Senator Arlen Specter Honored for his Support to Expand Mental Health Care

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Columbia University Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical College Present Public Service Award

Newswise NEW YORK (May 8, 2012)- NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Columbia University Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical College presented their annual Public Service Award to Senator Arlen Specter yesterday for his sustained efforts to increase support for biomedical research and enhance mental health care services at their reception during the 2012 American Psychiatric Association Meeting in Philadelphia.

The annual award honors a member of the American community for his or her contributions to psychiatric medicine and mental health. Dr. Jeffrey Lieberman, psychiatrist-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and president-elect of the American Psychiatric Association, and Dr. Jack Barchas, psychiatrist-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical College, presented Senator Specter with the Public Service Award.

"We recognized Senator Specter with this award because of his longstanding interest and unflagging support for health care and research" says Dr. Lieberman, who is also chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. "He has been a visionary and a champion of the biomedical research community and mental health care services, and led the effort to double the National Institutes of Health budget from 1998 to 2008."

"We are very pleased to honor Senator Specter for his unwavering support to expand mental health care for veterans and for his profound commitment to medical research," added Dr. Barchas, who is also the chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College. "His influence in this area has been extraordinary, and we look forward to his continued support for mental health programs."

During his tenure as a senior member of the Appropriations Committee in the United States Senate, Senator Specter led the fight to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health to expand medical research. In addition, he signed a bill to provide autism treatments for military personnel and their families under the TRICARE health program and co-sponsored a bill to improve and enhance mental health care benefits for returning veterans.

In addition to the Public Service Award, the Departments of Psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical College presented three department awards.

Dr. Lieberman honored Dr. Deborah Cabaniss, clinical professor of psychiatry at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and the director of psychotherapy training in the Department of Psychiatry with the Columbia Alumni Award, for her extraordinary commitment to psychiatry residents and to the educational mission of the department.

Dr. Barchas recognized Dr. Gerard Smith, professor emeritus of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College, with the Weill Cornell Alumni Award for his pioneering work into the neurobiology of appetitive behavior.

Dr. Philip J. Wilner, vice president and medical director for behavioral health at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and executive vice chair of the Department of Psychiatry and an associate professor at Weill Cornell Medical College also honored Dr. Mary Zanarini with the Award for Distinguished Achievement in the Field of Severe Personality Disorders from the Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) Resource Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division. Dr. Mary Zanarini is the director of the laboratory for the study of adult development at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass., and professor of psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Mass.

Excerpt from:
Senator Arlen Specter Honored for his Support to Expand Mental Health Care

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