May 2026

Kavita Fischer, MD, DFAPA

PaPS President

As my term as President of the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society draws to a close, I am filled with immense pride and gratitude for what we have accomplished together this year. Through our collective dedication, we have achieved remarkable milestones that have elevated our professional society and deepened our impact across the Commonwealth. For a full list click here.

Serving as your President has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding experiences of my career. As we look to the future, I am confident that the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society will continue to be a beacon of excellence, compassion, and leadership. Let us carry forward the spirit of innovation and collaboration, while continuing to advocate for our patients and profession with unwavering dedication. 

Hope Selarnick, MD, DLFAPA

Editor's Note:

The May skies are magnificent with meteor showers, a blue moon and planetary alignments. Our PaPS orbit abounds with its own set of ️⭐STARS️⭐: 
Dr. Fischer’s presidential year, notable member achievements, Chapter “spectaculars” and more! This Special Edition celebrates YOU!!

Kavita Fischer, MD, DFAPA

President

Mark Matta, DO, DFAPA

President Elect



Indranil Chakrabarti, MD, DFAPA 

Vice President

Aileen Oandasan, MD, FAPA

Treasurer

Christine Marchionni, MD, DFAPA

Secretary

Irakli Mania, MD, DFAPA

Immediate Past President

2025-2026 District Executive Council members with their abbreviated bios are listed here.



Click here for the full PaPS Council member listing.

Adam Tripp, MD, PhD

Dr. Adam Tripp discusses the vital work being done by your ⭐Area 3⭐ Assembly Representatives!

PaPS Statewide Events

May 30, 2026
2026 PaPS DB Annual Business Meeting & Election of Officers

Mark Your Calendars and Join Your Colleagues, Friends, & Peers at PaPS’ Statewide Conference

October 9-11, 2026 at Kalahari Resort & Conference Center.

Bring the Family and Enjoy All Kalahari has to offer.

Overnight accommodations include resort fees, and 4 passes to Kalahari’s Waterpark (a $200 value).

Registration Opens June 2026. To Learn More About Kalahari, Scan the QR Code

PaPS Chapter Events

Lehigh Chapter

May 28, 2026
Graduation Extravaganza at the Steel Club
400 Winding Creek Boulevard, Mechanicburg, PA

Pittsburgh Chapter

June 5, 2026
Psychiatry Career & Practice Summit
Pittsburgh Marriott North - Cranberry Twp, PA

November 10, 2026
Resident Research and Awards Night
Sheraton Pittsburgh Hotel at Station Square

Save the Date!

Aileen Oandasan, MD, FAPA

For over 75 years, the Psychiatric Services Achievement Awards have recognized creative models of service delivery and innovative programs for people with mental illness or disabilities.

Silver Award Winner: Community Based Intensive Treatment (CBIT) at Nulton Diagnostic and Treatment Center

The CBIT program at Nulton Diagnostic and Treatment Center is a multidisciplinary, community-integrated behavioral health model that is serving high-acuity individuals at 14 locations across Pennsylvania. The CBIT program will deliver fast-tracked psychiatric care, wraparound support services, and real-time care coordination to individuals with serious mental illness—without requiring new licensure or specialty programs like assertive community treatment. The CBIT model will leverage existing “in-plan” Medicaid services—such as nursing care, case management and outpatient therapy—arranged into an intensive, time-limited framework.

https://www.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2026.04.4.43 

Accolades to Drs. Mosam Naik and Radhika Patel for receiving the prestigious Area 3 RFM Merit Awards. We are so proud of your accomplishments!

Mosam Naik, DO

Radhika Patel, DO

Mayank Gupta, MD, DFAPA

Christine Marchionni, MD, DFAPA

General Psychiatry

Amy Bebawi, DO

Ruby Barghini, MD, MS

Behdad Bozorgnia, MD

Edward S. Brodkin, MD

Mitchell J.M. Cohen, MD

Elena T. Del Busto, MD

James M. Hetznecker, MD

William C. Jangro, DO

Bruce J. Levin, MD

Sachin Mehta, MD

Jeffrey A. Naser, MD

Sarah C. Noble, MD

David W. Oslin, MD

Christopher J. Pagnani, MD

Jonathan M. Raines, MD

Barbara A. Schindler, MD

David Steinman, MD

Richard F. Summers, MD

Shanthi Trettin, MD 

Addiction Psychiatry

Michael S Ascher, MD

Abigail L Kay, MD




Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Rama Rao Gogineni, MD

James F. Luebbert, MD




Geriatric Psychiatry

James M. Ellison, MD Area 3 Assembly Rep, Delaware

Distinguished Fellows

Scott Campbell MD, DFAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia


Indranil Chakrabarti MD, DFAPA
Chapter: Central

Howard Levin MD, DFAPA

Chapter: Lehigh

Salman Majeed MD, DFAPA

Chapter: Central

Pradipta Majumder MD, DFAPA

Chapter: Central

Muhamad Aly Rifai MD, DFAPA

Chapter: Lehigh

Erika Saunders MD, DFAPA

Chapter: Central

Life Fellow

Robert Wenger, MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Fellows

Kayode Adunbarin MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Tyrone Bristol MD; MPH, FAPA

Chapter: Central

John Chaves MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Sandra Gascon MD, FAPA

Chapter: Central

John Gurski DO, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Richard Hempel BA; MA; MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Zhabiz Kazeminezhad MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Sonya Knight DO, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Sarita Metzger MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Elizabeth Mutter DO, FAPA

Chapter: Lehigh

Katherine Napalinga MD, FAPA

Chapter: Philadelphia

Alex Slaby, MD, FAPA

Chapter: Lehigh

⭐Central Chapter⭐ of PaPS Poster Competition & Social

On Friday, May 1, numerous residents, faculty, and PaPS members from Central and Lehigh chapters gathered at the Eden Resort in Lancaster, PA, to present and celebrate the research of residents in our region. We saw compelling findings and discussions ranging from nuanced interpretations of catatonic perseveration, to a dose-response analysis of social media use and subsequent psychiatric diagnosis, to a potential relationship between the gut microbiome and development of anxiety. As PaPS Central Chapter President, I want to extend my sincere congratulations to all of the presenters, and my heartfelt thanks to Next Wave Group and our sponsors PRMS and Johnson & Johnson, for helping to make this event's vision into a reality.

Dr. Luke Piper

Dr. Luke Piper and 2nd place winner Dr. Emmanuel Annor

Sarita Metzger, MD, FAPA

Philadelphia Chapter of PaPS Women’s Committee hosted “Menopause: The Science of a Life Transition,” a dynamic symposium on advancing evidence-based care for midlife women.

Irene Hurford, MD, a well-known expert in the treatment of psychotic illness, presented the case. Daniel Wolf, MD, PhD, a well-known expert in biological psychiatry was discussant/moderator. This well-crafted event brought out a diverse group of clinicians including RFMs. The presentation and ensuing discussion was both multi-layered and nuanced with a large audience response. This first of its kind case conference set a high bar that will hopefully inform future events!

Kudos to Drs. Hurford and Wolf and current Philadelphia Chapter President Dr. Heather John. And thanks to our Regional Director Mr. Roy Harker for his organizational mastery.

May 16-20, 2026

APA returns to San Francisco for the 2026 Annual Meeting for 4.5 days of in-person learning, networking, and profession-moving engagement.

Click here for the full alphabetical member listing that includes their talk titles, dates and times.

Dear Colleague,


You’re Invited to the APAPAC Donor Reception in San Francisco!


Over the past year, APAPAC members have continued to play an instrumental role in amplifying psychiatry’s voice. We want to thank you for your generous support and celebrate our recent legislative successes.


Join us in San Francisco during the Annual Meeting for a private APAPAC donor reception on Saturday, May 16, 2026 from 7:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m. PT at The St. Regis Yerba Buena Terrace (Level Four), 125 3rd St. 


All APAPAC members who have contributed $250+ in 2026 ($150 for residents) are

welcome to attend free of charge. For all others, a $150 donation ($30 for residents,

$100 for early career psychiatrists) gets you on the list. Please make your

contribution today or during Annual Meeting at the advocacy booth outside of

Assembly registration. Contributions will also be accepted at the door, and we hope you invite your friends!


For more information about the reception or APAPAC, please contact Ashley Mild

at amild@psych.org.

Sincerely,

Mary Anne Albaugh, MD

Chair, APAPAC

https://www.apaf.org/benefit


https://www.apaf.org/ways-to-give/district-branch-gala-challenge/

Today, nearly one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness. 


May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time to raise awareness of those living with mental illness or a substance use disorder and to help reduce the stigma associated with them.


The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has developed evidence-based information about common mental disorders, including symptoms, risk factors, and treatment options. Visit our Patients and Families page to learn more and check out APA’s new series of short explainer videos that accurately and concisely explain mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, and others.

Greetings,

We hope May is off to a nice start for you and all is well! Below please find an invitation to our Annual Reception in San Francisco on Sunday, May 17, along with our Triple Donations announcement for PRMS’ Refer a Colleague program this month.

Attached, you will also find a Fact vs Fiction risk management resource on termination of care, which may be of interest to your members – please feel free to share in upcoming communications.

Sunday, May 17: PRMS and SPA Annual Spring Reception

Time is flying, and the PRMS and Southern Psychiatric Association Annual Reception is coming up next weekend on Sunday, May 17, 6:00 to 8:00 pm, at the Conservatory (One Sansome Street, San Francisco). Attached please find the invitation for the event. We hope you and your members will join us at the reception!

May: Refer a Colleague Triple Donations

In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, PRMS is pleased to announce that this May is a Refer a Colleague Triple Donations month! For every referral PRMS receives May 1 through May 31, 2026, we will make a $150 donation – up $100 from our usual amount – to benefit the district branch or another mental healthcare organization of the referrer’s choice. Please visit PRMS.com/Refer to learn more about the program and start earning donations for your organization today.

In celebration of Children’s Mental Health Week, we are also proud to share our support of the Trevor Project, which is “the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people.”

PRMS 2025 Year in Review

PRMS’ 2025 Year in Review, available on our website as well as attached to this email, is filled with statistics and memories from the past year – read more about how we supported our clients and the behavioral healthcare community throughout 2025.

Thank you!

Julia Bajereanu | Senior Client and Partner Relations Manager

Professional Risk Management Services (PRMS)

4300 Wilson Boulevard | Suite 700 | Arlington, VA 22203

Cell: (412) 660-2092

Toll Free: (800) 245-3333

PRMS.com