Win a Free Trip to APA's 1998 Annual Convention in San Francisco

Pick up the phone or connect via e-mail - the member who encourages the most psychologists to call 800-964-2000 for their free kit wins the trip!

Remind them to mention the "Call a Colleague Program" and your name when they request their kit. Results will be tabulated in April 1998.

For more information on this contest, call 310.274.8787 extension 116.

Across the country, enthusiasm for APA's public education campaign reached new heights in 1997. More than 35 state and local associations participated in events aimed at educating consumers on issues relating to the importance of psychological health to their overall health and well-being.

"Practitioners are finding all kinds of ways to get the word out," said Cindy Yeast, assistant executive director for public relations and communications at APA's Practice Directorate. "We anticipate that '98 will be a stellar year in term of grassroots mobilization. APA plans to do its part by initiating a number of activities to capitalize on the momentum generated by National awareness Months including National Mental Health Month and National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, among others."

1997 Highlights

• Campaign ads on work stress and breast cancer aired in Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia, New York, California, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.
• To augment activities surrounding National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and to capitalize on the visibility generated by the Murphy Brown storyline focusing on the character's breast cancer diagnosis, APA placed three quarter-page breast cancer ads in USA Today during the month of October.
• Psychologists in Arkansas kicked off their state's Mental Health Awareness Week by participating in a 5K Walk/Run, designed to raise attention and combat the stigma of mental illness. A booth was set up at the event and brochures were distributed to consumers.
• Members of the Hawaii Psychological Association participated in two local radio programs that focused on mental health parity and mental health issues relating to children. A letter-to-the-editor on psychology and breast cancer, provided by APA's campaign service bureau, was also submitted to the Honolulu Advertiser addressing the recent Murphy Brown storyline.
• The Colorado Psychological Association organized a charity event golf tournament on September 15 for Family Advocacy, Community Education and Support (FACES) a local child abuse prevention program. The event generated media attention and raised close to $5,000 for the organization.
• Psychologists in Iowa cultivated a relationship with the Ames Tribune and submitted two articles dealing with mental health topics every month.
• Based on its successful partnership with a local hospital, the New Jersey Psychological Association expanded its outreach to include collaborations with other local hospitals.

Remember - keeping the public education campaign on the front burner is key to building momentum and sustaining activity throughout the nation.

Watch for special Campaign Alerts in the upcoming months, which will include event ideas, background information on specific topics, sample materials such as letters-to-the-editor, press releases, etc. Campaign Alerts will center around National Awareness activities and will be delivered a couple of months prior to the event to allow ample time for local planning. Following are key dates in 1998:

February

• Eating Disorders Awareness Week (February 23 - 28)
• Wise Health Consumer Month
• American Heart Month
• National Girls and Women in Sports Day (February 6)

• National Nutrition Month
• Children and Healthcare Week (March 16-22)

• National Child Abuse Prevention Month
• National Cancer Control Month
• National Public Health Week (April 8-13)

• National Mental Health Awareness Month
• National Anxiety Disorders Screening Day (May 1)
• National Suicide Awareness Week (May 4 - 10)
• National Running and Fitness Week (May 11 - 17)
• National Employee Health and Fitness Day (May 21)
• National Senior Health and Fitness Day (May 28)
• Older Americans Month

• Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
• National Cholesterol Education Month

• Breast Cancer Awareness Month
• National Mammography Day (October 17)
• Mental Illness Awareness Week (October 5-11)
• National Depression Screening Day (October 9)
• Family Health Month
• National Heart Walk - American Heart Association (October 4-5)
• National Health Education Week (October 19-25)
• National Youth Health Awareness Day (October 22)
• Child Health Month

• National Alzheimer's Awareness Month
• Great American Smoke Out (November 20)

The Idaho Psychological Association received a $4,000 matching grant to place local advertising.

Finding creative ways to bring national issues to the local level is not an easy task. The San Diego Psychological Association (SDPA) did it by hosting a community forum entitled Mental Health Care in the Changing Health Care Environment in November 1997.

Capitalizing on the widespread interest in managed care, the SDPA brought together key mental health advocates and decision makers to discuss the future realities of mental health care. "We wanted to educate the public on where the health care system is headed, and that the system can be very limiting as far as psychological services," said Cheryl Martin, Ed.D., forum coordinator and chair of the Professional Practice & Business Committee of the SDPA.

The forum focused on trends affecting accessibility to mental health care, the need to balance quality care and its costs, and ways to evaluate mental health plans. The program encouraged audience participation and allowed for open dialogue between panelists and attendees.

"This type of event allowed us to communicate with individuals in the community that we might not have normally reached," said Dr. Martin. "We had over 70 attendees and preliminary feedback indicates that they found the session interesting, informative and very useful."

Panelists represented various professions, and included: Russ Newman, Ph.D., J.D., APA Executive Director for Professional Practice; California Psychological Association Executive Director, Michael Haley, Ph.D.; Cindy Miller, Employee Benefits Manager, Chula Vista Elementary School District; Lucy Killea, International Community Foundation, Former State Senator; and Howard Wayne, Assembly member, 78th District. The discussion was moderated by CBS local news anchor, Chris Saunders.

How did the SDPA do it?

When the SDPA decided to host this community forum, they used three key communications tactics: target audiences were clearly identified (the SDPA list included benefits managers at large colleges and universities, hospitals, public and private businesses in the San Diego area); flyers and personalized invitations were distributed to potential attendees; aggressive follow-up was conducted.

Costs were contained by teaming up with a local hospital and hosting the forum in their auditorium. This also allowed them to offer the program free of charge. The only costs incurred were printing and mailing of materials, and the audio-visual equipment used during the program.

The Arizona Psychological Association's (AzPA) public education campaign was recently chosen as one of five outstanding association programs/projects for 1997 by the Arizona Society of Association Executives (ASAE). The awards program was recently developed to showcase local associations and their creativity.

1997 marked a busy year for campaign activity in Arizona, highlighted by a four week radio buy in the Phoenix, Tucson, Flagstaff and Prescott markets. Other campaign activities included fund-raising, media training, community outreach and collaborative programming on mental health issues and policy concerns, among others.