Candidate for 2025 Minority/Underrepresented Representative (M/UR) Trustee
Biography
Dr. Kamalika Roy is an associate professor at the Department of Psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), Portland, Oregon. She leads the psycho-oncology program at Knight Cancer Institute, an NCI-designated cancer center. She also directs the CL Psychiatry Fellowship program at OHSU. She is an inaugural Thread Director of the Health Equity, Diversity, and Structural Competency curriculum of the Undergraduate Medical Education (UME) of the OHSU School of Medicine.
Dr. Roy's leadership roles are a testament to her advocacy for the interests of the M/UR communities. Besides being the current M/UR representative to the APA Board of Trustees, she chairs the APA Structural Racism Accountability Committee (SRAC), overseeing the implementation and reviewing the progress of the recommendations by the Structural Racism Taskforce. SRAC collaborates with the M/UR caucuses and Assembly M/UR Committee working on the change of M/UR name. She collaborates with the APA Assembly, Assembly M/UR Committee, and the Council on Minority Mental Health and Health Disparities to monitor the progress of implementation of the antiracism and equity measures within the organization. Dr. Roy’s previous role as the President of the APA Women's Caucus and her active engagement in many M/UR caucuses, including the IMG Caucus, Women's Caucus, and Asian American Caucus, further demonstrate her commitment to advocacy. Earlier, she chaired IMG Section of the American Medical Association, and currently, she serves as the alternate delegate of the AMA Academic Physicians Section.
Besides being a passionate leader of the M/UR communities, Dr. Roy is also an advocate for ECPs as she transitions from her ECP role to mid-career. Her clinical work is in psycho oncology. She is passionate about exploring the mental health effects of inequal cancer screening, access to treatment, and aftercare in women of color, and influence of lifestyle factors in cancer care and end-of-life matters. Her passions include real life implementation of social determinants of health measures in the biopsychosocial treatment model and personalized medicine in psychiatric practice. She is engaged in advocacy for Medicare pay reform, GME funding for more training slots in psychiatry, and strategies for safe scope of practice implementation in psychiatric practice. She has facilitated key policies in these areas and advocated at the Capitol Hill for legislations that improves access and equitable evidence-based care for minoritized population. Her track record of sustained, efficient, and assertive leadership, and longitudinal organizational knowledge and skills are her strength in serving in this role. If elected, Dr. Roy plans to focus on the above advocacies, especially protecting the interests of ECPs, protecting patient’s rights to physician led good quality care, while advancing APA's missions.
Education
- MBBS, North Bengal Medical College, Darjeeling, India
- Clinical Research Fellowship, NYU Langone Medical Center, NY
- Psychiatry Residency, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
- Consultation-liaison Psychiatry Fellowship, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
- Master’s in clinical research, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR
Awards and Honors
- Fellow of American Psychiatric Association
- Fellow of Academy of Consultation-liaison Psychiatry
- Fellow of Academy of Physicians in Clinical Research
- Research Mentee Award, Academy of Consultation-liaison Psychiatry
- Distinguished Recognition for Excellence in Medical Student Education Award, Oregon Health and Science University
- Academic and Scholarly Excellence Unity Award, Department of Psychiatry, OHSU