ABPP Mission Statement
The mission of the American Board of Professional Psychology is to increase consumer protection through the examination and certification of psychologists who demonstrate competence in approved specialty areas in professional psychology.
ABPP Value Statement
Board Certification through the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP) provides peer and public recognition of demonstrated competence in one of its fourteen affiliated specialty areas. Additionally, Board Certification through ABPP provides the professional with increased opportunities for career growth, including employability, mobility, and financial compensation.
Message from the President
ABPP has been very active and busy over the past few months. There are a number of exciting initiatives underway. In June 2011, from the 15-18th, we host our second summer workshop series. We have an outstanding line-up of presenters who will be speaking on a diverse array of topics. There is no question that the dialogues will be intellectually stimulating and engaging. We hope to make the ABPP summer workshops an annual or biannual event and have a growing number of our members attending.
The ABPP Foundation was established in 2010 and is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The ABPP Foundation board is actively working to develop an outreach
and utilization plan for contributions.
I want to call your attention to the wonderful ABPP Book Series published by Oxford University Press that is edited by Arthur M. Nezu and Christine Maguth Nezu. There currently are five published books in the series: (1) Specialty competencies in school psychology – Rosemary Flanagan, (2) Specialty competencies in organizational and business consulting psychology – Jay C. Thomas, (3) Specialty competencies in geropsychology by Victor Molinari, (4) Specialty competencies in forensic psychology by Ira K. Packer, and (5) Specialty competencies in couple and family psychology by Mark Stanton. For more details, go to: http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/series/SpecialtyCompetenciesinProfessio/?view=usa. There are more books in the pipeline in this series.
One element of the ABPP strategic plan is to improve our organizational infrastructure. A major component of this is to clarify and strengthen the relationships among the ABPP Board of Trustees, the Specialty Boards, and the Academies. A series of meetings have been held to address these interrelationships and good progress is being made with regard to having a thoughtful, organized, and consistent approach to collaboration and communication.
Call for ABPP Leadership Group of Trainers
If as board certificated psychologists we are committed to the next generation and future generation of graduate students, interns, and postdoctoral residents becoming board certified through ABPP, then as faculty and supervisors we need to role model the value of board certification for our trainees. This will involve encouraging all of our faculty colleagues to become board certified in the relevant specialty area, supporting and encouraging the early entry option for our (http://www.abpp.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3558) , providing programming for our students in which we discuss the value and process of board certification, and sharing data with our colleagues and students on the ways in which the attainment of board certification is an indicator of student success (e.g., Graham & Kim, 2011). At the 2011 APA convention, I will be meeting with faculty and supervising psychologists associated with the various training councils to discuss the importance of board certification, the processes and procedures associated with board certification through ABPP, and ways to inculcate this value in others in their training contexts. That meeting will be held Friday August 5, 2011 from 12:30-2pm and you can let me know if you are interested in attending.
I would like to organize a group of board certified psychologists who represent a diverse array of specialties and who teach and/or supervise at the graduate school, internship, and postdoctoral residency levels to work with me to develop a strategic plan for promoting and advancing board certification for faculty, supervisors, and trainees. We will do our work through email and periodic conference calls. If you are interested in becoming a member of this working group, please contact me at nkaslow@emory.edu.
Specialization in Psychology: What it Means with Health Care Reform
Recently I was honored to be invited to be one of the keynote speakers at the Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers conference in Boston and I spoke about the value of board certification and specialization in psychology in the context of health care reform. I would like to share with you 10 key reasons for psychologists to specialize in the current health care climate. I hope that those of you who work in health care systems will find this list useful as you encourage your colleagues, trainees, and administrators to support specialty board certification through ABPP for all psychologists working in health care settings.
• Consumers Want It – Consumers of health/mental health services increasingly ask about and expect board certification and can identify board certified psychologists on line who can ensure best-practices provision of mental health care. Collaboration with consumers, families, and caregivers to provide the highest level of care when implementing health care initiatives is a priority.
• Health Care Systems Expect It – Health care providers in other disciplines consider board certification as a minimum standard to document training and expertise for patient care. Many hospitals ask about board certification in privileging applications. Some hospitals or medical centers require board certification for approval of privileges and others are moving toward this policy. Some academic and academic medical centers require board certification for promotion and tenure. Health insurance companies routinely ask about board certification when applying to be part of their networks.
• Policy Calls For It – The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act mentions various medical and behavioral health care specialties through the document, underscoring the recognition that different patient populations can benefit from professionals with different areas of expertise.
• Quality Improvement Programs Demand It – Research has documented an association between board certification and positive clinical outcomes and processes of care for physicians. Increasingly, physicians’ certification status is an evidence-based measure. It is likely that such empirical linkages also would be true for psychologists.
• Pay is Linked to Quality – In the new health care system, pay will be linked in part to the quality of the care provided and specialty board certification is a mark of competence and quality and a standard of excellence.
• The Workforce Needs Us - A priority of the American Psychological Association (APA) is to develop and maintain a diverse psychology workforce competent to develop and apply evidence-based behavioral and psychosocial assessments and interventions to address the current needs and changing demographics of our nation’s population. Part of this diversity needs to be individuals with expertise in different aspects of professional psychology, as people need to have depth in terms of their competence, not just breadth. We also need to be part of an interprofessional health care workforce.
• Integrated Health Care Teams Respect Us – Integration of mental and behavioral health care into primary care and other health services is a priority, as this enhances patients’ access to services, improves the quality and comprehensiveness of their care, and lowers overall health care costs. Integrated health care teams are comprised of an interdisciplinary cadre of professionals with different areas of specialization, all of whom value collaboration and team work.
• Health Care Homes Have a Place for Us – The patient and family centered health care home is a partnership approach that helps ensure that services are accessible, accountable, comprehensive, integrated, patient- and family- centered, safe, scientifically valid, and satisfying to all parties. Although some specialists have expressed concerns about patient-centered health care homes, the emphasis on this mode of care provision is a whole person orientation, coordinated and integrated care across the system to ensure optimal quality and safety, etc. The patient and family centered health care home places a high value on the various team specialists including psychology.
• Parity is in Our Favor – Mental and physical health parity is called for in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This should not just mean parity in terms of general care, but also in terms of specialty care.
• Access for All in Need for All Services – APA prioritizes (a) ensuring that quality mental and behavioral health care and access to psychologist providers are included in benefit plans for persons across the lifespan and (b) eliminating disparities in mental health status and mental health care through the use of culturally relevant research and services. Those in need and those from diverse backgrounds have the same rights as those more privileged and those from the dominant culture for all services, including specialty care.
In this evolving healthcare climate, specialization has considerable value and may increasingly become the gold standard!
In Closing
In closing, I welcome your input on ways to improve our organization. Please drop me a note with your suggestions. If you are interested in working with some of your colleagues in your state with regard to advancing board certification at the local level, such as through your state psychological association, please get in touch with me and I will help you get connected to people in other states (e.g., Florida, New York) that have local ABPP groups. Similarly, if you are invested in promoting board certification with an APA Division, I hope to see all of you at the 2011 ABPP Convocation, which will be held Saturday August 6, 2011 from 1-3pm at the Grand Hyatt, Constitution Ballroom B. It is a wonderful way to honor both our newest members and some of our most distinguished board certified psychologists.
References
Graham, J.M., & Kim, Y-H. (2011). Predictors of doctoral student success in professional psychology: Characteristics of students, programs, and universities. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 67:340–354. DOI: 10.1002/jclp.20767
Executive Officer Update
David R. Cox, Ph.D., ABPP
As I write this Specialist column I note that The ABPP 2011 Summer Workshop Series is right around the corner. We are looking forward to another successful set of continuing education programs, opportunities to see others who share our interests, meet new colleagues and see old friends. The Summer Workshop Series week in San Francisco includes courses on ethics, brain injury rehabilitation, children/developmental issues, integration of technological advances into practice, police and public safety psychology, and more. Last year’s Summer Series was met with enthusiasm and good reviews; we anticipate that this year’s will be as well.
Concurrent with the Summer Workshop Series will be the initial examinations of specialists going through the board certification process with the American Board of Police and Public Safety Psychology (ABPPSP). The ABPPSP has worked diligently on their affiliation application and subsequent steps to get to the point of examining its first candidates. The ABPP Central Office (CO) has been very busy with this as well; CO has processed applications from over 150 psychologists eager to attain board certification through ABPPSP. Assuming all goes well - and there is no reason to expect otherwise - ABPPSP will complete the affiliation process and gain BOT approval to move out of the monitoring phase of affiliation by the end of 2011. Kudos go to those involved, as well as the many interested psychologists who have demonstrated their eagerness to become board certified by way of getting application materials in rapidly in response to the announcement of this board.
The issue of maintenance of competence is one that has been discussed in a number of forums over the last several years, including amidst the pages of the Specialist. This is an issue that goes well beyond specialty certification through ABPP. Jurisdictions are looking at the issue of competence as it relates to licensing of psychologists. The current system of licensure involves credentials review, examination of knowledge through the EPPP, and most typically also includes examination of juris prudence as it relates to jurisdictional laws, rules and regulations. Barring professional problems that adversely affect one’s psychology license, once licensed, a psychologist remains so without further examination or re-examination. Licensing boards have been discussing the pros and cons of this for a while. In late July, ABPP will be involved, at the invitation of the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB), in working with what ASPPB is referring to as the Maintenance of Competency and Licensure (MOCAL) Task Force. This is not a re-examination process for licensure or one’s ABPP board certification, but likely will include recommendations for some sort of self-assessment, reporting of ongoing learning and other information. It represents a significant step in professional psychology, and is anticipated to include input and representatives from many of the profession’s major groups. As the meeting occurs before the APA Convention, and the ABPP Governance meeting that we will be holding on Saturday during the APA Convention, we should have a report back at that time.
The ABPP Governance Meeting and ABPP Convocation will be held on Saturday during the APA Convention. Specific representatives of each ABPP specialty board and academy are invited to the Governance meeting and all of you are invited to the Convocation. I hope we see you there. Our featured speaker, the recipient of the 2010 Distinguished Service & Contributions to the Profession of Psychology award, is Ronald F. Levant, EdD, ABPP. As a past-president of APA and an esteemed leader in our field, we look forward to hearing him! We will also honor this year’s award winners:
Kathleen M. McNamara, PhD, ABPP (2011 Distinguished Service & Contributions to the Profession of Psychology) and Robert L. Yufit, PhD, ABPP (2011 Russell J. Bent Award for Distinguished Service & Contributions to ABPP). Dr. McNamara will be our featured speaker at the 2012 Convocation. We congratulate each award recipient!
ABPP Myths
Christine Maguth Nezu, Ph.D., ABPP
Myth 1. ABPP is a Largely Academic and Elitist Organization.
Myth-busting facts. The mission of ABPP is to board certify individuals in various psychology specialties. As such, board-certified specialists are first and foremost, competent professionals who are responsible for the delivery of best practices of their specialty. It is true that, In addition to their commitment to providing competent services to the public, some psychologists who hold leadership positions on the various ABPP boards and academies also hold leadership positions in various clinical training or academic institutions. However, this is not elitist, rather, simply attests to their active participation in the growth and improvement of the field. Board-certified specialists are individuals who are interested in promoting competent practice, at all levels of experience, from the full range of professional service settings, and from all theoretic orientations. Since when did the aspiration of competent practice cease signifying responsibility and start signifying elitism?
Myth 2. If one is Licensed, There is No Need for Further Evaluation of His or Her Abilities.
Myth-busting facts. Technically, in order to legally and ethically engage in independent general practice, this is correct. However, if one considers him- or herself a specialist regarding assessment, treatment, or consultation in any of the recognized specialty areas within professional psychology, there is a growing interest among jurisdictional regulators and third- party payers to look toward board certification, similar to medicine, as a way to credential competent specialty practice. Moreover, our own ethical standards require us to provide services within the boundaries of our competencies. Board certification goes beyond what knowledge we have obtained and extends to how we competently apply what we know in day-to-day specialty practice.
Myth #3. I am a Quality Provider and Very Successful. I Don’t Need ABPP to Attract Patients.
Myth-busting facts. ABPP was never intended to be a marketing vehicle by which individuals could attract patients or increase the entrepreneurship of their practice (although it is a reported additional benefit for some). Rather, when high quality providers (e.g., the very people who subscribe to this myth and accurately self-identify in this way) are recognized through board certification, the process uplifts the entire profession because their practice provides the specialty benchmarks for competent work. One psychologist (who previously subscribed to this myth) recently told me that it was his concern about uplifting the profession during our discussions that sold him on the importance of board certification through ABPP.
Myth #4. ABPP Does Not Have Value for Me. Indeed, if I Take the Exam, I May be Communicating That I Am Not Competent Until I am Board Certified.
Myth-busting Facts. Ask any ABPP board-certified psychologist if they ever questioned the board-certification process or if they experienced any fears of how patients or colleagues might react if they did not pass (although the pass rate for individuals taking the exam is high, most all of us have experienced these fears). It is important to consider that many of the most valuable personal learning experiences involve some discomfort. After the first question, the board-certified specialist should then be additionally asked why he or she decided that it was still worth the time, effort, and cost to get board certified. I have never spoken to a specialist who regretted their decision. With regard to concerns about performance, there is much one can do to increase the likelihood of a successful exam experience by seeking information, guidance, and mentorship through the specialty board or academy of interest. More important, ABPP’s value far exceeds the individual sense of accomplishment, the increase in practice mobility, the increase in employment or salary opportunities, and increased protection of the public. Its value is important primarily to the professional of psychology as a whole. I have received emails, letters, and phone calls in the past two years from psychologists who are concerned about the unfair recognition of doctoral-level psychologists compared to their counterparts in medicine. Examples include the lack of fairness in media outlets regarding their refusal to use the title “Dr.” for psychologists and attempts by some segments of the American Medical Association (AMA) to do the same. It is reasonable and justifiable to have these concerns and desire to want to fight for equal professional footing. However, the overwhelming majority of physicians are board certified, whereas the current percentage of qualified psychologists who are board certified is approximately 4%. We will never receive the parity and fairness we seek regarding the media, law-making bodies, insurance carriers, our colleagues in other disciplines, or the public, unless we demonstrate an equal commitment to ensuring competence in our specialty practices. What we do is important. The easing of human suffering, the improvement of lives and relationships, and improved mental and physical health outcomes require robust and competently delivered therapies. Board certification is a widely accepted means by which to increase confidence in the competence of those who provide such services.
Myth # 5. ABPP is Only for Expert Practitioners Who Have Been Practicing for Years and Years.
Myth-busting facts. Individuals qualify as candidates for board certification if they have the requisite doctoral training and have an unrestricted license in the jurisdiction in which they practice. Although requisite professional experience varies with specialties, in most cases, this involves approximately three years postdoctoral training (including internship).
Myth #6. I Don’t See Patients in Day-to-Day Practice Much Anymore. More of My Work Involves Program Development, Supervision, or Development of Effective Treatments Through Psychology Research.
Myth-busting facts. I saved this one for last because I hear it so often in academic settings. I usually ask the person perpetuating this set of myths some of the following questions depending upon the particular version of the myth. “Imagine for a moment that you were a student seeking a professional doctoral training program (e.g., psychology, medicine, nursing, etc.), would you seek training from board-certified or non board-certified professionals in the specialty or discipline with which you are interested? If you were seeking treatment for a significant medical or physical problem, would you want to know that your provider was board-certified as competent and prepared to treat the problem for which you seek help?” And finally, “if you were supporting research to investigate a psychotherapy approach that was aimed at decreasing human suffering, would you want to know that the therapists in the study were competent?” Of course the answers to any (and all) of these questions is usually a resounding “yes.” Particularly in academic settings that train the next generation of professional psychologists or investigate the next wave of effective psychotherapy treatments, competence is a critical concept. For example, one clear bridge between research and practice is that those conducting clinical research trials in psychotherapy must necessarily be concerned with ensuring the competency of therapists in their studies as an essential aspect of their scientific integrity.
Why Myths Tend to Periodically Resurface
Recently, I read an article in another professional psychology organization’s newsletter, in which that organization was promoting its own credentialing process. Rather than focusing on the benefits to their members regarding their own activities, the author provided false and misleading information about ABPP, referring to it as an “academic certification” (see myth # 1), stating that only 1% of psychologists are board certified (false and misleading information), and making statements directly dismissing the value of ABPP board certification. It is disappointing when fellow psychologists behave poorly. More importantly, when our colleagues resort to disseminating information that is at best inaccurate and naive, and at worst, irresponsible and unprofessional, their behavior can be damaging to the profession as a whole.
Despite our training and experience, none of us are immune to fear, or any of the array of personal strategies human beings employ to reduce fears, including avoidance, denial, distraction, rationalization, or even aggressive acts. Many of the myths that persist can be traced back to colleagues’ fears that their competence might be questioned, avoidance of the burden of a fair and objective exam, denial of its importance, distraction from responsibility, rationalization that peer evaluation of competence is not necessary, and in its extreme, aggressive and attacking remarks toward the board certifying body (ABPP). It does not need to be this way. This issue significantly hits the notion of “practicing what we preach” and working together to support and help each other in the inevitable sequence of steps we all recognize as essential to demonstrating competent practice and placing professional psychology on equal footing with other healing disciplines. By doing so, we can reduce the prevalence of these myths and simultaneously help the profession. In order to accomplish this, we will need to reduce our own desires to promote the idea that there are so many competent psychologists out there that should be recognized and identified as such. We will need to do more to help our colleagues confront examination fears in a more effective manner and walk willingly into their board-certification experience. One reason for publishing our first ABPP book this summer was to reach out and make the board certification process more user-friendly, by sharing our experiences, our knowledge, and our collective helpful guidance with the process. We need to be welcoming and encouraging. The challenge, which I have often heard stated at so many meetings and conferences, is to get psychologists to “stop shooting ourselves in the foot.”
How to Stop Shooting Ourselves in the Foot
Rather than allow fears of the oral exam or face the possibility that some our specialty competencies may require continuing education to result in arguments or competitions with each other, how can we appeal to our colleagues to “cease fire” and stop thinking of ABPP as a “four-letter word?” Continued avoidance, denial, rationalization, and attacks may provide some immediate sense of personal control over fear, but it inevitably reduces the value and importance of what our profession can offer.
Imagine how the field could be strengthened if we helped and supported each other to reach the competency standards for practice to which we can mutually agree. More energy would be spent on mentoring, supervision, continuing education, and cross-specialty conferences. To begin this type of activity, we are planning the first-ever, ABPP-wide, continuing education conference in Portland, Oregon July 6-10, 2010 (please mark your calendars and save the date). This conference will disseminate the work of board-certified psychologists across all specialty areas, and allow for cross-specialty integration. It will provide cutting-edge developments and will be open to both board-certified and non-board certified psychologists. I look forward to seeing you all there.
In recent months, I have spoken to many people and organizations in my role as ABPP President in order to disseminate information about board certification, promote the importance of competence in professional psychology, and to invite dialogue regarding how we can best reach the many licensed psychologists for whom board-certification would acknowledge their work and promote the profession. Although I have witnessed an ever growing enthusiasm for these concepts, I continue to experience the barriers of old myths that are perpetuated by a lack of information or presence of fears.
Why We Need to Change
I recently was speaking with a hospital credentialing administrator and explained the importance of board certification for professional psychology specialists. In doing so, I made a few comparisons to the board-certification process required by physicians. She listened carefully and agreed that peer evaluation of competency in a specialty certainly provides for an important means for the public to have confidence in the psychological services provided by the hospital. Additionally, she indicated that it clarifies for other groups, such as third party payers, the nature and competencies involved in one’s specialty practice. However, she later suggested, “unless we can grandparent the existing practitioners, we may have a revolt on our hands…because no psychologist who has been practicing for many years is going to be willing to take another test. They’re not like other docs…they fight these things.”
Another licensed psychologist recently told a colleague that after years of practice as a qualified psychologist, to have her patients know that she is taking a board-certification would be an embarrassment that may have a negative impact on her practice. As you might expect, I could not disagree more. It’s essential to help our colleagues overcome the barrier of fear in much more constructive ways. However, in order to do so, they should expect our enthusiastic support, mentorship, and helpful guidance. Although undergoing evaluation may be a bit daunting, it’s the very concept of self-study, continuing education, and dedication to competence that contributes to our organization’s integrity.
Why We Need to Address Maintenance of Board-Certification in the Future
During this same week, I read an editorial by a cardiologist who writes a column for our local newspaper that had as its focus, the board-certification requirements of physician specialists and the more recent requirement of maintenance certification to which all of their 24 member boards agreed to participate. The American Board of Medical Specialties indicates that this maintenance of certification is important because it “assures that the physician is committed to lifelong learning and competency in a specialty and/or subspecialty by requiring measurement of core competency areas established by the association.”
Our own board of trustees began an exploration of the topic of maintenance last December and charged the standards committee to consider various models and processes of continuing education and lifelong learning that provide a means by which ABPP as an organization can maintain the value of board certification. As part of their preliminary deliberations, the ABPP Board of Trustees recognized that once an individual is board certified, a full re-examination process would not be efficient; rather it would be and unnecessarily burdensome to our specialists, the examining boards, and the overall organization. As an alternative, the Standards Committee is working on the development of a future process by which board certified specialists can earn “recertification credits” through demonstration of their continued dedication to remain current, active, and proficient in the profession. A model such as this acknowledges that the board certified professional has demonstrated their competence, support of the profession, and personal commitment to excellence in the field at the time of their original certification examination process. This model also presumes that, unless otherwise demonstrated through adverse action, this competence can be maintained by daily professionally relevant work responsibilities and activities. Sample activities that might be included will be solicited from current specialists soon; there is announcement regarding plans for the process in this issue of The Specialist. We are eager to hear from all of you as a way of identifying the daily activities and responsibilities that you view as contributing to the maintenance of competence.
In closing, I wish to indicate that it has been a sincere honor and privilege to serve as President of ABPP. I applaud the significant work to which so many people have voluntarily contributed over the past two years. During this time we have tackled challenging issues and further defined our mission. We have significantly increased applications (thanks largely to our early entry application), and initiated several important activities, involving improved board and academy relations, our first published book, a refined values statement, a process for consideration of subspecialties, improved examination process of military personnel, a review of our ethics policies, and a combined marketing/advertising/ recruitment/continuing education and conference task force that is planning our first ABPP-wide conference. We have moved our central office to North Carolina and are getting ready to launch our new website as this Specialist issue goes to press. Thank you for allowing me to take part in the leadership of this organization. I was indeed fortunate to have Norma Simon and Al Finch as mentors on the Executive Committee (EC). I am also very thankful to the collective wisdom and dedication of the various members of EC who wrestled with the day-to-day ABPP challenges over the past two years, including former EC members Sandy Koffler and Art Nezu, as well as current EC members Randy Otto, Greg Lee and Nadine Kaslow, and all of the Board of Trustees. With Nadine as the next president, as well as the continued professional, administrative leadership and customer service provided by David Cox and Nancy McDonald, we are indeed in good hands.