Patrice Harris, MD, MA, FAPA
Psychiatrist
Physician, public health administrator, child and adolescent psychiatry, forensic psychiatry, advocate
Patrice Harris, MD, MA, FAPA Heading link
The Department of Medicine Inclusion Council honors and celebrates the accomplishments of Patrice Harris, MD MA, FAPA. Dr. Harris may be best known for being the first African American woman elected president of the American Medical Association (AMA) in 2019. Sworn in at a ceremony in Chicago on June 11, 2019, she became the 174th president. She serves as chair of the AMA Opioid Task Force.
Dr. Patrice Harris was born and raised in the rural community of Bluefield, Virginia, in the heart of coal country. She was inspired by watching the TV show “Marcus Welby, M.D.” in her youth. Seeing the main character practicing medicine in a small town with a kind bedside manner, inspired her path into medicine, despite a high school counselor’s recommendation to consider nursing. This was at a time when women of color were generally not encouraged to become physicians. “I saw that Dr. Welby not only took care of his patients inside the exam room, he cared about families and he cared about the community, all in the service of improving health. That broad vision of what physicians could do appealed to me from the very beginning” recalls Harris.
Dr. Harris attended West Virginia University, earning a BA in psychology, an MA in counseling psychology and, ultimately, a medical degree in 1992, where she was the only African American in her medical school class. After medical school, Dr. Harris attended Emory University in Atlanta for her residency and fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Forensic Psychiatry. She was the chief resident in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Following her residency, she became an adjunct professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Services at Emory.
Patrice Harris, MD, MA, FAPA Heading link
Specializing in adult, child, adolescent, and forensic psychiatry, Dr. Harris began her private practice in Atlanta in 1998. She served as a Senior Policy Fellow and Lobbyist for Barton Child Law and Policy Center and the Director of the Fulton County Department of Behavioral Health, where she worked to improve access to mental health care services and advocated for better treatment of individuals with mental health challenges. Her work in psychiatry and mental health has had a significant impact on communities, particularly those underserved.
Inaugurated as the American Medical Associations (AMA)174th president in June 2019, Harris said, “being president of the AMA is the culmination of many years of work, dedication and sacrifice. Not just from me, but by those who have been my supporters in the AMA, also my physician colleagues in psychiatry and from Georgia.”
During her time in AMA elected leadership, she focused on addressing implicit bias in health care, including at medical schools and in hiring practices and mental health and healthcare disparities. She was elected to the American Medical Association Board of Trustees (BOT) in June 2011 and was voted in as Secretary (2014-2015) and Chair (2016-2017). She also served when for the first time the AMA had three women presidents in succession. Dr. Harris’ passion for advocacy grew when she overhead someone talking with their legislator, and they were not giving accurate, science-based information about a medical issue. She wanted to become engaged and continues to be passionate about improving the lives of children and service to others.
Dr. Harris has also given invited lectures and presentations on the opioid epidemic, mental health, childhood trauma, integration of health services, health equity, and the intersection of athletics and health and has appeared on numerous media outlets. She has received numerous awards and recognition’s throughout her distinguished career including the Joseph P. Bailey Jr., M.D., Physician Distinguished Service Award, by the Medical Association of Georgia