At the fifth annual Veterans Affairs (VA) Psychology Leadership Conference, 80 VA psychologists and top APA and VA officials gathered to discuss ways to promote and expand the value psychologists add to the care of the nation's veterans.
The theme of this year's conference, held April 11-14 in Atlanta, was "Improving outcomes: VA psychology's contributions through organizational, clinical, research and advocacy leadership." Among the topics discussed were:
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The contributions of psychologists to the care of veterans.
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Defining, measuring and valuing VA psychologists' workload.
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Leadership roles for psychologists.
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Research outcomes applied to clinical practice.
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The use of VA's extensive databases to guide decision-making.
Co-sponsored by APA's Practice Directorate and the Association of VA Psychologist Leaders (AVAPL), the annual meeting gives VA psychologists an opportunity to develop advocacy strategies that promote the need for quality psychological services for the nation's veterans. AVAPL is a nonprofit organization of VA psychologists who work to provide care of the highest quality to veterans.
--S. MARTIN