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Assembly Updates and Transitional Thoughts

Barbara Weissman, MD
Outgoing AEC Rep, Incoming Trustee

The APA Assembly met in person in New Orleans for the first time after a
couple year hiatus. There were a number of business items considered, but
in general I prefer to focus on a couple of things I found interesting about
the meeting rather than a broad superficial summary. I think looking at the
outcome of three action papers supported by local DB members is illustra-
tive of the Assembly process in general.

Papers that are written can pass through the Assembly relatively unchanged, as did the paper to establish
a Committee on the Social Determinants of Mental Health. It directs the Assembly Executive Committee
to form this committee and develop a strategic plan. This paper was in keeping with the remarks of the
outgoing APA president who had a slide that posed the following questions:

• Does childhood sexual assault lead to being diagnosed with borderline personality disorder?

• Does a family history of SUD lead to violence and suicide?
• Do system failures lead to loss of opportunity and depression?

• Can a family’s income and food insecurity lead to anxiety disorder?

• Does the criminal justice system lead to psychosis and dx of sociopathic personality disorder?
Papers can also fail. Although the reference committee urged the authors to follow up with further ac-
tions to utilize existing data, they did not support funding a research group in the APA to Evaluate
Greenhouse Gas Pollution from Psychiatric Practices. Even though it failed, it did generate interesting
discussion in the committee, including the climate costs of psychiatrists and patients commuting to an of-
fice versus utilizing telehealth technology.
Finally, papers can be modified. A paper that initially sought to form a subspecialty fellowship in climate
and mental health was discussed and changed. It was felt that creating a subspecialty was beyond the
scope of the APA, but that the APA could “recommend development of a curriculum for psychiatrists in
practice and trainees in psychiatric residency programs in climate and mental health.”
I am leaving the Assembly after eight years on the Executive Committee, but would encourage anyone
with interests to get involved. If you see ways that the practice of psychiatry could be improved either for
psychiatrists or for patients, contact your local representatives and work with them to write an action pa-
per for the next meeting.

I’ll end with something that has been on my mind lately which is the role of virtual meetings versus in
person gatherings. The virtual Fall Assembly meeting did not go well; this in person meeting went much
better. Although this meeting had costs for many of us (see Raymond’s article for further discussion of
that!), I really worry that if we spend too much time virtually, we will lose some of the human connec-
tions that are so important for us. For example, I wrote an action paper that attempted and failed to in-
crease the representation of our area’s three mid-sized district branches. After the Assembly was ad-
journed, I was able to go in person to talk to one of the people who had been most vocally opposed to my
action paper on representation. I was able to ask for her ideas about other possible solutions, and just

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