May 2021
- APA joined with 5 other medical organizations representing nearly 600,000 physicians and medical students in releasing a statement opposing recent legislation that would restrict delivery of gender-affirming care for gender-diverse patients, specifically for children and adolescents. The groups oppose any legislation that interferes in or criminalizes patient care. You can read the full statement from APA and America’s frontline physicians here.
- APA released a leadership statement on the conviction of the murderer of George Floyd, with resources for psychiatrists on structural racism, the impacts of viewing violent racist attacks in person or on social media, as well as treating patients from different backgrounds. You can read it here.
May Course of the Month – “Doctor, Are You Sure I Am Bipolar?” Challenges in the Differential Diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder
This course focuses on providing the practicing psychiatrist with key elements necessary for the correct identification of BD patients. Critical aspects of the clinical history and mental status exam will be discussed, with a particular emphasis on atypical presentations of BD and their differential diagnosis with other conditions, such as major depressive disorder, borderline personality disorder, attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and substance-induced mood disorder.
Click here to access the Course of the Month and sign up for updates about this free member benefit.
Are Human Rights Important to You? Don’t Pass Up This Opportunity
The APA Foundation has launched an endowment campaign for one of APA’s most prestigious awards, the Chester M. Pierce Human Rights Award, and invites you to become one of its inaugural supporters. The campaign seeks to secure $100,000 by September to provide award recipients with an APA Annual Meeting lectureship, honorarium, and related expenses. Donors will be honored in a special book prominently displayed at APA headquarters.
Apps and Mental Health Webinar: Policy, Privacy and Practice Considerations
The APA, in cooperation with the College of Health Information Management Executives, is presenting its second in a series of webinars around digital mental health. This webinar, “Apps and Mental Health: Policy, Privacy, and Practical Considerations,” will focus on what the solo or small group provider should know when using apps with patients, including future regulatory requirements, privacy/HIPAA issues, and more. The webinar will be live streamed on May 5, 2021 at 12:00 pm ET and recorded and posted to the APA website. To learn more about the event and to register, visit here. For more information, feel free to contact Nathan Tatro, Deputy Director of Digital Health, at ntatro@psych.org.
New Video Blogs on Telepsychiatry during COVID-19
APA has uploaded 3 new video blogs to the Telepsychiatry Toolkit:
- College Telepsychiatry
- First-time Telepsychiatry
- Inpatient Telepsychiatry
International Congress of the Royal College of Psychiatrists
APA proudly supports the International Congress of the Royal College of Psychiatrists – Join thousands of psychiatrists worldwide at the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ first ever Virtual International Congress. The Congress will take place from June 21-24, 2021 on an interactive and immersive event platform. Please have a quick browse of the full program to see the range of sessions available.
https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/events/congress
2021 Federal Advocacy Conference
The 2021 Federal Advocacy Conference is a unique opportunity for psychiatrists to lobby members of Congress on issues that affect their practice and patients. All APA members are invited to attend and play a critical role in shaping health care policy during the 117th Congress. Registration closes on May 28, 2021.
https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/advocacy/federal-affairs/federal-advocacy-conference
Call for Nominations: APA Chester M. Pierce Human Rights Award
The APA Chester M. Pierce Human Rights Award Nominating Committee is accepting nominations for the 2022 award through June 1st. The award criteria was recently updated to recognize individuals in odd years and organizations in even years focused on promoting the human rights of populations with mental health needs. Nomination of organizations are being accepted for the 2022 award. Established in 1990 to raise awareness of human rights abuses, the award was renamed in 2017 to honor Chester M. Pierce, M.D. (1927-2016) and recognize his dedication as an innovative researcher, advocate against disparities, stigma, and discrimination, and as a pioneer and visionary in global mental health. Nomination requirements are available online and nominations can be forwarded to Ricardo Juarez, Director, District Branch and International Relations, at rjuarez@psych.org.
Help APA Fight for Better Reimbursement for YOU – Take our Insurance Survey!
APA advocates on behalf of psychiatrists to increase reimbursement and decrease administrative burdens from public and private payers, legislators and regulatory agencies.
To ensure APA is well-equipped to fight for better payment for clinical services, we need to know about our members’ experience with outpatient insurance participation. Your responses to questions regarding the nature of your outpatient practice & your experience with participating in health plan networks will help strengthen our arguments for appropriate reimbursement.
Will you take 5 minutes today to complete this important survey?
https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/6160089/Outpatient-Insurance-Participation-Survey
Caucus for Chiefs of Clinical Quality Improvement (CCCQI)
As value-based healthcare initiatives continue to grow in scope, scale, and impact, the need for effective quality improvement activities to support those value-based programs has also increased. In line with this need, a new professional role has emerged at academic institutions and large-scale multi-location facilities: The Chief of Clinical Quality Improvement. Psychiatrists have assumed this role in some organizations, and APA has recognized the need to provide an opportunity for members who are taking leadership over QI activities to communicate with and learn from each other about issues they are facing. The APA Board has supported the formation of a Caucus for Chiefs of Clinical Quality Improvement for this purpose. This caucus would serve as a platform for engagement and learning among QI officers and would help inform other APA quality improvement initiatives. To learn more, email us at qualityandpayment@psych.org.
APA Awards- Now Accepting Nominations
Each year APA honors individuals for career recognition, lifetime service, outstanding research, and other categories that improve the lives of people with mental illness. We are now accepting nominations for the following awards:
- Manfred S. Guttmacher Award – June 1
Presented to an APA member who has authored an outstanding publication on ethics.
https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/awards-leadership-opportunities/awards/guttmacher-award - Isaac Ray Award – June 1
Recognizes a person who has made outstanding contributions to forensic psychiatry or to the psychiatric aspects of jurisprudence.
https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/awards-leadership-opportunities/awards/isaac-ray-award - Carol Davis Ethics Award – November 15
Presented to an APA member who has authored an outstanding publication on ethics.
https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/awards-leadership-opportunities/awards/carol-davis-ethics-award