Edward Kaftarian, M.D. is a bilingual (English/Spanish) triple board-certified psychiatrist in Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry, and Addiction Medicine. He completed his residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital and a forensic psychiatry fellowship at UC Davis. Dr. Kaftarian is a nationally recognized authority in correctional psychiatry, suicide prevention, and telepsychiatry.

Dr. Kaftarian has held numerous executive roles in the California prison system, including Chief Psychiatrist, Medical Director, and Statewide Chief of Telepsychiatry. In these roles, he led the development of landmark programs, including California’s Death Row Mental Health Program, the San Quentin Correctional Treatment Center, and the Statewide Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) Program for substance use disorders. As Chief of Telepsychiatry, he built the largest correctional telepsychiatry system in the world, vastly improving access to care for incarcerated populations.

Dr. Kaftarian has served alongside federal monitors conducting systemwide audits and has led policy development and quality improvement efforts across California’s correctional mental health system. His clinical and administrative expertise makes him a sought-after expert witness in jail suicide litigation.

He is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Orbit Health, a telepsychiatry company serving correctional, emergency, and outpatient systems. Dr. Kaftarian has held faculty positions at UCSF and UCSD, sits on the Psych Congress Steering Committee, and is a member of the APA Telepsychiatry Committee. He lectures nationally on correctional psychiatry, suicide prevention, and addiction medicine.