The California Medical Association recently decided that CSAP will be the sole voice for psychiatry in California within the House of Medicine. CSAP is very proud of this recognition. We continue this issue by highlighting the three CSAP current and soon-to-be representative to the CMA in various capacities.
Dr. Jessica Thackaberry is an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), with a focus both on outpatient resident training and on clinical
informatics and telemedicine. She serves as the Clinic Medical Director for Outpatient Psychiatric Services in Hillcrest campus, as well as Clinical Faculty for the Community Psychiatry Track in the UCSD Psychiatry Residency program. She is the lead for both the Telemental health program at UCSD, and the Clinical Informatics program, working with Measurement Based Care. She has a special interest in improving efficient use of the medical record, and improving wellness through reducing administrative burden on clinicians. She did her residency at UCSD and medical school at University of Washington in Seattle. She was the Secretary for the San Diego Psychiatric Society (SDPS) prior to becoming the current President Elect for the society, will become president of SDPS in 2023. Dr. Thackaberry is currently an alternate delegate for the CMA’s Specialty Delegation and she is an At-Large Member of the Council on Legislation. In July, Dr. Thackaberry will move from alternate to delegate within the Specialty Delegation.
Dr. Mina Hah is the CEO and founder of Synapse Association, a private practice clinic and is an Associate Professor at UC Davis. She is proud to serve as a board member of California State Association of Psychiatrists (CSAP) which is the largest advocacy group for mental health care in California. She is the immediate past president of Central California Psychiatric Association (CCPS) and a fellow at the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and at the American Society for Addiction Medicine (ASAM). Dr. Hah is board certified in General Adult Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine. In her private practice she provides Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation TMS treatment and Spravato treatment in addition to providing general psychiatric care for her patients. At UC Davis she is the Co Instructor of Record for the Adolescent course for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellow and supervises Psychiatry Residents. She graduated from Columbia University Cum Laude on the dean’s list all semesters with honors and completed her medical training at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. She completed her residency training at the University of Pittsburgh and completed a child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship and a research fellowship at Stanford University. Areas of research included the study of genetic risk factors for suicide in the pediatric bipolar population as well as depression in the autism spectrum population. Dr. Hah has presented her work at the APA and AACAP, and has published in the field of bipolar disorders and autism spectrum disorders. She was the attending supervisor for Stanford psychiatry residents and medical students at the Palo Alto VA and at Children’s Health Council. At the Palo Alto VA, she led the dual diagnosis unit and at Children’s Health Council, she headed the ADHD clinic, provided school consultations and outpatient care. She was an invited speaker at the Stanford Pediatric Psychopharmacology Conference for ADHD case series and the Stanford Autism Working Group for the Presentation of Depression and Anxiety in Autism. Previously at UC Davis she served as the Co-Instructor of Record for the psychiatry course for medical students, and the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) course for residents. At UC Davis, she was the site Principal Investigator (PI) of an international clinical trial at the MIND Institute examining the role of a vasopressin antagonist for the treatment of patients with autism . She has held multiple administrative roles which include working as the Chief of Staff, Quality Management Director, and the Dual Diagnosis Unit Director of Heritage Oaks Hospital, an acute-care 125 bed psychiatric hospital in Sacramento, California and the Medical Director of Sutter Center for Psychiatry. Previous academic roles include being an Associate Professor and Psychiatry Clerkship Director at California Northstate University College of Medicine. In July, Dr. Hah will become the alternate for CSAP in the Specialty Delegation.
Dr. Timothy Murphy graduated from UC Berkeley with a major in biophysics before attending Dartmouth Medical School. He performed his internship at Andrews Air Force Base and worked for three years as a general practitioner at Hanscom Air Force Base in
Massachusetts. Returning to Dartmouth for his psychiatric training, Dr. Murphy and his family decided to escape the New England winters and relocate to the northern San Diego community of Fallbrook, serving that community as well as nearby southern Riverside County for the next 36 years. He is currently on staff at the Mindpath Health clinic in Temecula, working remotely until the office itself is completed later this year.
Dr. Murphy performs diagnostic evaluations and ongoing care for children 6 years old and older, adolescents, adults, and seniors. He has had extensive training and experience in psychopharmacology and has given many educational presentations to physicians and other health professionals on the treatment of mental disorders.
Dr. Murphy is also passionate about improving California’s health care systems, both public and private, advocating for improved access to mental health care for all citizens. He has held leadership positions in a number of advocacy organizations, serving as President of the San Diego Psychiatric Society, President of the California Psychiatric Association, Chair of the San Diego County Mental Health Board, and Chair of the California Medical Association’s Specialty Delegation, and (currently) as Trustee to the Association’s Board. He has often presented at meetings of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
Noting the growing body of scientific evidence highlighting the importance for physical and mental health, Dr. Murphy encourages his patients to consider exercise as an essential element of treatment. An avid runner and backpacker himself, he urges all his patients to find a kind of exercise they can enjoy as an ongoing part of a healthy lifestyle. Dr. Murphy is a Trustee to the CMA Board representing the Specialty Delegation.
The CSAP Board wants the entire membership to know that it has considered in making these selections, and will continue to give great consideration to, geographic distribution as well as representation for psychiatrists in the public mental health system and private practice.
