Candidate for Area 7 Trustee

About the Candidate

Fellow, 1971

Candidate’s Views

Who Am I?

A member of the American Psychiatric Association since 1971 and a fellow since 1980, I have represented the Western Canada District Branch on the Public Affairs Network from 1983 to 1987. I was DB president in 1986-87 and served in the Assembly in 1995 as Area 7 deputy representative and representative from 1997 to 2001. I have also served as the legislative rep since 2001. I was a member of APA’s Committee on Peer Review from 1984 to 1986 and a consultant to the Council on Addiction Psychiatry, including Assembly liaison, from 1996 to 2001.

I have always had other extensive involvement in professional organizations, including serving as past president of the Canadian Psychiatric Association, past president of the Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine, past director of the Area IX (Canada) of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry, and past board member of the American Society of Addiction Medicine. I am also a fellow of the American College of Psychiatrists (1988) and American Society of Addiction Medicine (1997).

I am currently professor and head of the Division of Substance Abuse at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, and was two-term department chair. I am the founding director of its Addiction Centre, providing services each year to 600 adults and adolescents with comorbidities.

I currently chair a consortium of 45 specialty societies affiliated with the Canadian Medical Association. I also chair the Section on Addiction Psychiatry of the World Psychiatric Association and am the founding president of the International Society of Addiction Medicine.

A Fresh Look at Common Issues

Most organizations face a discriminating membership with limited resources. We join organizations that are perceived as practical, action-oriented, and patient- and physician-centered and in which we think we can make a difference. APA must continue its efforts to improve our information systems, particularly e-communication, as well as reaching out to the district branches with the help of an accessible staff. My experience with a network of 45 affiliated societies will be of help.

APA, like other medical organizations, faces the challenge of streamlining its operations to meet members’ needs in a timely fashion. A strategic plan has been formulated, and we now face the struggles of implementation through prioritization, reorganization, and a search for diverse alternate funding sources.

As the struggle for full parity for mental diseases including substance-related disorders continues, I hope that data derived from the overall positive Canadian experience with universal and comprehensive coverage will strengthen our arguments. Other patient-related issues such as confidentiality and safety are also concerns across borders resulting in a number of recommendations.

Area 7, as APA’s largest geographic area, has unique challenges as well as opportunities familiar to me—issues such as workforce planning, practice in underserved areas, telehealth, and lately the granting of prescription rights to psychologists in New Mexico, which must be considered in the context of other national and international experiences with similar problems. We are not alone!

My colleagues have recognized my passion for our profession and an ability for consensus building. I hope to be able to use these attributes in serving you as Area trustee.

Primary Loci of Work and Sources of Income

Work:

    100%—Addiction Centre, Foothills Hospital

Income:

    45%—Salaried university professor

    50%—Private practice, fee for service