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Jeffrey Lieberman, MD, Psychiatrist-in-Chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons has been elected by the membership of the American Psychiatric Association to be the next president-elect. His term as president-elect and then president will begin May, 2012 and extend through April 2014.

Dr. Lieberman, a Distinguished LifeFellow of the APA, also serves as director of the New York State Psychiatric Institute. In his tripartite role as institute director, department chair and hospital psychiatrist-in-chief, Dr. Lieberman leads one of the largest and most highly acclaimed psychiatric departments in the country.

"The scientific foundations and the quality of psychiatric care are better now than any time in human history and with the potential to improve rapidly. However, unless psychiatric services and mental health care are adequately supported, both the burden of suffering and the costs of untreated mental illness will continue to rise" says Dr. Lieberman. "There is no health without mental health."

As APA president, Dr. Lieberman plans to actively address urgent priorities in the field, including influencing health care legislation and policies on access to and funding for mental health care, increasing funding for clinically relevant psychiatric research, and supporting graduate medical training in psychiatry.

A physician and scientist who has spent his career caring for patients and studying the nature and treatment of mental illness, Dr. Lieberman's own research has focused on the neurobiology, pharmacology and treatment of schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders. His work has advanced our understanding of the mechanisms of action and effectiveness of antipsychotic drugs. He has played a pioneering role in demonstrating the importance of early detection and intervention for psychotic disorders and served as principal investigator of the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness Research Program (CATIE), the largest study ever sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health.

Columbia University Department of Psychiatry and New York State Psychiatric Institute

Columbia Psychiatry is the largest psychiatric research facility in the nation and has contributed greatly to the understanding and treatment of psychiatric disorders. Located at the New York State Psychiatric Institute on the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center campus in the Washington Heights community of upper Manhattan, the department enjoys a rich and productive collaborative relationship with physicians in various disciplines at Columbia University's College of Physician's and Surgeons. Columbia Psychiatry is home to distinguished clinicians and researchers noted for their clinical and research advances in the diagnosis and treatment of depression, suicide, schizophrenia, dementia, bipolar and anxiety disorders, and childhood psychiatric disorders including autism and neurodevelopmental disorders. Visit www.columbiapsychiatry.org for more information.

The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society whose physician members specialize in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and research of mental illnesses, including substance use disorders. Visit the APA at www.psych.org and www.HealthyMinds.org.

Columbia University Medical Center

Columbia University Medical Center provides international leadership in basic, pre-clinical and clinical research, in medical and health sciences education, and in patient care. The Medical Center trains future leaders and includes the dedicated work of many physicians, scientists, public health professionals, dentists, and nurses at the College of Physicians & Surgeons, the Mailman School of Public Health, the College of Dental Medicine, the School of Nursing, the biomedical departments of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and allied research centers and institutions. Established in 1767, Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons was the first institution in the country to grant the M.D. degree and is now among the most selective medical schools in the country. Columbia University Medical Center is home to the largest medical research enterprise in New York City and state and one of the largest in the United States. For more information, please visit www.cumc.columbia.edu.

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, based in New York City, is the nation's largest not-for-profit, non-sectarian hospital, with 2,409 beds. The Hospital has nearly 2 million inpatient and outpatient visits in a year, including 12,797 deliveries and 195,294 visits to its emergency departments. NewYork-Presbyterian's 6,144 affiliated physicians and 19,376 staff provide state-of-the-art inpatient, ambulatory and preventive care in all areas of medicine at five major centers: NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian/The Allen Hospital and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division. One of the most comprehensive health care institutions in the world, the Hospital is committed to excellence in patient care, research, education and community service. NewYork-Presbyterian is the #1 hospital in the New York metropolitan area and is consistently ranked among the best academic medical institutions in the nation, according to U.S.News & World Report. The Hospital has academic affiliations with two of the nation's leading medical colleges: Weill Cornell Medical College and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.