You’re in Good Hands

On April 26 I had the privilege of participating in an award ceremony at APA headquarters. One of the awards presented was the third Melvin Sabshin Award, and the honor went to our director of minority/national affairs, Linda Roll. Candidates for this award were nominated by staff and members, and the winner was selected by our medical director, Steven Mirin, M.D. It is, in my mind, one of the highest honors that APA can bestow on its staff.

The two previous winners were Jeanne Robb, head of what is now the Office of Association Governance, and Carol Lewis, staff liaison for elections in the Office of Association Governance. Linda Roll’s nomination and selection continue the tradition of recognition of excellence and dedication that many members of our staff have given to our Association and the patients we serve. Linda’s ability to pull together diverse segments of our organization into a cohesive, effective group is legendary. As president of APA, I consider myself and our organization most fortunate to have Linda Roll and other dedicated staff form the backbone of our organization.

Immediately following her award presentation, Dr. Mirin honored more than 20 staff who have worked for APA for 20 or more years. These honorees were from different areas of the Association and have positions of high responsibility. Our talented staff is the right arm of APA. They carry out and manage the policies created by our governance and components. They, with a kind and firm hand, deal with member issues that are critical to our members and our patients.

Several of the veteran employees told me that they remember moving from our previous headquarters to 1400 K Street almost 20 years ago. One mentioned that she was in tears because of the big, impersonal structure of 1400 K Street that replaced the cozy, family-like previous headquarter buildings.

APA’s administrative year runs from annual meeting to annual meeting. On the last day of the meeting in Philadelphia, I will turn over presidential responsibilities to Paul Appelbaum, M.D., and Al Gaw, M.D., will assume the responsibilities of the speaker of the Assembly from Nada Stotland, M.D. It has been an honor to serve in this capacity. I would hope that every member will consider running for state and national offices, but they should do so with eyes wide open. These positions are opportunities to make an impact on the problems facing our profession and our patients over a period of time. Nonetheless, it can, for a year or two, become an almost full-time job. As president for a year, one inherits the positive programs and enthusiasm of members that comes from our Association’s professional and collegial roles within our psychiatric community. A president also inherits administrative and situational problems that are often not a result of bad decisions by previous governance bodies, but rather by a lack of decisions by those same groups.

I am pleased with the clearly improved media coverage of mental illness and pleased with the improved medical student selection of psychiatry that has occurred over the last several years. Medical students tell me that they see psychiatry as “where the action will be” over the next two decades in American medicine, and they want to be part of it. It is now up to us to make sure that this new generation of psychiatrists inherits access to treatment programs and treatment modalities that will usher in the finest and most uniform psychiatric care available anywhere.

It is hard to give up the reins of presidential authority. However, it is much easier to give up the reins when you are handing them to someone you know is extraordinarily capable and dedicated to our profession and the patients we serve. Paul Appelbaum, M.D., has shown his ability to help reorganize our Association, represent our principles to the public and government with clear and concise testimony to Congress, and care for the patients who make all this worthwhile. As a past president, I will do everything in my power to make his tenure and that of Al Gaw a complete success. We and our patients are all in this together. ▪