Article archive / March 1, 2011
Originally published: . Volume 2, No. 7. Source pages: 19.
I have avoided the political aspects related to psychological practice for quite a long time now – I guess since the 1970’s when I was the youngest mental health center director in the US (Region VII MHC in Oxford, MS) and President of the Mississippi Mental Health Directors organization, on various MPA committees and advisory councils. I was also the first MHC Director to secure federal revenue sharing funds for a new building. While that history makes me sound old, it reminds me of Ronnie Reagan’s statement in his campaign when he said in a debate that this “was not going to be about age – his opponent couldn’t help it if he was young and inexperienced.” I also think about what Angela Herzog, President of MPA said a couple of years ago about psychologists who did not get involved in the governance of MPA. She said something to the effect that when you don’t get involved, “you might be letting people dumber than yourself make decisions for you.”
Now I certainly do not feel we have any “dumb” psychologists in Louisiana, but there certainly has been a lot of internal strife within our ranks, which I believe sound problem-solving efforts could remediate. We are all trained in problem solving, and I believe resolutions to the problems should be available.
I am not a medical psychologist, but have colleagues who are and who are not. Perhaps my organizational background, problem-solving skills, and maturity can add to the stability of our inter- relationships. I would feel privileged to be elected and to serve as a Director of the LPA Executive Council.
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