CSAP Leadership
Board Chair - Dr. Cynthia He
It is a privilege to work with the deeply experienced, committed, and principled psychiatrists of CSAP, including my own district branch (the Northern California Psychiatric Society) and our partner district branches across the state. In collaboration with them, and with Mr. Yoder and the SYASL team, I look forward to continuing our mission to improve access to high-quality behavioral health care in California, strengthen the psychiatric profession, and advocate for patient-centered and science-based healthcare policies at the state and national levels. Our ongoing efforts and responsibilities also include fostering communication and consensus across our five district branches to use our collective voice as effectively as possible; coordinating with Area 6, the American Psychiatric Association (APA), and allied organizations; and stewarding CSAP’s resources responsibly.
As we confront rapid technological change and a national climate wherein psychiatric paradigms, scientific institutions, and social safety nets face systemic destabilization, CSAP will continue to advocate for our patients, for the core values of our profession, and for patient-centered and science-based healthcare policies at both the state and national levels.
I completed my M.D. and Ph.D. in Neuroscience at UC Los Angeles, followed by residency and forensic psychiatry fellowship at UC San Francisco. I am presently a staff psychiatrist in the San Francisco Department of Public Health’s Chinatown-North Beach Mental Health Clinic, as well as a Volunteer Assistant Clinical Professor at UCSF. I am the 2026-27 President-Elect of the Northern California Psychiatric Society.
Board Vice Chair - Emily Wood, MD, PhD
As physicians, especially psychiatrists, we are afforded the great privilege to both witness and alleviate suffering in our community. Our professional strength comes through supporting each other and holding ourselves accountable for shaping our health care systems to meet the needs of all patients. I continue to be excited to work with and learn from the like-minded, experienced psychiatrists and advocates at CSAP.
I completed my M.D. and Ph.D. in Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins followed by adult psychiatry residency and a child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at UCLA. Clinically, I specialize in neurodivergent populations across the lifespan and am presently Medical Director of Convergent Minds, a multi-provider psychiatry, psychology, and occupational therapy practice in West Los Angeles. I serve as Co-Chair of the Government Affairs Committee for the Southern California Psychiatric Society and previously served at the CSAP Chair of Government Affairs. I teach mental health to Superior Court judges through the Judicial Council of California’s Center for Judicial Education and Research and hold a Volunteer Clinical Faculty appointment at Charles R. Drew University, where I teach neuroscience to psychiatry residents and fellows.
Governmental Affairs Chair – Dr. Daniel Cho
Dr. Daniel Cho is a physician double board-certified in Internal Medicine and Psychiatry. He currently works clinically as a staff psychiatrist at the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. Academically, sh holds a Volunteer Assistant Clinical Professor appointment at UCLA, but his primary academic work is with Charles R. Drew University where he serves as the Vice-Chair of Education and the Residency Training Director.
He has held leadership positions for multiple medical organizations locally and nationally. For the American Psychiatric Association, he has served on the Council of Advocacy and Government Affairs (2018-2020) and sat on the Board of Trustees (2019-2020). He currently serves as the Area 6 Early Career Psychiatrist Representative to the General Assembly and a Corresponding Member to the Council of Medical Education and Lifelong Learning. He has also served as Secretary of the Orange County Psychiatric Society (2024-2026) and is currently the President-Elect. Within the California State Association of Psychiatrists, he served as he served as the Vice Chair for Government Affairs Committee last year and is stepping into the role of Chair this year.
Governmental Affairs Vice Chair - Minah Hah, MD
I am honored to serve as the new Vice Chair of the CSAP Government Affairs Committee, having previously served as Vice Chair and Chair of the CSAP Board.
My other advocacy work includes serving as CSAP’s sponsored Delegate for Psychiatry to the California Medical Association (CMA), where I am also Treasurer of the Specialty Delegation. I am a past president of the Central California Psychiatric Society (CCPS).
I am board certified in General Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and Addiction Medicine, and I am a Fellow of both the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). I founded Synapse Association, a private practice clinic in Davis, and serve as Associate Professor on the Voluntary Clinical Faculty at the UC Davis School of Medicine.
In my practice, I provide Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and Spravato treatment, along with general psychiatric care and CBT. With my background in both private practice and academia, and my board certifications in child and adolescent psychiatry and addiction medicine, I hope to advocate effectively for our patients and for psychiatrists in these areas.
Most recently, my work with the CMA allowed me, together with co-authors Drs. Tim Murphy and Jessica Thackaberry, to pass Resolution 112-26: Cannabis Use and Brain Health: Advancing Evidence-Based Public Education, endorsed by CSAP and the Specialty Delegation. The resolution seeks to close the public education gap on the risks of cannabis use for vulnerable populations, including children and adolescents, and to enforce Proposition 64 so that cannabis tax revenue funds prevention and treatment of cannabis use in these groups.
Over the years, I have developed a growing appreciation for, and sense of debt to, Paul Yoder and his colleagues at Shaw Yoder Antwih Schmelzer & Lange, including Erica Smith, Dylan Elliott, and Andrew Antwih, for representing CSAP. Working with them, I have seen CSAP’s influence at the Capitol grow, and through our partnership we have been better able to advocate for our patients and our profession.
At a time when evidence-based medicine, psychiatry, and mental health are under attack, we are fortunate to have the expertise and strength of Shaw Yoder Antwih Schmelzer & Lange alongside the CSAP GAC and Board, led by our strong and effective Board President, Dr. Cynthia He. I am grateful for the leadership of Dr. Aaron Mayer, the immediate past GAC Chair, and I look forward to working under the leadership of Dr. Daniel Cho, the current GAC Chair.
