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Jeffrey Geller, MD, MPH |
Jeffrey Geller, MD, MPH, has been elected by the American Psychiatric Association to serve as president-elect from May 2019 to May 2020 and president from May 2020 to May 2021.
“I am honored that my colleagues have chosen me to help lead our medical society,” said Dr. Geller, professor of psychiatry and director of public sector psychiatry. “I plan to focus on improving the profession for our members as they work to deliver high-quality care and treatment to our patients.”
A faculty member since 1979, Geller was named director of the Department of Psychiatry’s fledging Public Sector Psychiatry Program in 1986 to expand services to treatment facilities caring for residents with mental illness. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles, received numerous awards for his advocacy of the mentally ill, and shared his expertise widely with state and federal agencies.
In addition to holding numerous previous APA leadership positions, Geller serves on the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration National Advisory Council, as vice president of the World Federation for Mental Health, and on the boards of the American Association of Community Psychiatrists and the Treatment Advocacy Center.
“Dr. Geller has been a mentor and leader to me and many others,” said APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, MD, MPA. “APA will be well-served by his election.”
During his campaign, Geller articulated his desire to work more effectively to integrate psychiatry and other fields of medicine, improve mental health benefits and further destigmatize psychiatry, saying, “I will strive to advocate for equal coverage of mental illnesses as mandated by law, and to combat harmful discrimination against both psychiatric patients and psychiatrists.”
