SCPS Member Area
The SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PSYCHIATRIC SOCIETY is our voice in local mental health systems. We ensure access to essential mental health services. We engage psychiatric residents and faculty in the broader psychiatric community and ensure a proper professional environment for psychiatrists.
RECENT
NEWSLETTERS
UPCOMING EVENTS
SCPS offers numerous educational and networking events throughout the year including online presentations from some of our committees – Private Practice, Disaster Relief, and Diversity & Culture. In-person events for 2026 include our Installation & Awards Reception, and Career Days.
Statement in Response to the HHS MAHA Action Plan
The Southern California Psychiatric Society (SCPS), representing more than 800 psychiatrists providing full-spectrum mental health care across Southern California, issues this statement in response to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) MAHA Action Plan to Curb Psychiatric Overprescribing (May 4, 2026).
SCPS is concerned that this framework risks causing serious harm by presenting the nation’s mental health crisis primarily as a problem of psychiatric overprescribing. We support the American Psychiatric Association Statement in response to the HHS action plan (“APA Welcomes National Focus on Mental Health, Urges Evidence-Based Approach and Continued Focus on Access to Care”).
Please READ THE COMPLETE STATEMENT
Statement Regarding U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Actions
The Southern California Psychiatric Society (SCPS), representing more than 1,000 psychiatrists across Southern California, affirms that psychiatric treatment must be delivered in an environment where patients can seek care and engage in treatment without fear of harm, surveillance, intimidation or retaliation. The presence or actions of U.S. DHS agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) in or near health care settings undermines patient safety, erodes trust in the clinician-patient relationship, and interferes with ethical medical practice. This stance aligns with statements by the American Medical Association (AMA), the California Medical Association (CMA), the American College of Physicians (ACP), and others medical organizations
Please READ THE COMPLETE STATEMENT
A Message from the Southern California Psychiatric Society
The Southern California Psychiatric Society, representing more than 1000 psychiatrists in the region, calls on the California congressional representatives and senators who represent our members to urge the California congressional delegation and the Senate Mental Health Caucus led by California Senator Alex Padilla to seek removal of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Secretary Kennedy has repeatedly spread dangerous falsehoods about medical preventative services and treatments.
Please READ THE COMPLETE STATEMENT
Resources for California’s Immigrant Communities
Links to resources for Individuals and Families, as well as information for Mental Health Professionals.
How to Shoot a Quick and Effective Email to Your Representative
As long as the United States remains a representative democracy, your voice is a powerful tool. Contacting your elected officials, especially your representatives in Congress, is crucial for influencing policy and ensuring your concerns are heard. This is particularly true if you live in a potential swing-district.
Why Swing Districts Matter:
Districts where election results were close in 2024 and are expected to be close again in 2026, hold significant sway. Currently, 8 of the 10 most competitive congressional districts for 2026 are in California and four of those districts have areas within SCPS. These four districts are currently represented by George Whitesides (D, Dist 27, northern Los Angeles County), Ken Calvert (R, Dist 41, parts of Riverside County), Young Kim (R, Dist 40, parts of Orange/Riverside/San Bernardino counties), and Derek Tran (D, Dist 45, parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties). These representatives, who faced tough re-election races, are more likely to be responsive to their constituents’ concerns. In particular, in our current slight Republican-majority US House of Representatives, the swingable Republican votes can be decisive, potentially making outreach to Calvert and Kim even more impactful. (I’m talking to you Inland Empire!)
SCPS fully supports APA’s policies on Diversity and Health Equity:
“Racial/ethnic, gender, and sexual minorities often suffer from poor mental health outcomes due to multiple factors, such as inaccessibility of high-quality mental health care services, cultural stigma surrounding mental health care, and discrimination. APA is committed to ending disparities in mental health care by advocating policies that address the needs of evolving, diverse, underrepresented and underserved patient populations.”
Southern California Psychiatric Society
POSITION STATEMENT
Stimulants are recognized as an effective and safe treatment for ADHD. The ongoing shortage in stimulants is causing irreparable harm to patients with ADHD, from children who regress behaviorally and academically, to adults who are unable to perform their daily duties without these medications. Additionally, the shortage places patients with ADHD at increased risk for substance use, car accidents, depression, anxiety, and other comorbidities.
SCPS calls upon policymakers, pharmaceutical companies and psychiatric organizations to take focused action now to prioritize the needs of patients with ADHD over attempts by law enforcement agencies to prevent illicit provision of medication when those attempts create dangerous shortages in the supply of psychiatric medications essential for the health of children and adults.
Disaster Recovery Information – Toolkit
Addressing The Needs of the Mentally Ill in Disasters
Helping People After Loss
Managing the Stress of Children after a Disaster
Leadership, Grief and Tragedy
Helping Communities and Families Recover
– Please Click Here for Disaster Mental Health Relief Committee Information –
