Who We Are
WFMH Board Candidates for Election
2025-2027
Istvan J. E. Boksay
Country: USA
Region: North America & Eng. Caribbean
Nominator: Association For Mental Health-Global Mental Health
Candidate 1000 word statement
I have been practicing geriatric psychiatry as a clinician, teacher and researcher.
After 36 years on the faculty at NYU School of Medicine, I retired as Clinical Professor of Psychiatry.
I have worked in the USA, consulted internationally and speak several languages.
In the last several years, I have devoted my time to lecturing about the effect of medical conditions on cognitive decline and providing advice on ways to effectively prevent dementia. As our population is aging, the care for the increased number of elderly with dementia became a major problem as there is no effective disease modifying treatment available. Dementia is however preventable 50% of the cases with good primary care. My goal is to help informing the general public about ways to effectively prevent cognitive decline and help clinicians not only to recognize early signs of cognitive decline but how to use primary medical care to develop cognitive decline.
I am honored to be nominated as an Official Representative of a WFMH Affiliate Organization, the Association for Mental Health-Global Metal Health Switzerland.
As a board member of the WFMH, I will be able to effectively promote dementia prevention even more. I feel I am the right person for an internationally based association for Mental Health, a growing field as more of the population of the world becomes older.
I am willing to participate in Board meetings, conference calls and email communications. There are no issues that would prevent me from being available for any of these meetings.
Candidate additional statement if provided
Since 1984, Dr. Boksay has been very active in his private practice of geriatric psychiatry, providing consultations and lectures about prevention of dementia. He now has his own Dementia Prevention Consulting practice.
Istvan J.E. Boksay MD PhD is a retired Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at NYU, New York, U.S.A., where he was Vice-Chair of the Pharmaceutical and Therapeutic Committee, as well as the Chairman of the Quality Assurance Committee and the Medication Safety Committee. He was president of the New Jersey Psychiatric Association (NJPA). He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA).
He served several years as a member of the Council on Aging of APA. Dr. Boksay is a geriatric psychiatrist, published extensively and lectured worldwide. He did major contributions to describe the course of Dementia and the effect of medical conditions on the course of Dementia. He was the first who reported stage specific medical conditions in demented patients and reported behavioral and cognitive aspects of patients with Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH) before and after Ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt.
He graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Semmelweis University of Medical Sciences in Budapest, Hungary and obtained a Doctorate of Pharmacology and Toxicology from the University of Frankfurt in Germany.