Dilip Jeste New APA President-Elect
Members of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) elected Dilip V. Jeste, M.D., president-elect of the association. Dr. Jeste is distinguished professor of psychiatry and neurosciences at the University of California, San Diego, where he established the geriatric psychiatry program, which focuses on schizophrenia and other psychoses in late life. Dr. Jeste serves on the APA's DSM-5 Task Force and was a founding director of the American Psychiatric Institute for Research and Education. He is editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and former president of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. In the two-way race for president-elect, Dr. Jeste won 58% of the vote, with 42% going to his opponent, Jeffrey L. Geller, M.D.
The position of APA secretary was also up for election in this year's race. The incumbent Roger Peele, M.D., of Maryland was re-elected, with 60% of the vote, compared with 40% for Chicago psychiatrist Sidney Weissman, M.D.
Two of APA's seven areas held elections for area trustee. In area 2, which includes all district branches in New York State, incumbent area trustee, James Nininger, M.D., received 59% of the vote and Jack Drescher, M.D., received 41%. In area 5, James Greene, M.D., of Tennessee won against Gary Weinstein, M.D., of Kentucky, 51% to 49%. Area 5 includes the southern states plus Puerto Rico and the military district branch.
The election also included a referendum objecting to specific changes to maintenance of certification requirements for psychiatry, such as patient feedback for the purpose of reporting to the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Although support for the referendum was strong, with 80% of voters in favor, the referendum failed because of the low voter turnout. Only 25% of eligible voters cast ballots this year, down from about 31% during the previous two elections. For a referendum to be adopted it must receive the votes of at least 40% of voting members.
Dr. Jeste will officially become president-elect at the close of this year's APA annual meeting in Honolulu on May 18, at which time the current president-elect, John Oldham, M.D., will succeed Carol Bernstein, M.D., as president.
