Invitation to participate in research and enter drawing for a gift card

You are invited to participate in an online survey of clinicians who work with youth with mental illness

To enter a drawing for a gift card and learn more about the survey, click here

MOPA Sponsored Events

What Has MOPA Been Doing Lately?

MOPA Co-Sponsored CE Events 2011:

Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders.  Autism Intervention Conference 2011.

April 15-16, 2011 - Columbia, MO

Click here for details

ABPsy Continuing Education Workshop. "The Therapeutic GPS:  Developing a Working Alliance with Urban Adolescents"

April 15, 2011 St. Louis, MO

Click here for details

Southwest Psychological Association Annual Convention.  

April 12-14, 2011, San Antonio, TX

Click here for details

Ozarks Area Psychological Association Annual Workshop and Ceremony Honoring Psychologists. 

May 21, 2011 Springfield, MO

Click here for details

LGBT Guild

Jeff Lubsen, the Organizer of the LGBT-Affirmative Therapists Guild of the Greater Kansas City has asked MOPA to include the following in a communication to its members in an effort to increase awareness of their efforts.  

The LGBT-Affirmative Therapists Guild of the Greater Kansas City area is a grassroots organization of licensed mental and medical health professionals, as well as students-in-training.  We share a collaborative commitment to make affirming culturally competent healthcare available for all sexual minorities based on the premise that LGBT and heterosexual identities are equally valid. Our website (lgbtguild.com) provides consumers and practitioners with referrals and resources for LGBT health and advocacy concerns.

The organization creates an active network among LGBT-affirmative healthcare professionals and students to empower, educate and enhance professional growth.  Membership in the Guild is free of charge and open to those from various disciplines and of any sexual orientation.  Licensed practitioners and agencies are also eligible to be included in our on-line LGBT-Affirmative Psychotherapist and Healthcare Provider Directories.  We welcome any questions and feedback you may have about our organization and website.  New Members can register on-line at:lgbtguild.com. 

APA Trust

See below for an advertisement for the APA Trust.  In making the transition from the monthly Connections newsletter to the Presidential blog, we wanted to maintain a revenue stream from advertising, and so we will be placing advertisements in the blog. You can click the picture below for a full size image of the ad. To go directly to the APA Trust's website, click here.

CAPP Update

Our past-president Deborah Schlitt has drafter a letter to APA along with the leaders of other SPTA to respond to the suggested cuts to the Organizational Development Grants proposed by APA. Click here to read the letter.

Colleague Assistance Resources

From APA, some documents concerning Collegue Assistance. Click on the document titles below to access the files:
DB CP aricleNov-Dec 2010
ACCA(DB) 7-10 L-S Toolkit-2
ACCA Psych Listen to Psych Re- Self-care 5-10 DB

Recent Monitor article

A recent article in the APA Monitor by Dr. Katherine Nordal, Executive Director of APA Practice Organization, highlights the crucial role that state psychological associations play in shaping health care reform. To read it click here:

Early Career Psychologists

For all our early career psychologists, we have a facebook group just for you. Head to http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=188843247721 and join today!

Comment on DSM-5

The comment period for the new edition of the DSM has been extended to July 15th. To visit the website and read and comment on the proposed revisions, click here.

APA Convention Meetings of interest

The following document (click here) is being circulated amongst SPTA leadership regarding sessions of interest at the upcoming APA Convention in Washington, DC from Aug 4-7 to those involved in psychology practice and advocacy efforts.  For more general information about the convention, click here.

Getting Student Members Involved

I spoke with Stacy Ogbeide, our Student Affairs coordinator, today regarding coordinating the efforts of MOPA's campus representatives in preparation for the legislative session as a means of utilizing our student base in our efforts to advocate for important issues affecting psychologists and future psychologists alike.  I also elicited very valuable feedback from Stacy regarding ways that MOPA can involve our student members more. 

MOPA Member in the news

One of MOPA's members Dr. Helen Friedman was recently intrerviewed by the Washingotn Post regarding sexual compulsion.

For the full story click here.

FREE Membership...

In an effort to boost our membership and as a way to engage early career psychologists in MOPA, the Board recently decided to offer all newly licensed psychologists one year of free membership in MOPA as a way to experience first hand all that our organization does and the great community of people we have here in Missouri.  These members will be given access to our wonderful listserve as well so that they can share in many of the legislative and professional issues that arise on a regular basis that affects the practice of psychology in our state.  After the first year, they will be asked to continue their involvement with MOPA by becoming full members.  Hopefully, this effort will bring more psychologists into our organization and will also broaden the depth and breadth of psychologists that make up our ranks.  If you have other ideas about how  to boost membership, please feel free to comment on this post.  We are always open to new ways to engage more psychologists. 

-Rich

Medicaid and Reimbursement for Neuropsychological Services

I briefly wanted to let the membership know that we are in the very early phases of working on legislation to secure reimbursement for neuropsychological assessment services by Medicaid.  This has the potential to allow those served by Medicaid to receive much needed neuropsychological services and also would allow those who perform this type of testing to be reimbursed properly for their work.  Right now similar legislation exists in a handful of other states - so it can be done - but not without grassroots support form MO psychologists. 

Again, this is in the very early stages, but something that we are working on. If you know anyone who performs neuropsychological assessments in Missouri and who is not a member of MOPA, there is now (more than ever) a direct incentive to become a dues-paying member in order to support this important legalisation.  Updates will be forthcoming on this issue as they unfold. 

Disaster Response Team

Following the disastrous tornado that struck Joplin on May 22, MOPA received calls asking if we had a Disaster Response Team.  While at one point, there was a Chair of our Disaster Response Committee, we had no formal active Chair or members of the committee to heed the call when disaster struck.  At our last Board meeting this became a priority so that we could be better equipped to handle such a situation if it arose again. I am pleased to announce that we now have a Chair of our Disaster Response Committee in Craig Shifrin, Psy.D.  We also have 3 other active MOPA members volunteer their time to the committee that bring to the table extensive experience and training in disaster response (Amongst the members they have developed programs for the UN, received Community Response Team [CERT] training, developed Red Cross training programs, served on local disaster relief committees, responded to Hurricane Katrina, certified by the International Critical Incident Response Stress Foundation in Basic Critical Incident Stress Management, and completed an advanced course in Psychotraumatology for Clinicians).  Some impressive credentials indeed.

It never ceases to amaze me that MOPA has such a wealth of talent in our membership. This is only outweighed by the amount of generosity of our members in volunteering their time and talents despite busy professional and personal lives. Thank you all so much for giving yourselves to this cause and for choosing to help your fellow Missourians in their time of need.  Kudos to Craig and the other committee members for stepping up to serve!

-Rich