2003 Annual Reports for Boards and Committees

COMMITTEE ON AGING 2003 ANNUAL REPORT

MEMBERS

The six members of the Committee on Aging for 2003 were Forrest Scogin, PhD, (Chair), John Cavanaugh, PhD, Greg Hinrichsen, PhD, Leonard Poon, PhD, Beth Hudnall Stamm, PhD, and Antonette Zeiss, PhD.

MEETINGS

The Committee on Aging held one formal meeting on February 21-23, 2003. The consolidated meeting format as well as the committee’s fall meeting was cancelled due to the APA budget shortfall. In lieu of their fall meeting, CONA discussed time sensitive agenda items via conference call on September 15, 2003. In addition, in order to complete the expanding activities of the committee, a schedule of regular conference calls was instituted and calls occurred in April, December and June.

MISSION

There shall be a Committee on Aging that shall concern itself with furthering the major purpose of APA to advance psychology as a science and profession and as a means of promoting health and human welfare by ensuring that older adults, especially the growing numbers of older women and minorities, receive the attention of the association.

The Committee on Aging activities in 2003 addressed each of the goals in its Mission Statement.

Science: Provide strong and visible advocacy for a scientific agenda on aging to policy makers and private and public funding agencies.

1. Former CONA chair and representative, Steve Zarit, PhD, represented APA at the National Institute on Mental HealthAdvisory Council Meeting in September 2003. He presented comments on the Council’s report, Mental Health for a Lifetime: Research for the Mental Health Needs of Older Americans. The report recommended several strategies to increase coordination and support for research and training in mental health and aging. Dr. Zarit recommended that NIMH consider reinstating the Aging Branch and increasing funding for aging research and training.
2. CONA chair, Forrest Scogin, PhD, presented a paper, The Underuse of Evidence-based Psychological Interventions with Older Adults at APA’s 2003 Convention. The paper, offered as part of a Board for Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI) symposium, focused on the efficacy of psychosocial treatments for older adults in the areas of geriatric depression and anxiety disorders.
• CONA and the American Bar Association’s Commission on Law and Aging have commenced a project on competency assessment and older adults. Two meetings have been convened (May and December 2003) at which attorneys and psychologists discussed the contours of competence and capacity assessment of elders. Attorneys are increasingly confronted with issues related to assessment of capacity in older adults. Psychologists have a scientific body of knowledge in this area that can assist attorneys in their dealings with elder clients. The first collaborative product of the project will be a document for lawyers that describes the key steps in the preliminary assessment of capacity in older adults. It will address issues such as initial screening indicators (red flags), assessment tools and what they measure, procedures for referral to a psychologist/assessor, interpretation and use of assessment reports, dementia facts and myths, and the aging process including special considerations in interactions with older clients. The document will be developed in 2004.

1. CONA is contributing to efforts to increase availability of psychological services for older adults under Medicare through its Medicare Local Medical Review Policies (LMRPs) Tool Kit completed in February 2003. The purpose of the tool kit is to assist psychologists in understanding Medicare provisions for psychological services and in providing input into their development. Components include an explanation of the LMRP development process, opportunities for advocacy, and tools, such as samples of correspondence with insurance intermediaries, “psychology-friendly” LMRP provisions, and empirical evidence to support incorporation of such provisions. It can be accessed at: http://www.apa.org/pi/aging/lmrp/ .
2. CONA members provided input to the Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Older Adults developed by the Division 12-Section II and Division 20 Interdivisional Task Force on Practice in Clinical Geropsychology. The guidelines were adopted as APA Policy in August 2003. They can be accessed from the Practice Directorate website at: http://www.apa.org/practice/Guidelines_for_Psychological_Practice_with_Older_Adults.pdf.

Policy: Contribute to the formulation and support of public policies and associated regulations that promote optimal development of older adults, facilitate psychological practice with older persons, and expand scientific understanding of adult development and aging.

1. CONA was successful in working with the APA Public Policy Office and the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry to modify the Positive Aging Act introduced by Senator John Breaux and Representative Patrick Kennedy to reflect an interdisciplinary model of mental health care for older adults that is inclusive of psychology. The bill would integrate mental health services and medical care within primary care and improve access by older adults to mental health services in community-based settings.
2. CONA provided continued input to The President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health. CONA and The Office on Aging submitted a written response to applaud the commission for addressing the specific needs of older adults, to highlight areas that were overlooked or needed additional consideration, and to outline policy recommendations for improving the care and quality of life of older adults. CONA also provided input to APA in determining the three priority areas from the Commission’s report to provide to SAMHSA to assist in their development of an Action Agenda to implement the recommendations of the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.

Education: Promote inclusion of knowledge about adult development and aging in all levels of education, including continuing education, training programs, and professional development of psychologists.

1. CONA continues to be active advocates for APA Education Policy Office and Office on Aging efforts related to funding of graduate training in geropsychology. This fall, the Bureau of Health Professions awarded 7 grants totaling $1,216,889 to geropsychology programs. The funds can be used to plan, develop, operate or maintain graduate geropsychology education programs to train psychologists to work with underserved older adult populations to foster an integrated approach to health care services.
2. CONA and the Office on Aging received a grant from the Retirement Research Foundation to develop materials to promote The Contribution of Geropsychology to An Aging World . A portion of the funds will be used to create materials to promote geropsychology as a career option among undergraduate psychology students. The materials will highlight the range of potential career opportunities, in geropsychology practice and research. The materials will be completed in 2004.
3. The Psychotherapy and Older Adults Resource Guide joins the four existing web-based resource guides developed by CONA members, on the Office on Aging website. The resource guides summarize research and resources on psychology and aging issues relevant to psychological practice and training.

Public Interest: Promote the application of psychological knowledge to the well being of older people, with special attention to the influences of gender, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, and family in science, practice and policy relating to older adults.

1. CONA member, Beth Hudnall Stamm, PhD, presented a paper at the APA 2003 Convention titled, The Biopsychosocial Effects of Rural Poverty on Aging. It focused on the association between low socioeconomic status and rates of medical and psychological disorders and lower access to medical care among rural, low income, older adults. The presentation was part of the Board for Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI) symposium, "The Impact of Poverty on Mental Health."
2. CONA endorsed and called for APA to support the production of Toward an inclusive psychology: Infusing the introductory course with diversity content, a booklet developed by the CEMRRAT2 Task Force Textbook Initiative Work Group (TIWG). CONA representatives were involved in the development of this document, which recognizes age as a critical and necessary component of any focus on diversity.

Public Affairs: Develop and disseminate information concerning the scientific findings and practice issues about older adults to psychologists and other professionals, policy makers, and the public.

1. CONA and the Office on Aging received a grant from the Retirement Research Foundation to develop materials that will convincingly document the contribution of geropsychology to the health and well being of older adults, their families, and caregivers. The materials will be distributed to policymakers to increase their understanding of the role psychology plays in addressing the mental and behavioral needs of older adults and to support APA’s ongoing efforts to secure the representation of geropsychology in national efforts to address the needs and support the strengths of our growing older adult population.
2. In 2003, the APA Committee on AgingAward for the Advancement of Psychology and Aging was established to recognize professional leadership and distinguished achievements in research, practice and education in the field of geropsychology, and to promote an awareness and understanding among psychologists of this growing area of psychology. The first recipient of the award was Norman Abeles, PhD. The award will be presented annually at Convention to recognize psychologists and friends of psychology who have made significant contributions to the field of geropsychology.
3. “Fighting and researching ageism” was a feature article in the May 2003 Monitor on Psychology. This article, published during Older Americans Month, sought to educate psychologists of age stereotypes and their impact on treatment behavior and older adult health and well-being. The role of geropsychologists in addressing this issue and the need for increased training opportunities in the field were also highlighted.
4. CONA member, Beth Hudnall Stamm’s expertise related to practice issues specific to rural populations was highlighted in the June 2003 issue of the Monitor on Psychology.

APA: Serve as a visible focus for the coordination of information among groups within the APA that address aging issues and offer consultation to relevant APA boards, committees, divisions, state associations, and directorates; also ensure that older members of APA receive the appropriate attention of the association.

1. CONA has formed an Aging Leadership Team as a result of discussions at the CONA Conversation Hour at the 2003 APA Convention. Current members include the CONA Chair and the Presidents of APA Divisions 20 and 12-Section II. Its objectives are to create a mechanism for increased and ongoing communication between these three groups, ensure a coordinated, timely and effective response to issues of import to geropsychology, and to facilitate the flow of information on aging issues to APA entities including offices, committees, boards, directorates, divisions and the Council of Representatives. The team will conduct business via regularly scheduled conference calls.
2. CONA regularly comments on proposed Board of Directors and Council of Representatives new business items to assure that APA policies are informed by geropsychology principles and that the impact of proposed policies upon older adults is considered. For example this year, comments were submitted regarding the Resolution on Families of Incarcerated Offenders noting the increasingly intergenerational nature of families and the increasing numbers of children that are being raised by grandparents.