Tanuja Gandhi, MBBS, Child Psychiatry Fellow and Forensic Psychiatrist, will serve on the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Board of Trustees as the Resident-Fellow Member Trustee (RFMT).
In this role, Gandhi will assist the board in prioritizing trainee concerns and help provide trainee perspectives on issues of importance to the membership and the organization. She will be a strong voice representing the interests of Residents and Fellows on the Board of Trustees, the governing body of the APA.
She was elected in 2017 through a national election to serve as the Resident-Fellow Member Trustee-Elect (RFMTE) for one year and will now move on to serve as the RFMT for one year.
Gandhi believes that trainees are at the heart of a growing health system and the future of psychiatry. Increasing understanding about the needs of trainees and the challenges they face during training, be it at an individual or professional level, is imperative while thinking about the future of the profession, she said.
She joined the APA during her training as a second-year resident at the Einstein Healthcare Network in Philadelphia and has been actively involved since then. She was an APA Diversity Leadership Fellow, and in that capacity served on the Council of Psychiatry and the Law for two years. She participated in several workgroups on the council.
It is an honor and privilege to represent your colleagues and to serve on the APA Board of Trustees. I owe my teachers and mentors a debt of gratitude for without their support this would not be possible.
Tanuja Gandhi, MBBS, Child Psychiatry Fellow and Forensic Psychiatrist, Yale School of Medicine
“I have had tremendous support from my program directors and faculty, all through my training, from residency to fellowship, in becoming actively involved in the APA,” she said.
She came to Yale as a Forensic Psychiatry fellow in the Yale Department of Psychiatry and the Law and moved on to training as a Child Psychiatry Fellow at the Yale Child Study Center. She is passionate about working on issues at the interface of psychiatry, ethics, and the law and in the future aspires to develop a deeper understanding of challenges faced in this realm by children and adolescents.
“Coming to Yale was a dream come true. I feel incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity of training in the guidance of several eminent faculty both in the Department of Psychiatry and the Law, and the Child Study Center, who have helped shape my career and supported my passion to be actively involved in the APA,” she said. “It is an honor and privilege to represent your colleagues and to serve on the APA Board of Trustees. I owe my teachers and mentors a debt of gratitude for without their support this would not be possible.”
As the Resident-Fellow Member Trustee, Gandhi is looking forward to working with residents and fellows across the country on identifying issues that impact training and well-being needs and advocating for these issues at a national level. As someone who is passionate about education and has grown through mentorship and collaboration, she envisions her role on the board as a unique opportunity to advocate for increased avenues for trainee involvement in the APA and to create both national and international collaborations for trainees.