Charles Dike, MD, associate professor of psychiatry, has been appointed a special government employee to serve on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services National Advisory Council (CMHS NAC).
The council advises, consults with, and makes recommendations to the Department of Health and Human Services secretary, the SAMHSA assistant secretary for mental health and substance use, and the CMHS director on matters related to developing, promoting, and improving the mental health of people in the United States.
To achieve these objectives, the council:
- Looks into designing national priorities for the prevention and treatment of mental illness and the promotion of mental health;
- Encourages and assists local entities and state agencies to achieve these goals as priorities;
- Involves consumers and families fully in orienting the mental health system toward recovery;
- Improves access to quality care that is culturally competent;
- Develops and coordinates federal prevention policies and programs;
- Eliminates disparities in mental health services;
- Makes early mental health screening, assessment, and referral to services common practice;
- Advances evidence-based practices;
- Develops and implements health technology and telehealth systems to improve access and coordination of mental health care.
The council will begin meeting in April. Dike’s term ends in 2026.
Dike co-directs the Yale Department of Psychiatry’s Law and Psychiatry Division and is medical director of the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. He is past president of the Connecticut Psychiatric Society and chair of the Ethics Committee of the American Psychiatric Association. He is founding chair of the Diversity Committee and Forensic Hospital Sciences Committee of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, of which he is also president-elect.