Attention: News, Health, Medical and Lifestyle Editors
OTTAWA, Sept. 29, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Last night the Canadian Psychiatric Association, the national voice for Canada's 4,500 psychiatrists and more than 600 psychiatric residents, installed Dr. Michael Teehan as its new president.
Dr. Teehan, is an educator and clinician-researcher from Halifax, Nova Scotia with an abiding interest in severe and persistent mental illness. In addition to his work as Deputy Head of the Department of Psychiatry at Dalhousie University, he treats patients with early psychosis.
"In the coming year, I hope to highlight the need to provide adequate resources for people with severe and persisting mental illness, and to advocate for greater coordination among agencies providing care to this disadvantaged group," said Dr. Teehan. "I look forward to engaging agencies, governments and others in a collaborative effort."
Dr. Teehan has been an active member of the Canadian Psychiatric Association since 1984. He served as the Nova Scotia representative to the Board of Directors from 1988-1994 and from 2009 to the present. In addition, he has been a member of the education, research and advocacy committees. He is currently Interim Editor of the Canadian Psychiatry Aujourd'hui, the Association's news magazine.
Dr. Teehan has a long association with Dalhousie University where he is also Assistant Dean for Student Affairs in the Faculty of Medicine and where he served as Director of postgraduate training from 1994 to 1999. A native of Ireland, Dr. Teehan began his postgraduate studies in psychiatry at Trinity College Dublin, completing a final year at Dalhousie and graduating in 1984. Since that time he has been an active member of the teaching staff at the Capital District Health Authority hospitals in Halifax.
In 2002, Dr. Teehan's clinical excellence was recognized with the Community of Scholars Award of Excellence in Clinical Practice from the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie and in 2003 with a Medical Staff Achievement Award from the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre.
In addition to direct clinical care, Dr. Teehan has worked in mental health administration as Psychiatrist-in-Chief at the Camp Hill Medical Centre and as the Clinical and Academic Director of the Capital District Health Authority.
Founded in 1951, the Canadian Psychiatric Association is dedicated to promoting an environment that fosters excellence in the provision of clinical care, education and research.