APA Federal Advocacy Conference: Showing Up on Capitol Hill
by Kirklan Kathe, MD
Resident-Fellow Member Representative, PaPS Executive Council
Dr. Kirklan Kathe, MD, is a fellow in forensic psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. He completed his psychiatry residency at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, where he was a chief resident. Dr. Kathe became involved with the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society through the State Government Relations Committee and by leading the PaPS Philadelphia Chapter Resident Committee. He now serves as the Resident-Fellow Member Representative on the PaPS Executive Council. His professional interests include medical education, LGBTQ+ mental health, forensic psychiatry, and mental health advocacy.
On a bright morning that felt like the last breath of summer, I joined more than a hundred and eighty psychiatrists walking toward Capitol Hill to advocate for mental health. Despite a government shutdown, the American Psychiatric Association’s Federal Advocacy Conference pressed on, and it was our biggest ever.
Along with almost half of our conference, I was there for my first time. I was pleased to see Pennsylvania had one of the largest groups in the country, enough to organize into multiple advocacy teams. Conference participants are grouped by location, with each team meeting their own representatives and supporting colleagues from neighboring districts in meetings throughout the day. Within my group, the range of experience was remarkable with trainees, residency directors, and national APA leaders all working side by side toward a shared purpose.
Throughout, it was clear how much advocacy depends on teamwork and persistence rather than a single grand gesture. Navigating the day amid the shutdown required adaptability: rescheduling meetings on short notice, traversing the warren of congressional office buildings, and making sure every member’s voice was heard. Yet I could see that showing up together has impact, even when circumstances were unpredictable. At one point, a congressman opened his office solely to meet with our group. What could have felt chaotic instead became a chance to bond with colleagues with a shared purpose.
The APA’s national legislative team provided critical support, laying the groundwork and coordinating logistics so that our focus could remain on substance. Our conversations on the Hill centered on pragmatic, bipartisan goals: expanding residency training slots, funding the collaborative care model, addressing workforce shortages, and maintaining telepsychiatry access for patients unable to be seen in person.
As we moved from one congressional office to another, I noticed we were all aware of what went unsaid. In our attempts to make sure mental health crosses the aisle, we certainly weren’t exchanging political opinions in our meetings, but I couldn’t ignore the changes in NIH funding or the treatment of our most marginalized patients either.
After a day on the Hill, it was almost surreal how quickly I could step back onto the train to Philadelphia. Advocacy, I realized, isn’t defined by a single conference or legislative bill: it’s the sustained effort to make mental health visible where decisions are made, even if the government is technically closed.
