Executive Council
Executive Council 2024-2026
Mark Haygood, DO, MS, FAPA
President
Mark Haygood, DO, MS, FAPA
Dr. Mark Alan Haygood is the CEO and practicing physician at New South Psychiatry, PC.
He completed his residency at the University of South Alabama after attending medical school at Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine. During residency, Dr. Haygood served the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Assembly for Area 5 as the Resident and Fellow Member (RFM) Representative. While engaged in the APA leadership, he was elected as RFM Chair to the APA Assembly Executive Committee. He also served as the RFM Representative and ECP Representative during his APA Assembly tenure. He currently serves on the APA Membership Committee.
Dr. Haygood also serves on the Alumni Board for the class of 2009 of VCOM and is a founding faculty member of the VCOM branch campus located in Auburn.
His professional interests include consultation/liaison psychiatry. His favorite thing about being an outpatient psychiatrist is being able to take the time to get to know the patient’s he treats.
Senthil Rajaram Manoharan, MBBS, MD
President-elect
Senthil Rajaram Manoharan, MBBS, MD
Senthil Rajaram Manoharan, MBBS, MD, has been a psychiatrist at Huntsville Hospital since July 2020.
He received his medical degree from Madurai Medical College in India where he was awarded their Gold Medal in Psychiatry. While continuing his training in India, he received the Best Outgoing Psychiatrist Award from Kasturba Medical College in Manipal.
After locating to the United States, he completed residency training at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and a fellowship in geriatric psychiatry at University of Pennsylvania Health System.
He is board certified in psychiatry and neurology-psychiatry.
His areas of interest include geriatric psychiatry, mood disorders, trauma and OCD, addiction psychiatry, behavioral addictions and cognitive rehabilitation in schizophrenia.
Aleiya Butler Wright, MD
Secretary
Aleiya Butler Wright, MD
Aleiya Butler Wright, MD, is a psychiatrist at East Alabama Mental Health Center – Family and Children Services in Opelika, where her focus is on children and adolescents.
She graduated from the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University where she also attended general psychiatry residency training. From there, she went on to specialize in child and adolescent psychiatry at UAB.
Her clinical interests include mental health advocacy, teaching, community involvement, ACT psychotherapy, and what she endearingly calls, “family psychiatry”-providing education and health empowerment to the whole family. In addition, she is active in medical student education and volunteer activities with VCOM-Auburn and serves as a member of the Rural Psychiatry committee and Collaborative and Integrated Care committee of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP).
Though committed to her local community, Dr. Wright still considers herself to be a Georgia girl, as she was born and raised in Albany, GA where father and brothers still reside. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family, attending faith-based activities, gardening with her husband, traveling, and singing.
Praveen Naharahi, MD
Treasurer
Praveen Naharahi, MD
Dr. Narahari, received his medical degree from N.T.R. University of Health Sciences – Kakatiya Medical College, Warangal, India in 2005. He also obtained a Masters in Community Nutrition (MS) from Eastern Kentucky University, in 2008. Later on, he volunteered as research assistant at the University of Louisville, Department of Psychiatry, before beginning his residency in adult psychiatry at the University of South Alabama in 2009.
He served as Chief Resident of Psychiatry during his PGY 4 year at the University of South Alabama. He also served on the Graduate Medical Education Committee as a Member-In-Training Representative, at the University of South Alabama during his PGY4 year. He received the Red Sash Award from the USA medical student class of 2015, 2016, 2017 for making significant contributions to their medical education. He received Faculty Teacher of the Year award from Residents in 2018.
Dr. Narahari’s special interests are in the area of biological psychiatry, community psychiatry and psychopharmacology. He speaks English, Hindi, and Telugu. Dr. Narahari is Board certified in Adult Psychiatry and Addiction medicine.
Clinton Martin, MD, FAPA
Immediate Past President
Clinton Martin, MD, FAPA
Clinton Martin, MD, FAPA, is an Associate Professor and Regional Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at UAB School of Medicine Huntsville Regional Medical Campus. He is dual board certified in Adult and Child psychiatry. During his combined training years in General and Child Psychiatry, he served as the Chief Resident for the fellowship program and has received several awards at the national, regional and local organizational meetings like the Mid-Atlantic Group Psychotherapy Society Scholarship Award, APF- Jansen Resident Psychiatric Research Scholar Award, Outstanding Resident Award, Resident Poster Awards, and Leadership Award.
During his time as faculty at UAB Birmingham, he co-piloted the Child and Family Assessment Clinic which was immensely successful and served as staff psychiatrist for Children’s of AL. In addition, Dr. Martin co-directed the First Episode Psychosis Clinic has given over 13 talks on this topic at State and local meetings.
As a clinician-educator he has been instrumental in teaching medical students, general psychiatry residents and child psychiatry fellows. He received a “Teaching Award in Excellence and Innovation” given by the graduating fellow class of 2016.
His leadership roles include serving on committees at the national level with the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN), American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) and the American Psychiatric Association (APA).
Prior to moving to Huntsville, he volunteered his time in the community in Birmingham by serving as a board member of the Spring Valley School and on the counseling advisory board at Trace Crossings Elementary School.
His research collaborations at UAB Birmingham included studying pediatric depression, micro-RNA studies in depression and suicide, validating depression screening tools, and glutamate/brain connectivity studies in first episode psychotic patients.
Daniel Dahl, MD
APA Region 5 Assembly Representative
Daniel Dahl, MD
Dan Dahl, MD, is a supervising psychiatrist at the Birmingham VA Medical Center (BVAMC). He has worked with multiple programs and students at the BVAMC including the telehealth program, which was ranked second in the country for most visits at one point. He enjoys teaching psychiatry residents, nurse practitioners and physician assistants.
Dr. Dahl completed medical school training at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, followed by a one-year surgery residency and internship in psychiatry at UAB. He later added qualifications in geriatric psychiatry.
He was in private practice in Birmingham for 11 years before joining the UAB as the Psychiatry Residency Program training director. He soon rose to become the vice chair for Education and Clinic Services, serving at UAB for 10 years.
He is married to Birmingham psychiatrist, Terri Steele, MD, who practices at Eastside Mental Health Center.
Dr. Dahl says the best part of his day is seeing veterans.
Abhishek Wadhwa, MD
APA Region 5 Assembly Representative