Article archive / November 1, 2010
Originally published: . Volume 2, No. 3. Source pages: 1, 5.
On October 22nd, in a continuing controversy over consequences of Act 251, the executive council of LPA voted down a resolution that asked the association to support the independent regulation of psychology.
The vote was 2 yes, 6 no, and 1 abstain. The resolution was offered through council member Dr. Bryan Gros and presented by Dr. Susan Dardard. It read “Whereas, An important object of the association is that LPA shall support and advance psychology as a profession; now, therefore be it Resolved, That LPA shall support the autonomous practice and regulation of the profession of psychology.”
The idea to pass a resolution, and original wording was posted on the LPA listserv in August by Dr. Alicia Pellegrin, written by several psychologists and in particular Dr. Tom Hannie, past president of LPA. The wording in the August resolution was stronger than that presented to the council on the 22nd. The August version stated that the medical board should have authority over prescriptive privileges of medical psychologists and the psychology board should regulate the practice of psychology.
Discussions started in August prompted Dardard to conduct a phone survey to “take the pulse” of psychologists. She contacted a “convenience” sample of members and found a majority of those contacted would be in favor of such a resolution. (See story page 1).
Dardard also told the Times that she sought a compromise resolution. The proposal submitted to the EC on October 22 had been modified from the stronger language, through her efforts to bring those with differing views together, including individual meetings with EC members.
At the EC meeting, those speaking in favor of the resolution suggested that it could be a compromise “in principle” and help to resolve internal disputes in the association. It was also noted that the resolution bolsters the mission statement of LPA.
Those speaking against said that it would obligate LPA to go in front of the legislature with internal disputes. Others stated that passing the resolution would alienate medical psychologists. One member said he was concerned that it was the work of a special interest group.
The EC’s down vote prompted debate on the listserv. Dr. Alicia Pellegrin wrote, “I must admit to astonishment that this most benign of resolutions would be controversial in any way,” and likened the no vote to falling “down the rabbit hole.”
Dr. Robert Storer posted his concerns saying, “…the prescribing psychologists that I know have stated that they see this statement as a ‘slap’ against them.”
LPA President Dr. Kelly Ray, medical psychologist and LAMP member, wrote, “…the proposed resolution was not presented to make a public statement that LPA supports psychology, but rather, to build the foundation to take an offensive position against 251, against the medical psychologists, and against the medical board. This is what your EC voted down.”
Dr. Susan Dardard, who presented the resolution, objected to this conclusion, writing that Ray’s interpretation was wrong, writing, “You got my words exactly backwards.”
Dr. Carolyn Weyand, psychologist and psychoanalyst, and columnist for the Times, suggested that the “disappointing vote” of the EC was based on “assuming knowledge of a hidden agenda” and was an “inaccurate reading-between-the lines.”
Some members of the state association have been in conflict since the passage of Act 251 in June of 2009, a law that repealed the 2004 prescriptive rights of psychologists, and transferred the regulation of medical psychologists and their practice of psychology to the state medical board. Act 251 was negotiated by LAMP (Louisiana Academy of Medical Psychology) and the state medical board and passed in a non-disclosed lobbying effort. At that time, the LPA governing body included many LAMP members in key decision- making roles, who did not alert LPA members to the bill.
This article is part of a historical newspaper archive. Read the original issue for its original layout, photographs and graphics.