Professor Rajashree Ray

Dr Rajashree Ray is Professor and Head of the Department of Psychiatry at the Gouri Devi Institute Of Medical Sciences And Hospital (GIMSH), Durgapur, India, where she leads departmental clinical operations, hospital placements, delivery of the academic curriculum, and serves as the Nodal Officer for the Tobacco Cessation Programme (a national initiative), Head of the Mentorship Programme, and Resource Person for the Medical Education Course for the Faculty, for Undergraduate and Post-graduate degrees. 

After graduating from India and completing MD (Psychiatry) in 2003, Dr Ray moved to the UK, trained as a SHO and Specialist Registrar in Birmingham, later working as Consultant and Clinical Director of Adult Services at Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust. She was also appointed as  Lecturer and Undergraduate Examiner at the University of Birmingham, SpR representative on the MRCPsych Paper Setting Panel, and Chair of Higher Trainees at the West Midlands Deanery.  In 2014, she was awarded the FRCPsych.

Presently her positions include Honorary Member of WPA, Secretary of Religion, Spirituality, and Psychiatry at the World Psychiatric Association, and Chairperson of the Spirituality Section in the Indian Psychiatric Society and SAARC Psychiatric Federation. She is the Founder-Editor of Beyond Borders, the coveted SPF magazine, Course-Moderator of the First Certificate-Course on Yoga-and-Mental Health by WPA, and Co-editor of the Book ‘Spirituality and Mental Health (Jaypee Publishers, with 50 contributors world-wide).

Dr Ray received the Param Samman Award from the Honorary Governor of West Bengal in 2025, for contributions to mental health. She is a passional Kathak dancer and mandala artist, having conducted many workshops and exhibitions on mandala art for relaxation and healing. She is pursuing a certificate course in Indian Spiritual Heritage. 

Her focus will be on three key areas - Empowering the voices of members, community connections and promoting innovation and inclusivity.