Deepak Prabhakar, M.D. will be awarded the 2022 Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry (MFP) Anti-Stigma Advocacy Prize for his Op-Ed column, “Biles is leading a new generation of athletes who prioritize mental health,” which was published in the August 2, 2021 print issue of The Baltimore Sun. The MFP board of directors felt that it very effectively expressed important ideas such as that the best athletes with “steely” inner strength can nevertheless be vulnerable to mental ill-ness, that people should not feel ashamed to seek treatment when needed, and that everybody should routinely check on friends and family to make sure they are okay, and encourage them to seek professional help when needed.
The Anti-Stigma Advocacy Award carries a $500 prize and will be formally presented at the Maryland Psychiatric Society annual meeting on April 28.
The Foundation established this annual prize for a worthy media piece, preferably local or regional, that accomplishes one or more of the following:
- Shares with the public their experience with mental illness in themselves, a family member, or simply in the community.
- Helps others to overcome their inability to talk about mental illness or their own mental illness.
- Imparts particularly insightful observations on the general subject of mental illness.
Click here for information about past winners.