Mental Health Month Blog Party

We can’t be bystanders on mental health care disparities

One week from today I will be at the statehouse here in Columbus, Ohio for the Ohio Psychological Association’s Legislative Day. I will be helping to staff a table at OPA’s Health Fair for legislators and will be talking with legislators about health care disparities and health care reform. I am looking forward to the event, but I agree that it would be much easier for me to go about my business and try to ignore the many in need. It is often much easier for all of us to go about our business and ignore the many who need mental health care but just can’t access it. However, we cannot stand idly by while rampant disparities in the way health care is delivered plague our families, friends and neighbors. We should be devoted to bringing access to timely, high quality care to everyone who needs it.

The Bystander Effect suggests that the more people present looking on the less likely a victim is to get help. People feel less responsible and see others doing nothing- which makes it seem more acceptable for them to also look away and do nothing. When psychology students learn about the “Bystander Effect” they say that they wouldn’t just stand by and ignore a victim’s pleas for help and do nothing. However, all around us there are rampant disparities and the all too early deaths of those who are asking for our help right now. People with mental illness have life expectancies that are more consistent with developing countries than what is expected in the USA. This is unacceptable. No family should have to say goodbye to their loved one a decade or more sooner than they would have otherwise. We can’t just walk by and look-away from the many people who need our help but just can’t access it.

In my APA presidential election statement I note how psychology can begin to address this problem. “In the future, we’ll need more psychologists, not fewer. Psychology saves health-care costs. SAMHSA’s statistics reflect millions of Americans who’d access our services if they could just find a way. It makes great business sense for psychologists to open up this market, but it also reflects our ethical principle of justice. We have the greatest opportunity in a generation to bring high-quality, affordable care to the many people who need our help but can’t access it; we can’t wait or we’ll miss our chance. We can’t wait to ensure that all Americans have access to quality psychological services. Quality care saves money, improves outcomes and is an integral part of our health care system. This is our moment to tip the scales toward an expectation of evidence-based approaches for everyone.”

The span of time in between “HillaryCare” and “ObamaCare” offered little to stop the rising costs and disparities in health care delivery we have experienced. Whatever your opinion of “HillaryCare” was back in the 90′s or whatever your opinion is now of “Obamacare,” it must be clear now that we can no longer fiddle while our health care system burns. We cannot fiddle while health care takes an ever-increasing toll on our nation’s economy. We cannot fiddle while it accounts for large percentages of home foreclosures. We cannot fiddle while the lack of health care takes an ever-increasing toll on the lives of Americans. We cannot fiddle while large percentages of Americans with mental illness go untreated and die a decade or more sooner than they should because of it.

Right now, however, is our greatest chance in a generation to change the course of health care history. We can’t wait; now is the moment when each one of us must stand up and act to be sure that psychology and mental health services are a part of the solution to the health care crisis. Millions of Americans can’t access quality mental health care but would if they could just find a way. We know that “care” means not walking by and not looking away from these millions in need. Now is the moment when we ensure that each one of us has access to the best available mental health care; no matter where we live, how much we make or who our ancestors were

We can’t wait; and we can’t be bystanders. Find out more and get resources from the American Psychological Association on Health Care Reform

Thank you,

Todd Finnerty, Psy.D.

You could win the book “A Best Practice Guide to Assessment and Intervention for Autism and Asperger Syndrome in Schools” for any purchase from PsychContinuingEd.com, LLC between now and the end of June- and now you can even get CE credits for reading it. You’ll get 5 CE credits for just $69. This is our newest book-based course but we just received Executive Functions: What They Are, How They Work and Why They Evolved in the mail thanks to Guilford Press and will soon offer it for CE credits as well (and will give this book away at the end of the summer to one lucky customer).

Executive Functions: What They Are, How They Work and Why They Evolved by Russell Barkley (CE course is on the way)

CE courses  based on the following books (sold separately) are now available on our website:

A Best Practice Guide to Assessment and Intervention for Autism and Asperger Syndrome in Schools by Lee A Wilkinson

Emotions in Psychology and Psychotherapy by Steven G Brownlow

The Ethics of Supervision and Consultation: Practice Guidance for Mental Health Professionals by Janet T. Thomas

Psychosocial Assessment and Treatment of Bariatric Surgery Patients  edited by James E. Mitchell & Martina de Zwaan

Military Neuropsychology edited by Carrie H Kennedy and Jeffrey Moore

The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children by Ross Greene

Cognitive Behavior Therapy, second edition: Basics and Beyond by Judith Beck (Forward by Aaron Beck)

Health Behavior Change: A Guide for Practitioners by Stephen Rollnick, Pip Mason & Chris Butler

Chronic Depression: Interpersonal Sources, Therapeutic Solutions
By Jeremy W. Pettit and Thomas E. Joiner

As Always, thanks for your interest. You can learn more about our book-based courses at www.psychcontinuinged.com/courses/#books

Most of you are aware that Russell Barkley, Ph.D. has recorded 15 ADHD-related lectures for us that you can watch online and receive continuing education credits for. Some of you have probably watched many of them or even taken at least 10 to earn your “Certificate of Advanced Training in ADHD.” If you haven’t you may be interested in watching the sample video I put on YouTube from Dr. Barkley’s first lecture for us. We’ll have an updated course related to ADHD and the DSM-5 sometime over the course of the next year as well, however many of you who have taken the courses know that Dr. Barkley has essentially predicted the future of ADHD as proposed for the DSM-5.

If you work with people who may have ADHD and haven’t heard of research related to “Sluggish Cognitive Tempo” and why there is more focus on a purely inattentive/ restrictive type with the proposed changes for DSM-5 you may want t0 learn more. If you work with people with ADHD and wonder why the proposed age of onset and number of required symptoms in Adults with ADHD are changing you may want to learn more. If you are not aware how ADHD impacts mood lability and emotion dysregulation you will want to learn more.

The great news is there are plenty of options for you. We have 15 advanced lectures from Dr. Barkley that explain all of this and more. You can watch them online or purchase them on DVD. In the videos Dr. Barkley also addresses topics from his soon-to-be-released book which is available for preorder now: Executive Functions: What They Are, How They Work, and Why They Evolved

I had a great time earlier today talking to the Cleveland Psychological Association about the DSM-5 (and also a bit about the ICD-10-CM & ICD-11).  Some people found it interesting that I monitor the dsm5.org webpage for changes and also that this has started to create a history of some of the changes over time (though I don’t think I actually started doing it until sometime in 2010 and even then didn’t add many of the “sub-pages” until later).

You can “detect changes” to the DSM5.org webpage (or any other website) with services like www.changedetection.com. It is interesting to see the many changes over time. The site now has a log of various pages at the DSM5.org website and you can see some of the history of the additions to the pages and deletions from the pages by going to the below changedetection.com links. If you’re interested you may also want to sign up and get email alerts like I do when one of the pages is changed. There have been multiple, relatively minor changes to the dsm5.org website made this week [ex: adding Not Elsewhere Classifieds (a term you'll get use to instead of NOS) as well as indicating that the Psychosis Risk Syndrome will be in "Section III" (presumably an appendix-like structure). They also deleted the "Preschool PTSD" diagnosis].

The American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting starts in one week and they’re scheduled to discuss the latest changes to the proposals. The final public comment period (and presumably website update) could likely begin soon. We may be left to wonder about any calls to delay the DSM-5 another year given that the USA’s adoption of ICD-10-CM codes may be delayed until 10/1/2014. (ICD-11 is “due by” 2015 though when it is actually implemented in the USA is uncertain).

Click on the links below to see logs of changes to the DSM 5 website:

DSM5.org main page

Here is a sad-for-them change on their “recent updates” to the DSM-5 page where the only change made was at the bottom of the page. The highlighted text is new and what has a line threw it is old. The only change made was “representing 36,000″ physician leaders instead of 38,000.

The recent updates page

Anxiety Disorders

Bipolar Disorders

depressive disorders

Disruptive, Impulse Control, Conduct

Dissociative Disorders
Elimination Disorders

Feeding & Eating Disorders

gender dysphoria

Neurocognitive disorders

Neurodevelopmental disorders

obsessive compulsive

other disorders

Paraphilias

Personality Disorders

Schizophrenia & other psychotic disorders

Sexual Dysfunctions

Sleep-wake disorders

Somatic Symptom Disorders

Substance Use & Addictive Disorders

Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders

If you have any questions let me know toddfinnerty@toddfinnerty.com

Don’t forget I’m also starting a series of webinars on the DSM-5 and ICD-10-CM & ICD-11 which will kick off in July, 2012. However we have a deal running for a limited time where if you buy one of our Russell Barkley, Ph.D. ADHD video courses or our Evidence-Based psychotherapy with couples video you can get the first DSM-5 webinar for free.

The DSM-5 webinars are 1 hour each for $19.95 each. You can get 1 CE credit for each. You can watch them live online (or listen by phone) or watch them recorded whenever you want to after each session. You can learn more about them at PsychContinuingEd.com

As always, thank you again everyone!

Todd

Todd Finnerty, Psy.D.
President, PsychContinuingEd.com, LLC
Candidate for President of the American Psychological Association
Twitter @DrFinnerty

I wanted to send a quick message to let APA members know that statements from the APA presidential candidates will be in the May Monitor arriving probably next week. I am sure that all of the candidates, including myself, would appreciate it if you took a moment to read what we wrote while you are looking at your copy of the Monitor.

This election is for the 2014 presidency; 2014 is just as important as any other year and is probably more important than many given current trends like health care reform and rising student loan debt. We should not let another year slip by without implementing innovative approaches to adapt and grow as an organization and increase our ability to serve both members and the world effectively. We can make a difference and achieve something great; please don’t be a bystander in this election.

The voting for APA’s presidential election begins in September. Thank you very much for your time and for reading our statements in the upcoming Monitor,

Congratulations to Dr. Alisa Robinson, Ph.D.  She just won a free book at http://www.psychcontinuinged.com Thanks to Steven G. Brownlow, Ph.D. we’re mailing her a copy of his book Emotions in Psychology and Psychotherapy As of today you can also get 5 CE credits on our site for reading his book!   Up next: Every one who purchases a course from now until the end of June will have a chance to win Lee Wilkinson, Ed.D., Ph.D.’s book A Best Practice Guide to Assessment and Intervention for Autism and Asperger Syndrome in Schools.

We’re also excited to announce that for every purchase from July, 2012 through September, 2012 (thanks to a generous donation by Guilford Press) you will receive a chance to win Russell Barkley, Ph.D. ‘s soon-to-be-released new book Executive Functions: What They Are, How They Work, and Why They Evolved Don’t forget we also have 15 recorded lectures from Dr. Barkley, many of which address topics from his new book,  available now Thank you again for your interest in PsychContinuingEd.com, LLC, Todd Todd Finnerty, Psy.D. is a candidate for President of the American Psychological Association

Join us for our first ever LIVE WEBINARS online. Can’t make the date or time? No problem! Sign up anyway. We’ll post the recording of the session afterward and you can watch it at your lesire and still get a continuing education certificate.

I’ll be presenting to the Cleveland Psychological Association on April 28th on the DSM-5, but chances are you may not be able to make it.  You can still hear me talk about the DSM-5 with these 3 upcoming one hour lectures. We’re using GoToMeeting to bring you live (and subsequently pre-recorded) lectures wherever you want to listen to them. You can use GoToMeeting and hear the lecture and see the PowerPoint slides from your computer, a smartphone or tablet app. They also have phone numbers to call in to and listen to the lecture.

The DSM-5 Proposals I: Overview 1 CE, $19.95
This is the first lecture in a series on the DSM-5 proposals. Anyone can read the DSM5.org website, however this lecture will provide both background and an understanding of broader themes impacting the proposals. Participants will be able to describe background factors impacting the DSM-5 proposals and list broad themes influencing the direction of the DSM-5.

• Live on Friday July 6, 2012 12:00PM-1:00PM Eastern

The DSM-5 Proposals II: Changes in Focus 1 CE, $19.95
This is the second lecture in a series on the DSM-5 proposals. We will focus on many of the more significant changes and the reasons behind them. We will consider how it may impact practice. Participants will be able to describe significant changes proposed for the DSM-5 and list some of the reasons behind them.

• Live on Friday July 13, 2012 12:00PM-1:00PM Eastern

The DSM-5 Proposals III: Personality Disorders 1 CE, $19.95
This is the third lecture in a series on the DSM-5 proposals. We will focus on the changing nature of personality disorders under DSM-5. Participants will be able to explain the changes proposed for personality disorders under DSM-5 and describe some of the reasons behind them.

• Live on Friday July 20, 2012 12:00PM-1:00PM Eastern

Register now at http://www.psychcontinuinged.com

Thank you again for your support,

Todd Finnerty, Psy.D.

Candidate for President of the American Psychological Association

P.S. One more thing…  Save the dates: I’ll be broadcasting live (for free) on Ustream talking about my experience as a candidate for APA President attending the APA Convention (I’ll probably also talk about petting dolphins at SeaWorld) on August 17, 2012 at Noon ET. I’ll also be broadcasting live on September 14, 2012 at Noon talking about the importance of my presidential initiatives (September 14th is the first day of voting in the election). On both occasions I will also respond to your questions live via phone calls and social media. You can learn more about my presidential campaign at http://www.toddfinnerty.com

Psychologists are being asked to evaluate patients prior to bariatric surgery. A professional shouldn’t just “wing it.” We have 2 different courses for you to build your competence in this area. 1 course is based on a 1 hour recorded video lecture from Jennifer Finnerty, Psy.D. You’ll get 1 CE for $29. The other course is based on the book (sold separately) “Psychosocial Assessment and Treatment of Bariatric Patients.” You’ll get 5 CE for $69.

Remember, we have 15 lectures on ADHD from Russell Barkley, Ph.D. We have a fantastic 6 hour recorded lecture (watch it at your own pace)  on Evidence-Based Psychotherapy with Couples and many more (including a 3 credit ethics article for just $39).  Check out all of our courses now at http://www.psychcontinuinged.com/courses/

As always, thank you for your interest in PsychContinuingEd.com, LLC (and my APA presidential campaign). If you’re an APA member watch for a bio about me in the May issue of the Monitor.

Thanks,

Todd

Quick question: When was the last time you heard of a local get together for members of the American Psychological Association?

APA’s Strategic Plan
Goal 1: Maximize organizational effectiveness
Objectives: The APA’s structures and systems support the organization’s strategic direction, growth and success.
Enhance APA programs, services and communications to increase member engagement and value;
Ensure the ongoing financial health of the organization;
Optimize APA’s governance structures and function.

My personal view of Goal #1 of APA’s Strategic Plan is to “bring APA home” to all APA members. Membership in APA should lead to automatic membership in a local association.

We will swell the ranks of local associations and promote “One Psychology.”
-Todd Finnerty, Psy.D.

Changing from the status quo takes work but doesn’t have to be scary. APA and our affiliated organizations can adapt to make it easier to recruit members, engage them and promote effective advocacy and education. APA should not be a “severed head” when it comes to membership. Membership in APA should be integrated with membership in a “local chapter.”
National APA membership should lead to automatic membership in a state association/chapter and membership in the national practice association should lead to automatic membership in a state practice association. While structural adaptations will be needed in some cases, we will ultimately swell the ranks of state associations and expand their role. Unfortunately, despite its affiliation to SPTAs, APA is a national organization without its own firm, local roots. Money and APA council positions flow to an SPTA. Members from the national APA should also flow to that SPTA. Having increased local connections, recruitment and involvement will increase member engagement and lead to a stronger organization (concerns such as lobbying can be structurally addressed).

Members engaging with APA and interacting with colleagues are essential ingredients to recruitment and retention. It is difficult to engage members remotely from DC and there are only so many national positions for volunteers. APA should never come to be seen as simply a member’s most expensive magazine subscription. I favor expanding the role of SPTAs (as well as affiliated lobbying efforts) by infusing new clinically-oriented members as well as students, researchers, teachers and other members that have not always been the focus of some SPTAs. Psychological scientists outside the clinical/counseling areas could see increased local opportunities in our expanded state associations to network, present research and collaborate with other psychological scientists in their area. If we are to increase the flow of information between researchers and practitioners we must increase contacts on a local level. We are “One Psychology” and APA should have a local presence that reflects this “One Psychology” perspective. Let’s optimize APA’s membership organization by “bringing APA home” for all APA members. I will bring the view that “Membership in APA should lead to automatic membership in a local association” to the APA Presidency. Thank you for your support during the nomination period which ends March 19, 2012 and for your support in the election beginning in September, 2012.

Learn more about my APA Presidential Campaign at www.toddfinnerty.com and as always thank you for your interest in PsychContinuingEd.com, LLC