Please welcome the new ADMSEP Council Leadership lineup. As per our new ADMSEP President, Dr. Howard Liu:

"I want to congratulate our new officers in the organization. They are truly innovators and visionaries who have already given so much to ADMSEP". These persons include:

-Dr. Lisa Fore-Arcand President-Elect: Arcandlg@gmail.com
-Dr. Erin Malloy Secretary/Newsletter Editor: erin_malloy@med.unc.edu
-Dr. Dawnelle Schatte Council Member: daschatt@UTMB.EDU
-Dr. Jeffrey Rakofsky Council Member: jrakofs@emory.edu

The full set of details can be gleaned here

As many already know, our 2020 Annual Meeting was to be held June 18-20, 2020 in San Diego, CA . Unfortunately, due to the impact of Covid-19, the meeting was cancelled. Please see Announcements for explanation and how the same venue has been booked for our 2023 Annual Meeting.

However we are having a Virtual meeting, Thu June 18 at 5PM-7:30PM EST. Please join us!

The recent killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, and the disproportionate toll that Covid-19 is wreaking on black communities have shone a light on our nation’s failings on issues of racial justice. ADMSEP Council joins with its members in condemning this racism that threatens the safety and well-being of people of color across the country, including our members, our students and the patients we serve.

As an organization of medical educators, we echo the call to action that the Association of American Medical Colleges made this week: We must acknowledge and speak out against all forms of racism, discrimination, and bias in our environments in our institutions, communities, and society. We must stand in solidarity with the Black community and speak out against unjust and inhumane incidents of violence. We must demonstrate empathy and compassion and acknowledge the pain and grief that the families and the communities of these victims are experiencing. We must take the lead in educating ourselves and others to address these issues head-on. We must be deliberate and partner with local communities, public health agencies, and municipal governments to dismantle structural racism and end police brutality. We must employ anti-racist and unconscious bias training and engage in interracial dialogues that will dispel the misrepresentations that dehumanize our Black community members and other marginalized groups. We must move from rhetoric to action to eliminate the inequities in our care, research, and education of tomorrow’s doctors. The full link to their statement can be found here: https://www.aamc.org/news-insights/press-releases/aamc-statement-police-brutality-and-racism-america-and-their-impact-health

As psychiatric educators training the doctors of tomorrow, we must incorporate the concepts of racism and other social determinants of health into our curricula. We must redouble our efforts to make our students aware of the deleterious effects of trauma, including racial trauma, and therapeutic approaches. We must ensure that we listen to the voices of our colleagues and students of color, stand with them in the fight against racism and support their career development. We must make ourselves aware of our own unconscious biases and recognize and address any mistreatment, including microaggressions (a coin termed by Black psychiatrist Chester Pierce), that we perpetrate or witness.

Sadly, we will not be able to assemble for our annual meeting this year and enjoy each other’s fellowship as well as to process together the tragic and unsettling recent events. We hope that our membership will continue to join together to provide excellent psychiatric education and scholarship, with an increased awareness of inequities and firm commitment toward anti-racism.

Benoit Dubé, M.D.; President
Susan W, Lehmann, M.D.; Immediate Past President
John Spollen, M.D.; Past President
Howard Y. Liu, M.D.; President Elect/Treasurer
Lisa Fore Arcand, Ed. D.; Secretary and Newsletter Editor
Greg Briscoe, M.D., Webmaster & Second Past President
Matthew N. Goldenberg, M.D., M.Sc., Council Member
Erin Malloy, M.D., Council Member
Dawnelle Schatte, M.D., Council Member
Lia A. Thomas, M.D., Council Member
Lindsey Allison, M.Ed., Administrative Director

Thanks to Lia Thomas, MD et al, we now have updated guidance on transitioning to residency during COVID-19. It can be found here: https://www.psychiatry.org/residents-medical-students/medical-students/apply-for-psychiatric-residency/transitioning-to-residency-during-covid-19

We hope that you are healthy and safe amidst these uncertain times. Due to the impact of the Corona virus pandemic, ADMSEP will not be holding its annual meeting this year (June 2020). The rationale for cancelling includes the ban on large gatherings and the widespread emergence of institutional travel restrictions. Our recent poll results predict very poor attendance, not surprisingly.

The good news is that our host hotel, Paradise Point in San Diego, has agreed to amend our agreement. As such, we will be holding our 2023 annual meeting there.

If you had already registered for the meeting, you will receive a full refund soon. If you made a reservation at the hotel, it will be canceled automatically by the hotel, without penalty.

This decision was bittersweet, to say the least. Our annual meeting is a unique opportunity to bring together like-minded psychiatric educators to share innovations and celebrate accomplishment in medical education. Our annual meeting program committee is undeterred and actively exploring alternative scenarios to bring our community together… Stay tuned!

As many know, we experienced a server failure on 3/28/20. Since then our site was relocated to a different web host and the rebuild is now complete. Please let us know if you spot any problems.