International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions and transgender people

by Andrea James Reviewed November 2, 2026 5 min read

The International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (IACAPAP) is a global federation of national child and adolescent psychiatry and allied-profession societies. Its mission is “to promote child and adolescent psychiatry and the mental health and development of young people through policy, practice, training and research.”

The IACAPAP 2026 World Congress featured several speakers associated with anti-trans hate group Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine, with Hilary Cass as a keynote speaker.

Background

IACAPAP grew out of a 1935 initiative by European psychiatrists to link clinicians in the new field of child psychiatry. In 1937, they founded as the International Committee for Child Psychiatry, and their First International Conference of Child Psychiatry met in Paris in July 1937.

In 1948, they became the International Association for Child Psychiatry, with about 30 member societies, mostly European. It was incorporated in Massachusetts as a tax-exempt organization in 1954 and later re-registered as a Swiss association.

Separate international bodies later formed, including the International Society for Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology (ISAPP) in 1984 and the World Association for Infant Mental Health (WAIMH) in 1992. By 2019 IACAPAP counted 64 national societies as full members.

IACAPAP partners with the World Health Organization and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Global Center at the Child Mind Institute.

IACAPAP Textbook of Child and Adolescent Mental Health: a free, open-access e-textbook launched in 2012
IACAPAP Bulletin: published since 1994, now quarterly
IACAPAP Book Series: monographs published since 1970
MOOC: a free open online course on child and adolescent mental health
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health (CAPMH): the open-access official journal since 2013.

Transgender topics

IACAPAP has never adopted a formal declaration or position statement on gender identity or transgender healthcare.

In 2018, IACAPAP’s ebook contained chapter H.3, “Transgender and gender non-conforming youth.” It was written by Jack L. Turban, Annelou L. C. de Vries, Kenneth J. Zucker and Shervin Shadianloo, adapting their chapter in Lewis’s Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

In June 2025, IACAPAP endorsed SEGM’s conference “Youth Gender Distress: Etiologies, Ethics, Evidence, and Psychotherapeutic Practice.” SEGM promoted the endorsement on its conference page. The December 2025 IACAPAP Bulletin carried a conference report by Anne Wæhre, Florian Zepf, Martin Feichtinger, Mikael Scott Bjerkeli, and Riittakerttu Kaltiala.

2026 World Congress

IACAPAP’s 2026 World Congress was held in Hamburg. Tobias Banaschewski chaired the opening and closing ceremonies. The event was notable for its heavy representation by people associated with anti-trans hate group Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine, including:

Evgenia Abbruzzese

Hilary Cass
Alison Clayton
Paul Conrathe

Anna Hutchinson

Hannah Ryan

Emily Simonoff
Emily Sitarski
Lodewijk Smeehuijzen
Jilles Smids
Anastassis Spiliadis

Alexandra Windsberger
Liane Wörner

For details, see IACAPAP 2026 World Congress

Member organizations

IACAPAP member organizations include:

Algeria: Algerian Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (ASCAPAP)
Argentina: Argentine Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (AAPI)
Australia: Australian Infant, Child, Adolescent and Family Mental Health Association – Emerging Minds (AICAFMHA)
Australia and New Zealand: Faculty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP)
Austria: Austrian Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy (ÖGKJP)
Bangladesh: Bangladesh Association for Child & Adolescent Mental Health (BACAMH)
Belgium: Flemish Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (VVK)
Belgium: French-Speaking Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Belgian Society (SBFPDAEA)
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in Bosnia and Herzegovina (inactive)
Brazil: Brazilian Association of Neurology, Child Psychiatry and Allied Professions (ABENEPI)
Bulgaria: Bulgarian Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (BACAPAP)
Canada: Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CACAP)
Chile: Chilean Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Neurology (SOPNIA)
China: Chinese Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CSCAP)
Czech Republic: Section for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychiatric Association of the Czech Medical Association
Denmark: Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Association of Denmark (CAP-DK)
Egypt: Egyptian Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Association (ECAPA)
Finland: Finnish Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (LPSY)
France: French Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (SFPEADA)
Georgia: Georgian Association of Children Mental Health (GACMH)
Germany: German Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy (DGKJP)
Greece: Hellenic Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (HSCAP)
Haiti: Haitian Association for the Mental Health of Children, Adolescents and the Family (HAMCAF)
Hungary: Hungarian Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (HACAPAP)
Iceland: Icelandic Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (inactive)
India: Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (IACAM)
Indonesia: Indonesian Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health – Perkeswari (IACAMH)
Israel: Israel Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Association
Italy: Italian Society of Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry (SINPIA)
Japan: Japanese Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (JSCAP)
Korea: Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (KACAP)
Kosovo: ShnetMind – Association for Child and Youth Mental Health
Lithuania: Lithuanian Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (LVPPD)
Malaysia: Malaysian Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Association (MYCAPS)
Mexico: Mexican Association of Child Psychiatry (AMPI)
Netherlands: Dutch Association of Psychiatry – Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (NVvP)
Nigeria: Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions in Nigeria (ACAPAN)
Philippines: Philippine Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (PSCAP)
Poland: Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Section, Polish Psychiatric Association
Portugal: Portuguese Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (APPIA)
Romania: Romanian Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (ARPCAPA)
Romania: Romanian Society of Child and Adolescent Neurology and Psychiatry (SNPCAR)
Serbia: Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions of Serbia (DEAPS)
Singapore: Section of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, College of Psychiatrists, Academy of Medicine, Singapore (SCAP)
Slovakia: Section of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Slovak Psychiatric Association
Slovenia: Slovenian Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (ZOMP)
South Africa: South African Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (SAACAPAP)
Spain: Spanish Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AEPNyA)
Spain: Spanish Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (SEPYPNA)
Sri Lanka: Section of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Sri Lanka College of Psychiatrists (SLCAP)
Sweden: Swedish Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (SFBUP)
Switzerland: Swiss Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (SGKJPP)
Taiwan: Taiwanese Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (TSCAP)
Tunisia: Tunisian Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (STPEA)
Türkiye: Turkish Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (TACAP)
Ukraine: Association of Child Psychiatry and Allied Professions of Ukraine (ACPAPU)
United Arab Emirates: Emirates Society for Child Mental Health (ESCAM)
United Kingdom: Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH)
United States: American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP)
Uruguay: Uruguayan Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (SUPIA)

Media

IACAPAP YouTube Channel with Hilary Cass (July 2026; uploaded October 19, 2026). Paediatric gender medicine – are we any closer to consensus? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZafJcx8gZw