Donations and the Bill Callahan, M.D., Memorial Advocacy Fund And Award

OCPS welcomes donations for any of the valuable funds or programs listed below. When making a donation, please also contact OCPS using the contact form or by phone to designate the program you intend to support. OCPS is a nonprofit 501 (c)(6) organization. You may wish to check with your tax advisor to determine if your donation is tax-deductable.

Donations to support the Fund in memory of Dr. Bill Callahan are invited and deeply appreciated.




Bill Callahan, M.D., Memorial Advocacy Fund and Award

Upload: December 10, 2015OCPS established the Bill Callahan, M.D. Memorial Advocacy Award in 2015 in memory of William E. Callahan’s life. This annual award is presented to one psychiatry resident, fellow, or early career psychiatrist OCPS member who has a passion and enthusiasm for legislative advocacy.  The recipient of this award will receive up to $500 (to cover airfare and hotel) to fly to Sacramento to attend the annual CSAP Advocacy Day to lobby legislators and work with Paul Yoder, CSAP's director of government relations. The awardee will learn about important mental health bills, attend training on how to effectively lobby legislators, learn what groundwork must be laid to build useful and potent relationships with lawmakers and get first-hand experience interacting with state legislators.  This event will take place in the spring of each year.

William E. Callahan, Jr., M.D.’s love of legislative advocacy was legendary.  He dedicated his life to advocating for our profession and our patients.  As a resident and early career psychiatrist, he led the California Psychiatric Political Action Committee to fundraising heights previously unseen by CPPAC.  As his career progressed, he traveled up and down the state of California and back and forth to Washington, D.C. to lobby legislators about improving access to high-quality mental health care and ensuring high standards for patient safety.  He worked tirelessly for almost a decade to persuade the Orange County Board of Supervisors to vote to approve implementation of Laura’s Law, and it finally did on May 13, 2014.  He mentored residents and early career psychiatrists on the art of effective lobbying.   He led by flawless example how to be persuasive.  He was actively involved in government affairs throughout his residency and his career, until he left Orange County for Ghana to join the State Department in late 2012.

The world tragically lost Dr. Callahan on December 12, 2013 when he fell while hiking Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa.

Dr. Callahan’s passion for government affairs began while he was a psychiatry resident at UCI Medical Center.  OCPS hopes that this award will be the beginning of a life-long dedication towards advocating for the profession and the safety and wellbeing of individuals suffering from mental illness.

If you are a resident, fellow, or early career psychiatrist interested in being considered for the OCPS Bill Callahan, M.D. Memorial Advocacy Award, please submit a copy of your CV and an essay of no more than 500 words outlining why you want to attend CPA Advocacy Day in Sacramento. You may submit your essay to the Executive Director of OCPS, by E-mail [email protected]  The deadline to submit your essay is December of the preceding year, and the award recipient is generally announced in the Spring of each year. Contact Pam to verify the exact deadline.

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