Article archive / September 1, 2013
Originally published: . Volume 5, No. 1. Source pages: 5, 6.
In late June, the state medical board listed Dr. Jessica Brown as qualifying for the medical psychologist certificate. This comes as a surprise to some in the Louisiana Psychological Association (LPA), where Brown had served as Legislative Chair during 2010 to 2011. One insider in the association said to the Times, “I had no idea,” in response to the news.
The verification on the medical board site indicates that Brown had earned the psychopharmacology master’s in 2010, graduating from Alliant University. Alliant is the organization offering a degree in clinical psycho- pharmacology which operates a Baton Rouge campus, developed by Dr. John Bolter, an Alliant faculty member. Bolter has been a key figure in the medical psychology community.
Dr. Brown was recently appointed to the Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists (LSBEP). However, she did not list her 2010 preparation training for the MP on her nomination form. Brown's appointment to the LSBEP brings the composition of the state psychology board to 60 percent medical psychologist (MP). Currently, MPs represent less than 5 percent of all licensed psychologists. However, MPs now serve in 3 of the 5 positions on the LSBEP.
The same year that Brown earned her masters in clinical psychopharma- cology, she was appointed to serve as the Louisiana Psychological Association (LPA) Legislative Chair, by then president Dr. Judith Levy, also an MP.
Brown served in this position until 2011, when she failed to be re-elected. Following that, she dropped her membership in the association. Levy has also dropped, as has Dr. Kelly Ray, also an MP, who was LPA president in 2010–2011.
The majority of MPs have dropped from LPA, going from a high of 46 in 2009 to around 7 to 10 today, according to several sources. During Brown’s tenure as LPA Legislative Chair she was involved in several controversies.
One of these controversies occurred during the 2011 legislative session, when Senator Willie Mount put forth a bill to consolidate the psychology and LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor) boards. Mount pulled the bill after strong opposition, then surprised most in LPA when she substituted a short, two- page bill to clarify the counselors’ scope of practice.
While some psychologists were comfortable with most of what was in the new bill, Brown asked the LPA council if she could obtain assistance from the Louisiana Academy of Medical Psychologists (LAMP) to help fight the bill. The council agreed.
But what emerged from the behind-the-scene negotiations one week later, was a bill that required counselors’ to collaborate and consult with a medical psychologist or a physician, and for their patients to be under the active care of a medical psychologist or a physician, if medication was indicated.
Brown came under criticism for the new wording. One psychologist wrote, “Once again, MPs are elevated above us ‘regular’ psychologists in that only MPs have the ability to oversee the work of LPCs. So for example, if I do an evaluation and I have an LPC in my office who is treating the person for, let’s say OCD based on my evaluation results, the LPC must seek consultation with an MP or physician, even though I recommended exposure with response prevention rather than medication.”
In defending her approach, Brown pointed to the lack of involvement and political connections of LPA psychologists and the superior political influence of LAMP. Brown wrote on the listserv, “As legislative chair, I'm given the option to make the best deal I could for psychology.” And she wrote, “We did not have a chance at getting an amendment in without LAMP's assistance and their deep connections to legislators and their access to CN [Courson Nickel].”
However, some members felt that Brown was blocking their involvement.
One member who had attended a meeting with Brown, told the Times recently, “She denied us access to the lobbyist. She told us, ‘We’ve got it under control, we don’t need your help. You can damage the process, damage the negotiations.’ ”
Another member said, “I was dismayed. That here was an EC member telling people that they were not needed. People were always complaining that people weren’t willing to help. And, here was the opposite. There were people clamoring to be involved. We were told no. I just didn’t understand that mentality.”
And on May 31, President Kelly Ray, an MP, instructed LPA members to refrain from talking to their representatives. She wrote, “Your legislative committee and lobbyists are working on SB268 (the substitution bill for SB226). Our legislative committee and lobbyists are in communication with the counselors in trying to work out concerns. Please allow them to do their job and recognize that any outside communications /interference might be more harmful than good.”
Brown, again in defending her actions, noted that LPA had a new lobbyist, “We hired a brand new lobbyist, who is still learning our issues,” she posted.
However, in a recent phone conversation with governmental affairs consultant Kevin Hayes, he said, “I took my directions from the association, mostly with Jessica Brown.” In regard to 268, he said it was a very convoluted process and, “I was essentially hands off.” Hayes also explained that he did not know that Brown was in preparation for becoming an MP.
The language of the amendment was odd, requiring that counselors somehow place patients under the active care of medical psychologists or physicians. This was nullified by emergency rules by the LPC board almost immediately and then corrected with new language through legislation in 2012.
Some psychologists were concerned about protecting the practice of psychological testing, and Brown mentioned that concern in a posting. However, several sources from the counseling community said this was not an issue. One told the Times, “Testing was never on the table.”
Brown was involved in another controversy in October 2010, when LPA members attempted to push through a measure after the executive council shot down a resolution to support the “… autonomous practice and regulation of the profession of psychology.” The resolution was supported by a strong majority of regular psychologist members. Dr. Susan Dardard then collected signatures for a special meeting and submitted the petition to the council. Within hours LAMP leader Dr. Jim Quillin had the list of names, and contacted one of the people who signed the petition.
When asked how this happened, then President Kelly Ray said that the petition included people who were “unknown” to us, and “others” were asked about the signatures. She gave no coherent reason why the executive director was not enlisted to help identify those who had signed the petition.
After these confusing explanations, Brown eventually acknowledged that she had given the list to someone, but would not disclose to whom. She denied giving the petition to Quillin. She apologized and offered to be sanctioned. (See PT, Vol 2, No 4)
Dr. Brown is now working at the NeuroMedical Center in Baton Rouge with Dr. Bolter. Dr. Bolter was a key figure in Act 251, testifying in support of the 2009 legislation, a joint effort between LAMP and the state medical board.
Act 251 repealed the 2004 prescriptive authority law under the state psychology board, and placed medical psychologists under the regulatory authority of the state medical board, including their practice of psychology.
The 2010 working group, created by Senator Mount. L to R: Drs. Joe Comaty, Darla Burnett, Jessica Brown, and Jacqueline Shellington from the social work board. The members failed to reach a compromise solution.
This article is part of a historical newspaper archive. Read the original issue for its original layout, photographs and graphics.