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Karl Menninger, M.D., Plenary: Partnering for the World's Children
Paramjit T. Joshi, M.D., AACAP President-Elect (2011-2013), is Endowed Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, at the Children’s National Medical Center and Professor of Psychiatry, Behavioral Sciences & Pediatrics, at the George Washington University School of Medicine. Following graduation from the Christian Medical College in Ludhiana, India, she first trained and practiced as a pediatrician. After moving to the United States she completed her training in general and child and adolescent psychiatry at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where she remained on the faculty for two decades.
Dr. Joshi is a Distinguished Fellow of AACAP and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) as well as a member of the American College of Psychiatrists. She has held several national offices at AACAP, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN), and Society of Professors of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (SPCAP)—notably President of SPCAP (2006–2008), Chair of the Child Maintenance of Certification Committee at ABPN (2006–2011), and is currently on the Board of ABPN as a Psychiatry Director.
Dr. Joshi was the recipient of the APA’s Bruno Lima award for outstanding contributions in the care and understanding of disaster psychiatry and this year received the Special Presidential Commendation Award from the APA for her commitment to quality clinical care, teaching, and research in child psychiatry. She has taught and published extensively on the issues of depression, bipolar disorder, psychopharmacology, and childhood trauma.
During her inaugural address, “Partnering for the World’s Children,” Dr. Joshi focuses on areas of her Presidential initiative that have to do with enhancing AACAP’s relationship with international organizations, collaborations and sharing of educational resources, making AACAP’s website more accessible to international colleagues, support for international medical graduates, and examining AACAP’s membership categories. Dr. Joshi wants to utilize existing relationships between AACAP and other child psychiatry organizations in order to facilitate opportunities for our members and to foster the global work of the organizations. She feels there is a need to continue to foster relationships and collaborate with other global child mental health organizations such as the International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (IACAPAP), the World Psychiatric Association (WPA), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Beyond focusing on enhancing existing relationships, Dr. Joshi wants to also improve communication and resource sharing. As part of this focus, Dr. Joshi plans on overseeing a needs assessment that will determine what current AACAP resources are available and take an inventory of what other organizations already have to offer and anticipate future materials that will need to be developed within the next few years. As part of this initiative Dr. Joshi wants AACAP to embrace the future from a global perspective.