Thank you for joining me this Thursday evening to celebrate MPS, acknowledge the accomplishments of our colleagues, and talk about the future of our organization.  It’s a privilege to be in the presence of professionals who have chosen to work at the intersection of science and humanity, of biology and the lived experience, and I thank you for letting me speak with you today.

I want to take this opportunity to recognize and thank Dr. Ronald Means, the outgoing President.  He has done an amazing job with continuing to ensure that the Maryland Psychiatric Society has been involved in the conversations regarding issues that affect its members and the citizens of Maryland who suffer with and are affected by mental illness.  Having served on the MPS council and executive committee, I appreciate that you, my peers and colleagues, have entrusted me with continuing the mission of MPS.

For those who don’t know much about me, let me share a few details with you about who I am.  At this point, I have been connected to Maryland as a psychiatrist for over 20 years, and have worked in various settings, locations, and capacities.  I’m currently working as a forensic psychiatrist with the State of Maryland and manage a small private practice for general and forensic mental health.  Like many of you, I went into psychiatry to have a positive impact on a person’s mental health and to support them in a manner that results in hope and an overall improvement in their quality of life.  I chose to pursue additional training in forensics as I am concerned about the criminal justice systems’ impact on people who suffer with severe and persistent mental illness.  I am concerned about the multiple stigmas that they face because of their encounters with the criminal justice system, and their often-prolonged entanglements with this system.  I am concerned with the disparities in access to healthcare that contribute to arrests and incarceration. And so, as you can tell, I am interested in the social determinants of mental health and the approaches we can utilize to contribute to improvements in mental and physical health and prevent unnecessary contacts with the criminal justice system.

My vision for MPS over the next year includes the following.  I would like us to continue to engage in fighting the challenges we face and building upon the recent programs we support.  For example, we collaborated with other professional medical societies in Maryland to stop the scope of practice creep proposed in the 2026 legislative session by psychologists.  I expect we will face this challenge again during next year’s legislative session.  To be successful, ensuring that the citizens of Maryland receive access to quality care, we must all participate when called upon.  In other areas, the legislative Committee continued its efforts at effective gun control for people while they are subject to an Assisted Outpatient Treatment order.  That is during the time in which the AOT order is active, participants must surrender firearms and cannot purchase any new firearms.

The landscape of healthcare continues to change in unexpected ways, and sometimes those changes or events are needed.  At various points in time, those changes have had significant impacts on our early career psychiatrists, who are our future leaders.  Early career psychiatrists, like most young physicians, are facing issues like work-life balance, demands of third parties that contribute to burdensome paperwork and interference with providing quality care, and increasing inadequate reimbursements for services provided.  Burnout among clinicians is not hypothetical, it is measurable, visible, and, for many, personal.  I am committed to continuing MPS’ goal of increasing awareness of these issues and advocating for processes to prevent or reduce the impact of these activities.  We need to let our newly minted graduates know that MPS is here to assist and empower them.  Please note that I am also cognizant that many of these issues affect our established members as well, so you are not being overlooked.  The reality of clinician fatigue is a systemic issue. The demands placed on psychiatrists, no matter where you practice, have continued to grow.  This includes documentation requirements, increased productivity expectations, risk management concerns, and the increased needs and complexity of the patients we encounter.  And so, members of MPS will need to continue to advocate—not only for our patients, but for the conditions under which we practice.

I would also like to add other priorities for MPS to consider or continue during my tenure such as the impact and use of artificial intelligence and access to quality care.

A theme that underlies much of our work but can be overlooked amid administrative pressures and evolving clinical demands, is how do we sustain meaningful, effective psychiatric care in a system that often pulls us away from it.  Advances in neuroscience, psychopharmacology, and digital health tools are reshaping how we understand and treat mental illness.  We should engage thoughtfully with emerging technologies in mental health care. Digital therapeutics, telepsychiatry, and AI-assisted tools are a part of our clinical environment that will continue to expand. Telepsych and AI tools can improve access to care but also introduce new challenges.  We have a responsibility to shape how these tools are integrated into our practice, rather than leaving that to those making business decisions.  Our clinical judgment remains central. Technology should extend it, not replace it. Because we do not have to choose between science and humanity, we can deliberately balance having them both.  (And by the way, I used AI in writing this speech.  I’m trying to regularly understand it, embrace it, and figure out how it can be integrated into my daily activities and occupation.)

We must continue working on issues related to access to quality care.  We need to continue to encourage policies and regulations that support collaboration efforts such as integrated care models, partnerships with primary care, and coordination with community resources.  We need to continue to hold people and entities with influence and decisional authority accountable. Encourage an increase and expansion of mental health and SUD networks in general, particularly for underserved and rural areas of Maryland.  If you know me, I say adding more inpatient beds is not the solution.  We need to add more outpatient resources and housing options, to let patients receive treatment in less restrictive settings.

I am aware that my priorities are several and for some may be considered grand or broad for a one-year long position.  But change starts with a goal.  And a goal materializes with passion and persistence.  Not every goal will come to fruition, but it doesn’t stand a chance if we don’t imagine it.  Through our knowledge, skills and active presence, we can create the conditions for change.  I believe that when we work together, we can lay the foundation for our common goals and ideas to materialize.  Growth as organization, no matter how small, is still change for us and the people of Maryland who suffer with mental illnesses.  As I’ve said before, and I continue to repeat, I look forward to fulling the mission and goals of MPS.  I am excited to serve as your president for the 2026-2027 year.  Thank you.

Tyler Hightower, M.D., MPH

MPS President