The International OCD Foundation honored NOCD’s co-founder and CEO with its highest individual recognition, citing his role in transforming access to OCD treatment for millions of Americans.
Stephen Smith, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of NOCD, has been named the recipient of the 2026 Hero Award by the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF). The award will be formally presented at the 31st Annual OCD Conference on July 11, 2026, in a ceremony sponsored by OCD Institute Texas.
Smith’s journey to founding NOCD began with his own struggle with undiagnosed OCD. After experiencing first-hand the life-changing impact of Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) therapy — the gold-standard treatment for OCD — he set out to make that same level of care available to the millions of people who remain underserved by the traditional mental health system.
“After emerging from a personal struggle with undiagnosed OCD and experiencing the success of ERP therapy first-hand, Stephen made it his mission to transform the behavioral health treatment system for people with OCD and related conditions.”
— International OCD Foundation
Under Smith’s leadership, NOCD has grown into the world’s largest OCD-specialty treatment provider for both adults and children. The company runs OCD awareness campaigns that reach millions of people each year, actively cares for hundreds of thousands of patients, and is contracted to serve more than 140 million commercial lives nationally.
NOCD’s model — combining evidence-based ERP therapy with technology-enabled access — has meaningfully reduced the barriers that historically left people with OCD waiting years for an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. By bringing together clinical expertise and scalable infrastructure, the company has demonstrated that high-quality, specialized behavioral health care can reach patients at scale.
The IOCDF’s annual conference is the premier gathering for OCD patients, families, clinicians, and researchers. This year’s event will also feature the Career Achievement Award (Dr. Sabine Wilhelm, Harvard Medical School), the Patricia Perkins Service Award (Dr. Aureen Wagner), the Youth Hero Award (Gabriella Lee), and the Illumination Award (Tiffany Jenkins). Smith’s recognition alongside this cohort reflects the breadth of the OCD community’s collective progress — and the central role NOCD has played in driving it.
The award is a meaningful validation of NOCD’s thesis: that purpose-built, condition-specific care models can outperform general behavioral health platforms both clinically and at scale.
Read the full announcement: iocdf.org