The presidents-elect of two groundbreaking district branches told Board of Trustees members last month about concerns high on their members’ agendas. The Board invited them to its December meeting in Washington, D.C., as part of an initiative begun in 1997 in which several district branch presidents-elect attend Board meetings to provide more direct input to the Trustees.

Beverly Goodman, M.D., president-elect of the Greater Long Island Psychiatric Society, the first district branch formed from the merger of two smaller district branches, addressed the meeting, as did David Benedek, M.D., president-elect of APA’s first nongeographically based district branch, the Society of Uniformed Services Psychiatrists. As APA President Allan Tasman, M.D., noted, Benedek also represents another first—he is the only district branch president-elect whose mother served as APA president. He is the son of Elissa Benedek, M.D.

Goodman, who said that she was glad to be "part of a strategic partnership" with Board members, said the ability to communicate directly with Trustees is a valuable tool in strengthening the relationship between APA and its district branches. She emphasized that her members continue to experience considerable "anxiety over the effects of managed care" on their ability to treat patients and are looking for new or better ways to deal with the managed care industry. Of particular concern, she pointed out, is a steady and precipitous decline in funding available for residency training, which will escalate when Medicare and Medicaid rely more on managed care companies.

Tasman assured Goodman that APA’s commitment to fighting managed care abuses is not flagging.

Benedek reported the good news that the district branch representing military psychiatrists has grown to 216 members, 43 of whom are members-in-training. This accounts for about 60 percent of active-duty psychiatrists, he noted.

A unique problem his district branch always deals with is that its members are spread out all over the globe, making communication difficult. He expressed his hope that the problem would soon be resolved with the establishment of a Web site, for which he would like APA’s help, Benedek said.

He also asked APA to provide a copy of the videotape of its new public service announcement about depression and suicide that is being shown on television stations throughout the country. He pointed out that it would receive a huge audience if he is able to have it broadcast through the Armed Forces Network.

Board member Julie Schulman, M.D., the member-in-training trustee, asked Benedek if there was anything APA could do to help military psychiatrists address the issue of their inability to promise patients complete confidentiality, particularly when it comes to the policy for dealing with homosexual service members known as "don’t ask, don’t tell." He responded that he did not see a role for APA, especially since a recent law extended confidentiality to the therapist-patient relationship in the military. "We give informed consent" so patients know just what the military’s privacy regulations do and do not cover.

Former APA President Lawrence Hartmann, M.D., said that in light of statements made in the last few weeks by President Bill Clinton, Vice President Al Gore, and New York senatorial candidate Hillary Clinton, Benedek and his colleagues should be prepared as mental health experts to talk about the issue. It is likely, Hartmann noted, that military psychiatrists will be asked to suggest modifications to the obviously flawed "don’t ask, don’t tell" policy.