Viswanathan Chosen APA’s Next President-Elect

APA’s voting members have elected Ramaswamy Viswanathan, M.D., Dr.Med.Sc., of Brooklyn, N.Y., as APA’s next president-elect. He ran against Robert L. Trestman, Ph.D., M.D., of Roanoke, Va.

Viswanathan is professor, interim chair of psychiatry, director of the consultation-liaison psychiatry and fellowship, and co-chair of the Faculty Wellness Committee at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. His research has been in physician communication, ethics, innovations in psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy, treatment adherence in gynecologic cancers, children’s sickle cell disease, HIV, and substance use.

Viswanathan has held numerous leadership positions within APA and other national organizations. He currently serves as the Brooklyn Psychiatric Society representative in the APA Assembly and is chair of the Committee on Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry for the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry.

“I am honored that my colleagues in psychiatry have elected me to the APA presidency,” said Viswanathan. “I look forward to working together to further develop and expand our workforce and to keeping up our momentum on research and development of cutting-edge psychopharmacologic, neuro-interventional, and psychotherapeutic treatment and preventive approaches. We will also work together to advance physician wellness, reduce practice burdens, advocate for our patients and our profession, address inequities in health care, and promote appreciation of diversity and inclusion.”

“Congratulations to Dr. Viswanathan and the other candidates on their election,” said APA President Rebecca Brendel, M.D., J.D. “I look forward to working with him and all the newly elected APA leaders to advance psychiatric practice and APA’s leadership role in increasing access to care and improving the quality of mental health care.”

APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., echoed those sentiments. “APA members and the profession of psychiatry will be well served by Dr. Viswanathan’s leadership and commitment. I want to congratulate Dr. Viswanathan and all the newly elected APA leaders.”

The race for secretary, which has a two-year term, was up for election this cycle. Gabrielle L. Shapiro, M.D., of New York City defeated Jenny L. Boyer, M.D., Ph.D., J.D., of Norman, Okla., and C. Freeman, M.D., M.B.A., of Marina Del Rey, Calif.

In the race for minority/underrepresented representative trustee, Kamalika Roy, M.D., M.C.R., of Seattle emerged the winner. Her opponent was Dora-Linda Wang, M.D., of New York City. The term for minority/underrepresented representative trustee is two years.

Two of APA’s seven geographic Areas voted for their trustee in this cycle. Area trustees hold three-year terms. In the race for Area 2 trustee, Kenneth B. Ashley, M.D., of New York City defeated Glenn A. Martin, M.D., of Forest Hills, N.Y. The winner of the Area 5 trustee race was Heather Hauck, M.D. She defeated Sudhakar Madakasira, M.D., of Flowood, Miss.

The winner of the race for resident-fellow member (RFM) trustee-elect was Sarah El Halabi, M.D., M.S., a psychiatry resident at Westchester Medical Center in New York. She defeated Sarah A. Friedrich, D.O., M.B.A., M.S., chief resident at Jefferson Health’s Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia, and Sarin Pakhdikian, D.O., a psychiatry resident at the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at the University of Nevada. El Halabi will serve for a year in the RFM trustee-elect position and then rotate into the RFM trustee position.

Election results were approved by the Tellers Committee in February, but the results are not official until the Board of Trustees reviews them at its meeting this month. All of the winning candidates will assume their positions on the Board at the close of APA’s Annual Meeting in May. ■