Riggs Clinicians to Present at 2026 American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting

Riggs clinical staff members John Azer, MD; Marina Bayeva, MD, PhD; Samar Habl, MD; and David Mintz, MD, will present at the 2026 American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting in San Francisco, CA.

Date: Saturday, May 16, 2026
Time: 3:45-5:15 p.m. (Pacific)
Location: Room 301 (LL), Moscone Convention Center
Presentation Title: Psychodynamic Psychopharmacology: Using Practical Psychodynamics to Understand and Address Pharmacologic Treatment-Resistance
Speakers: David Mintz, MD; John Azer, MD; Erin Seery, MD; Marina Bayeva, MD, PhD; Samar Habl, MD

Summary: Although psychiatry now relies more on evidence-based and better-tolerated treatments, outcomes have not significantly improved, in part because biologically reductionistic systems often neglect the powerful psychosocial factors that influence prescribing and contribute to treatment resistance. Psychodynamic psychopharmacology addresses this gap by integrating psychodynamic principles into medication management, teaching clinicians how to prescribe in ways that enhance outcomes, address resistance, and support patients’ development and wellbeing. More information

Date: Sunday, May 17, 2026
Time: 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. (Pacific)
Location: Room 214, Moscone Convention Center
Presentation Title: Practical Psychodynamic Skills for Treating the Difficult Patient: Psychotherapy, Pharmacotherapy, and the Treatment System
Speakers: Eric Plakun, MD; David Mintz, MD; Samar Habl, MD; Dhruv Gupta, MD, MS

Summary: Psychoanalysis and a psychodynamic perspective remain highly relevant in modern psychiatry, especially for patients labeled “difficult” or treatment-resistant, as neuroscience and genomic research support a biopsychosocial rather than purely biomedical model. By integrating psychodynamic concepts—such as the therapeutic alliance, transference and countertransference, unconscious meanings of medication, and system enactments—clinicians can better address treatment resistance and improve outcomes through coordinated biomedical, relational, and social interventions. More information.

Date: Monday, May 18, 2026
Time: 1:30-3:00 p.m. (Pacific)
Location: Room 207/215 (CU), Moscone Convention Center
Presentation Title: Behind the Mask: When Trauma Looks Like Depression, Anxiety, ADHD or Psychosis
Speakers: Rachel Yehuda, PhD; Lauren Alyse Lepow, MD, PhD; Emily Elizabeth Haas, MD; David Mintz, MD

Summary: When recommended psychiatric treatments yield limited, paradoxical, or inconsistent results, incorporating developmental and relational trauma into case formulation can clarify patterns of symptoms, attachment, and treatment response that diagnosis alone cannot explain. A trauma-informed, psychodynamically aware approach—attending to meaning, alliance, and the prescribing relationship—helps guide assessment, medication decisions, and emerging treatments, especially in complex or treatment-resistant cases. More information.

Date: Tuesday, May 19, 2026
Time: 8:30 -10:00 a.m. (Pacific)
Location: Room 205, Moscone Convention Center
Presentation Title: Psychiatric Chronification: When the Patient’s Use of Medications Does Not Promote Mental Health
Speakers: David Mintz, MD; Samar Habl, MD

Summary: When patients are deeply attached to medications that may be ineffective or countertherapeutic, psychiatrists face the dilemma of continuing treatment and risking collusion or deprescribing and risking rupture of the alliance. A psychodynamically informed approach—using alliance, psychoeducation, and exploration of ambivalence—can help address covert medication misuse and foster a healthier, more effective relationship to treatment. More information.