North Carolina Psychiatric Association (NCPA)

The North Carolina Neuropsychiatric Association was established on January 18, 1935 during a meeting at Dorthea Dix Hospital. At that time, there were 28 psychiatrists across North Carolina, with the great majority of them practicing in either private or public hospitals. (In 1946, the Association became an affiliate of the American Psychiatric Association.)

The NCNPA’s first petition to become a District Branch within the APA was rejected in 1955 based on differences between the two organizations’ membership criteria. However, later that year, the Association created a parallel organization, the North Carolina District Branch, which was accepted into the APA Assembly of District Branches on April 30, 1956.

The two state organizations merged in October 1970, and in 1985, the Association’s name was changed to North Carolina Psychiatric Association.

Mission:
Now, more than 75 years after its inception, the North Carolina Psychiatric Association is a professional medical organization that represents over 950 psychiatrists statewide. Their mission is to:
• Promote the highest quality care for North Carolina residents with mental illness, including substance use disorders
• Advance and represent the profession of psychiatry and medicine in North Carolina
• Serve the professional needs of its membership