We Look Forward to Welcoming You in New Orleans!

As chair and vice chair of the Scientific Program Committee of the 2017 IPS: The Mental Health Services Conference, we are pleased to have worked hard to assemble an outstanding conference program around the theme of “Enhancing Access and Effective Care.” We look forward to seeing many old friends and colleagues, making new friends and colleagues, and hearing the great array of speakers in the program.

The IPS has always been a preeminent gathering of clinical psychiatrists, community psychiatrists, and others working in public-sector mental health settings. Here are a few aspects of the conference that we are most excited about.

First, we have a number of great courses for which you can register on the topics of office-based use of buprenorphine, telepsychiatry, marijuana and mental health, integrated care, child psychopharmacology, and a psychiatry board review course. We’re also excited about the topics being presented in our lectures, symposia, workshops, and other conference formats. They are of great relevance to clinical psychiatrists, such as the modern and optimal use of clozapine, long-acting injectables, ECT, telepsychiatry, motivational interviewing, and measurement-based care.

Other presentations are on unique and cutting-edge topics; you won’t want to miss them! They include sessions on medical-legal partnerships, the mental health consequences of climate change, the ECHO model, the ongoing opioid epidemic, and many others.

In light of the urgent and increasing need for political advocacy, there are a number of sessions on physician legislative and policy advocacy. Here are some of the session titles: “Big Goals, Small Steps: The Psychiatrist’s Journey to Advocate,” “Psychiatrists as Allies: Navigating Power and Privilege in Psychiatry,” “Cultivating Physician Advocacy: Opportunities and Challenges in Training and Beyond,” and “Advocacy Skills for Psychiatrists: From the Clinic to the Capitol.” You won’t find those learning experiences at any other conference. And did we mention the two-day Medical Director’s Boot Camp?

We’re also very pleased with the line-up of heavy-hitter speakers, including Drs. Ben Druss, Michael Flaum, Steve Goldfinger, Helena Hansen, Patrice Harris, Brian Hepburn, Charles Kellner, Ken Minkoff, Phil Muskin, Joe Parks, David Pollack, Kerry Ressler, Ruth Shim, and many others.

In addition to these extremely talented speakers, we are fortunate to have with us APA President Dr. Anita Everett and retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, who will be giving the lecture at the opening session. Perhaps most importantly, the IPS is a great way to get to know the experts, spend time with colleagues, and enjoy the great city of New Orleans and everything it has to offer.

Stop us in the lobby, hallways, or Exhibit Hall of the Hilton New Orleans Riverside to give us your feedback! We look forward to welcoming you in New Orleans. ■