This historical example may have merit in use with veterans returning home from war; for example, the work of eternalsoldier.org.)

6. “LIVING IN FEAR”/“WE HAVE TO TALK” Project Leader: Dr. Majeed, joined by Drs. Stone and Merlino FAST TRACK: Originally written as an OpEd piece about anti-Muslim attitudes/behaviors/violence

Dr. Merlino is interested in recent developments in the mental health needs of clergy. He has discussed with his Bishop creating an anonymous survey in REDCap or Qualtrics to encourage more open responses and to provide data for a paper on the subject. The survey has not yet been developed, but the Bishop is open to our committee’s help in analyzing the results and developing a potential action plan. Dr. Merlino is a member of the Critical Clergy Needs Committee of the Diocese and its subcommittee on Mental Health Wellness, where he will continue to discuss this project and his recent work in migrant ministry.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: No survey has been developed yet. A $500 stipend is being given to clergy for well-being; some data are being collected on how these funds are used, which might lead to a publication.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Dr. Merlino to continue discussions of the survey, stipend use, and mental health needs of the migrant community.

Anticipated audience: general Potential journals: “Doctors in Dialogue” Substack; Psychology Today blog WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Discussed the Substack podcast led by Amy Franklin and Jack Drescher. The members of our group are even more interested in pursuing this topic, given recent world events. They will pursue a podcast recording with Amy on the topic of islamophobia and antisemitism.

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This idea has been discussed preliminarily with Amy Franklin, who was also interested.

8. MINISTRY TO PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC PAIN AND ILLNESS Project Leader: Dr. Fallon, Dr. Nields WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Dr. Fallon and Dr. Nields reported on their ongoing monthly meetings with a local parish group as part of

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued. the Peace in the Storm Project, a ministry devoted to people experiencing chronic pain and illness, founded

by Maureen Pratt, MFA, MTS.

10. AI AND RELIGION/SPIRITUALITY/ MENTAL HEALTH

They are experimenting with different formats for conducting the group sessions. Dr. Fallon is working with Maureen Pratt to further develop this ministry, with consideration for expansion into university settings and special outreach to those with mental illness. As part of this, he is assisting with a grant application to the Lilly Foundation to support the work.

“Influence Is No Longer Enough—Religion in the age

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Drs. Fallon and Nields to consider possible projects arising from this ministry and its potential expansion.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED:

9. EXISTENTIAL SUFFERING AND ASSISTED SUICIDE Shoba Sreenivasan, PhD, of the Keck School of Medicine, USC, is interested in this topic and has contacted Dr. Norko to explore a collaboration on the religious/spiritual dimensions of the topic. We met with her in January 2026 via Zoom to explore possible avenues the work can take. Dr. Sreenivasan will join the group in November 2026 as an Ittleson Consultant.

education, by religious leaders in activities like sermon

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: We discussed exploring how major faith traditions address death, suffering, the meaning of life, guilt, quality of life, hope, and the afterlife. Shortly after the meeting, Dr. Sreenivasan forwarded a draft outline of one potential paper on grappling with unknown unknowns and existential suffering. She also suggested two other potential papers: the way religions consider (or proscribe) suicide*; the role of psychiatrists (less so psychologists) in introducing the spiritual dimension in assisted suicide assessments/or even dialogue with patients.

11. EXORCISM AND MENTAL HEALTH

We noted a recent article by Antonio Spadaro,

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org/technology-algorithms-faith-leo-benedictfrancis-spadaro). Dr. Dell shared a recent article, “The Parasocial Power of AI” (https://www.christiancentury. org/features/parasocial-power-ai).

There are parallels to use and misuse in psychiatry and religion/spirituality. It could be used in theological

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Mike will share this information with the group. We will plan a summer Zoom meeting to discuss further, so we can have more focused discussions at the November meeting in person. We may also pursue collaboration with the GAP Committee on Aging in future discussions. *Our committee published an article on religion and suicide in 2016.

of algorithms (https://www.commonwealmagazine.

prep, and in helping congregations inform and plan community outreach. Another idea is to research how major faith traditions are thinking about AI currently and in its future roles.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: We plan to discuss this topic further in future meetings, perhaps involving the GAP Technology Committee.

Project Leader: Dr. Merlino Work accomplished during meeting: As part of his clerical preparation, Dr. Merlino has become interested in the overlap between mental health and the rite of exorcism, as well as the protocols used by the diocese to evaluate individuals seeking or proposed for exorcism. His diocese has ordered the Rite of Exorcism, but has not yet received it. He is beginning to research the topic and is seeking further suggestions for books/articles.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: Dr. Merlino is to continue to explore this topic.

PLANS FOR NEXT MEETING: Zoom meeting over the summer, as in #10 above. Other updates as noted above. continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

PSYCHOTHERAPY PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

Guests attending: Elin Abercrombie Via Zoom: Consultant: Meiram Bendat, JD, PhD

Present: Adler, Berlant, Brunette, Edwards, Erlich, Talley

WE ARE WORKING ON SEVERAL WRITING PROJECTS ACROSS A RANGE OF TOPICS THAT MAY BE APPLICABLE TO A VARIETY OF AUDIENCES. Anticipated date of completion: We hope to have at least one or two articles published by our next meeting in November.

Zoom: Dixon, First, Kozloff Fellow: Danielo Cohrs

DIAGNOSTIC HUMILITY IN PSYCHIATRY Final draft near completion, to be completed in May 2026.

Anticipated audience: practicing psychiatrists, training directors, psychologists/other mental health professionals, general public, and early career psychiatrists

The article will be submitted to Psychiatric Services.

A speedy Publications Board would be helpful.

WORK ACCOMPLISHED: 1.

Completed a two-year project with our GAP Fellow as lead author of our manuscript: Diagnostic Humility in Psychiatry.

2. Began brainstorming our next potential project: What does the social-cultural shift in young people seeking SSDI represent, using the explanation of individuals with the diagnosis of autism pursuing disability?

PSYCHOPHARMALOGY We had every committee member present, but Kevin Kennedy and David Mintz joined via Zoom.

After completing our last paper on the therapeutic relationship and psychopharmacology (which received Pub Board approval and was submitted for publication), we began our new project examining GLP-1’s impact on MH. We spent most of the meeting brainstorming and outlining. We are planning a Zoom meeting for August to discuss progress.

We had no guests and are hoping to get a Fellow next cycle, as we are beginning a new project.

Where would the Committee like the manuscript to be published: Psychiatric News, Psychology Today, Psychiatric Times WORK ACCOMPLISHED: Following a wide-ranging discussion about the current state of the world, we discussed our serious concerns about the implications of Chiles v. Salazar and the broader public’s perceptions of psychotherapy, including a recent Psychiatric Times article by Dr. Kennedy. Then Dr. Plakun led a discussion of a proposed psychotherapy selection algorithm and its potential applications in clinical care. Attorney Meiram Bendat also provided an update on developments in mental health parity and related policy issues. The Committee devoted significant time to brainstorming future projects and strategies to support members’ scholarly and public-facing writing, including opportunities through Psychology Today, the GAP Blog, Psychiatric News, and other venues. Members also discussed networking and community-building initiatives, including the upcoming APA Psychotherapy Caucus and GAP Committee on Psychotherapy networking event and dinner at the APA Annual Meeting in San Francisco. The meeting concluded with planning next steps and identifying priorities for future committee activities. Also, during the afternoon, we welcomed one of GAP’s Distinguished Guests, Elin Abercrombie, who joined our discussion. continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

BETWEEN-MEETING PLANS: • In-person Networking event at APA on 5-17-2025 in San Francisco – in coordination with the APA Psychotherapy Caucus

The meeting began, as usual, with personal updates from each member present before moving into the business portion of the meeting.

HYBRID MEDICAL DIRECTOR MODEL DISCUSSION

• Dinner Meeting at APA in San Francisco for those CoP members in attendance

We began by discussing a hybrid medical director model, with particular attention to supervision of

• Online meeting June 17th

telepsychiatry and its implementation. Donovan

• Online meeting in September, date TBD

presented his idea to write about hybrid medical

• Smaller workgroup meetings as needed for various writing projects

director roles that combine in-person and virtual components, receiving feedback on potential

We meet virtually in between meetings, usually 3 to 4 times a year. Since April 2023, we have met virtually as a full group 11 times. Project subgroups have met more frequently.

publication venues and research approaches. He

PLANS FOR NEXT MEETING: Follow up on current efforts and writing projects.

Participants discussed the challenges and benefits

presented a document describing the model he is currently using and sought guidance on structuring and marketing this approach. of virtual versus in-person leadership. The group explored how a hybrid model might affect team building, community relationships, and the medical director’s role in different patient populations, particularly those

SOCIAL JUSTICE

served by programs like ACT (assertive community

Present: K. Ashley, H. Cummings, R. Moster 1.

treatment).

Recruitment for new members

2. Review of GAP Survey Results—tabulation of basic demographic results, N=92

CLINICAL GUIDANCE FOR NEEDS OF UNHOUSED INDIVIDUALS The group discussed a potential tool for housing

a. Next steps with this data

unhoused individuals, with debate over whether to

b. Plans to assess qualitative data

create something for policymakers or service providers.

c. Discussion of presentation of data to GAP

Rob shared details about a New York County Psych

3. Discussion of GAP collecting basic demographic information on the website. Many organizations collect information with the application/ renewal process

Society advocacy committee working on a statement regarding mental health responses to community violence. The conversation ended with a discussion of adapting the LOCUS tool for housing needs and considering team-based approaches to patient care pathways. The group agreed to consider this project and the hybrid model in the future, with plans to

SYSTEMS INNOVATION AND TRANSFORMATION Present: Wes Sowers, Deepika Sastry, Julie Ranz, Nubia Lluberes, Rob Gadomski, Hunter McQuistion, Ken Thompson, Anna Skiandos, Mardoche Sidor, Donovan Wong G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

potentially have subgroups meet separately to advance specific initiatives.

WORKFORCE PROJECT Wes suggested that the committee reconsider our Workforce project idea, which had been temporarily continued...

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued. language around psychiatrists’ role in advocacy, discussing how to balance individual and collective action while avoiding overly prescriptive language about what all psychiatrists must do. They explored ways to navigate the tension between maintaining therapeutic neutrality and recognizing when silence becomes problematic, particularly in challenging sociopolitical climates.

shelved due to our Call to Action statement. Ken mentioned using a “project management pathway” approach to the workforce, i.e., using “levels of teams” rather than “levels of care” as an innovative way to incorporate multiple disciplines within psychiatry.

CHILD PSYCHIATRY RESEARCH GUIDANCE We had a virtual visit from Dr. Iyer Veeraraghavan, a child psychiatrist, who presented his research project on medication prior authorizations and sought guidance from the committee on potential gaps in the field and specific challenges in child mental health. The committee discussed the scope of the project and offered to review relevant materials from their previous work, including a 2020 book on value in healthcare, to provide additional insights.

REVISION OF CALL TO ACTION PAPER The team discussed revisions to a document about psychiatry and authoritarianism. They reviewed several sections, including one on promoting autonomy, collaboration, and belonging in communities. Key decisions included removing specific political references and timeframes to make the content more timeless, focusing on actions rather than explanations, and condensing certain paragraphs. The group agreed to emphasize psychiatrists’ role in promoting public communication and collective action to support community health and safety. They also discussed the importance of collaborating with other professions and advocacy organizations to advocate for political change.

The team planned to make final edits to streamline the document’s language and focus on actionable behaviors rather than philosophical justifications.

Specifically, the group discussed content aimed at encouraging voting and civic participation among patients with psychiatric illnesses. They identified the need to revise language that could be perceived as dismissive of patients’ capabilities, focusing instead on systemic barriers and stigma that prevent voting.

The discussion included considerations about how to frame the challenges patients face, including potential disaffiliation from voting systems due to socioeconomic factors and stigma. The group also worked on refining G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

ACTION ITEMS: — Revise the document on the Hybrid Medical Director Model, incorporating the group’s input and share with Group: Donovan — Revise/update the Call to Action to reflect recent changes and language use that will capture the dynamic nature of current circumstances. Deepika, Hunter — Revise action items, focusing on actions rather than explanations and justifications. Each action item will be limited to 3-4 sentences. All authors chedule two virtual meetings prior to the next in-person meeting in November.

TECHNOLOGY & PSYCHIATRY Members attending: Victor Buwalda*, Alexis Chavez*, Steven Hyler, Aida Mihajlovic*, Ujjwal Ramtekkar*, Manish Sapra, Sy Saeed, Rajvee Vora *Attending virtually by Zoom Fellow attending: Kaitlin Hanss The Committee on Technology and Psychiatry (TAP) met to advance its scholarly portfolio, assess emerging developments in artificial intelligence (AI) and digital mental health, and define strategic priorities to guide ethical, clinically grounded integration of technology into psychiatric practice.

FAST TRACK:

AI IN CLINICAL CARE Paper for the Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases. anticipated submission in June 2026. A systematic

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2026 Circular Let ter #676

COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued. review focusing on large language models (LLMs) and

• The group emphasized that AI adoption must be

NLP has narrowed the scope from >13,000 screened

clinician-led, evidence-based, and aligned with

articles to 15 high-quality studies. Early findings indicate

ethical standards—learning from past challenges in

heavy reliance on clinical vignettes rather than real-

HER implementation.

world patient data.

REGULATORY AND LIABILITY CONSIDERATIONS

AI AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

• Liability for AI-enabled care spans clinicians, health

Topic chosen for this paper but still under discussion, in

systems, and technology companies; frameworks

collaboration with Social Justice committee.

remain underdeveloped.

INTERMEDIATE LENGTH:

• Members underscored the need to understand FDA approval thresholds for digital therapeutics and AI-

PSYCHIATRIC TIMES SPECIAL THEME ISSUE ON USING TECHNOLOGY IN MENTAL HEALTH

enabled devices.

A special issue is in development featuring 9 invited

FORWARD-LOOKING INITIATIVES

articles (AI, digital therapeutics, VR, telepsychiatry,

1.

social media, clinical decision support, ethics/legal

External Engagement • Invite representatives from both successful and

issues, etc.) A few manuscripts have been completed;

unsuccessful digital mental health start-ups

remaining contributions are in progress.

to discuss FDA approval, reimbursement, and

BOOK PROJECT:

sustainability challenges.

BRIDGING GAPS WITH TELEPSYCHIATRY: ENHANCING ACCESS AND QUALITY

• Invite FDA experts to educate TAP on regulatory review processes and evidentiary standards for

More than 90% of the sixteen chapters has been

AI and digital tools.

completed and reviewed by the publication board. All

2. Education and Influence

chapters are complete except one addressing rural populations; contingency planning is underway. Book

• Develop a proposal for a half-day technology-

manuscript due to APPI no later than October 15, 2026.

focused CME convening at a future GAP meeting,

The project is on target for this deadline.

with potential industry support and cross-

Anticipated audience: Practicing psychiatrists,

committee participation.

psychiatry residents, training directors, psychologists,

• Position TAP as an early convener shaping

and other mental health professionals.

standards and best practices rather than

Ways the Publications Board can help:

reaching to external regulation or litigation.

3. Consumer Guidance

Peer review and feedback.

• Prioritize creation of consumer-facing guidelines

STRATEGIC DISCUSSIONS AND INSIGHTS

for evaluating and safely using digital mental

AI IN CLINICAL PRACTICE AND PRESCRIBING

health tools, especially generative AI applications,

• The committee examined real-world deployment

chatbots, wellness apps, and self-organizing

of AI-assisted medication refill systems (e.g., Utah),

patient communities.

noting regulatory guardrails and required human

• Explore collaboration with consumer and

oversight.

• Members expressed concern regarding patient safety, liability, continuity of care, and business models that

APA, related groups). continued...

prioritize scale and revenue over clinical quality.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

professional organizations (e.g., NAMI, MHA,

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COMMITTEE REPORTS Continued.

GOVERNANCE AND COMMITTEE MATTERS • Committee membership will remain at the current size.

• The Committee Chair requests nominations for a Co-Chair to support leadership continuity

WORK & ORGANIZATIONS The Committee on Work & Organizations focused on the following objectives: • Confirming that a book-length publication is the most suitable form for our next publication. The American

and expanded scope of work.

Psychiatric Press is the most likely publisher for

KEY TAKEAWAY

the work, and a good working relationship with the

TAP is well-positioned to move beyond traditional

publisher has been established.

scholarship toward thought leadership and policy influence, with a focus on AI, digital therapeutics,

• Clarifying that while the Impact of AI on the workplace will be a major theme of this upcoming

and consumer protection. The committee’s priorities emphasize ethical implementation, clinician

work, the content of the work will not exclusively

oversight, and practical guidance in a rapidly evolving

focus on AI.

technological landscape.

• Confirming that the appointment of a Project Manager (who is not necessarily a committee

WAYS MEMBERS CAN HELP: We invite and welcome collaboration with other

member) will best facilitate the work process.

committees, especially on topics our committee has

The process for identifying a project manager was

described in this report.

decided upon.

• The specific subjects about which individual committee members will write were further clarified.

G r o u p f o r t h e A d va n c e m e nt o f P s yc h i at r y

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