Integrated Care: Putting the Pieces Together

More than 1,800 people attended APA’s 2003 Institute on Psychiatric Services, which was held in Boston October 29 to November 2.

Focusing on “Access to Integrated Mental Health Care,” the meeting carried forward the institute’s tradition of emphasizing a multidisciplinary approach to clinical and systems issues confronting psychiatrists, colleagues in related disciplines, and patients.

APA President Marcia Goin, M.D., welcomed attendees to a city that is an ideal host for a medical meeting—it has globally recognized medical expertise and cultural riches to keep meeting goers busy after hours. During the institute’s Opening Session, she urged the creation of “a more comprehensive mental health system. . . with legislatively mandated mental health parity, closer coordination between mental health and primary care, accessibility and affordability of mental health services, and support for evidence-based practices” (see page 13).

Other speakers delivered lectures on a diversity of topics (see pages 40, 42, and next issue), while medical-update topics this year ranged from chronic fatigue syndrome and hormone replacement therapy to complementary medicine. Psychiatry residents and early career psychiatrists also benefited from an array of sessions specially designed for them. These included a full-day program on clinical work with individuals who are homeless and mentally ill, which allowed trainees to work closely with experts in the field. The institute also offered topics of interest to psychiatrists practicing in rural settings, state hospitals, jails and prisons, managed care facilities, and Veterans Affairs facilities.

Next year’s institute will be held October 6 to 10 in Atlanta.