Electronic Spring 2024 | Issue 58

President's Message

By: Andrew Lancia, MD

Commitment to Patients, Commitment to Life – this was the theme for our annual meeting and my presidency. I hope our efforts this year have helped to save many lives and will help to form programs and laws to further broaden access to mental health services while providing greater safety through proper education and oversight. I am overjoyed to announce that we have two bills, developed out of our Collaborative Care Task Force, HB 5045 and HB 5046, which are being sponsored by Rep. Jenn Ladisch Douglass in this legislative season. If approved, these bills will improve understanding of the collaborative care model and most importantly open up much greater access to care. It will allow earlier identification and initiation of treatment. It will give support to primary care clinics who care for the vast majority of patients. 

Additionally, several of our members have been hard at work reviewing all the other proposed bills. There is much interest in mental health these days and we are supportive of so many of these efforts. Personally, I have had the opportunity to testify in Chicago at the Joint House and Senate Mental Health and Addictions Committee to discuss workforce issues and in Springfield at a committee meeting discussing issues on prior authorization. I am thankful for our many members who have assisted in discussions with outside organizations to gain better understanding of their issues and to help educate them on our points of view. These opportunities make certain that the voice of psychiatry is being heard. Believe me, I have seen a growth in the respect for IPS as we are being asked our opinions and guidance regarding mental health issues.  

Outside our commitment to advocacy, we have had an eventful year with our member events. Last year our virtual series focused on Psychiatry in the 21st Century: Where Might the Future Take us. This year is already on its way with two great lectures on The Unified Brain: Interface of Neurology and Psychiatry. Last year had several other learning experiences with Addressing the Pediatric Mental Health Emergency in Clinical Settings, the Judicial Roundtable, an Introduction to Finance for residents, and the 2023 Women’s Psychiatric Leadership Meeting. Our medical student committee had several talks within their committee. And our residents were able to meet members and learn about our profession through the Fireside Chats series. All can be found on our website in the Events section.

I am thankful for the work Kristen Malloy and Meghan Engelbrecht have done with their efforts keeping up our social media presence. If you are not following us yet, please check us out on Facebook, X, Instagram, and LinkedIn.  

Through our commitment to committees (did you know there is actually a committee on committees where I work?), we have had successes beyond the above. Our HEAR-C committee organized the Carl Bell essay contest which had a huge response. I hope you were able to read the winner’s essay in a previous edition of Mind Matters. Our members were able to again be the top fundraising branch for the Moore Equity in Mental Health 5K. A few members of the Forensic committee have worked very hard as part of the Judicial Task force. This task force has made connections with state organizations and has made progress in developing priorities moving forward. In fact, it was decided to split into two as one focuses on updating the Mental Health Code and the other on the systemic issues such as the outpatient commitment process and requirements for filing for commitments. Thank you to all who work within our different committees. I do ask that you bring things forward so all our members can get involved and know what we offer. And I ask our members to join these committees so you may gain from them and add to them.  

One more commitment we have is to the American Psychiatric Association as we are a district branch. I want to thank our members who represent IPS such as our Area 4 representatives, but in particular, I want to congratulate Dr. Sudhakar Shenoy, who is the current chair of our Early Career Psychiatrist committee, as he moves on to be the ECP Trustee-at-Large for the APA's Board of Trustees. It is through our involvement with the APA that we can form their decision making on a national level and continue to have their support at the state level.  

Finally, I want to thank you all for your trust in me this past year. I know we are in good hands this upcoming year as Dr. Lillian Joy Houston steps into the president position. She has done a phenomenal job chairing our Planning committee. As president-elect, her involvement in the executive committee has been essential as we make decisions affecting the future of IPS. Thank you again for your service to psychiatry and your commitment to the precious lives all over the world.