Earlier this year our visionary leader Ron Fox left us after a short heroic battle with cancer. A number of us had the opportunity to visit with him during those final weeks and were extraordinarily moved by his continuing passion for the many contributions that psychology can make to our nation. The establishment of Division 55 was but one of Ron's many "gifts" to the field. Former APA President Tony Puente was able to personally present him with a special Presidential Citation and they discussed APA's renewed organizational efforts to become more effective legislatively.
"One of the unique opportunities that has arisen with the difficulties APA has encountered in recent years is that of rebuilding and transforming itself. With the unusual demands and chaos in the public arena, especially with political and social issues, APA's leadership took the special step of reconsidering the role of advocacy within the organization. APA is comprised of two organizations – one for psychology (c3) and one for psychologists (c6). The former is what most of us know about APA and what APA has been for 125 years. The latter is primarily comprised of the APA Practice Organization, devoted to the profession of psychology. After much research, thought and deliberation it was evident to us that the role and funding of the APA Practice Organization had run its course based on the foundation of its pioneering vision emerging during the late 1980s. This year the Council of Representatives, after much vetting, decided to pass an historic agenda item empowering a new vision for all aspects of the profession of psychologists – not just clinicians; but scientists, professors, public interest as well as applied psychologists. This new entity, APA Psychological Services, will now begin a robust and exhaustive advocacy program that is well funded, integrated and essentially limitless. The Association has recently put out a call for nominees to be part of the inaugural Advocacy Coordinating Committee which will be convened on January 1, 2019. This group will begin to study and prioritize APA's advocacy agenda. I am pleased to report that Ron was very supportive of this evolution and highly engaged during our discussions" (Tony Puente).
One of Ron's special attributes was his capacity to serve as a mentor for decades of colleagues, including a number of us serving with him on the Board of Directors and the Division. "Ron, who was instrumental in creating the School of Professional Psychology (SOPP) at Wright State University, valued deeply the education and training of psychologists. Consequently it is no surprise that SOPP was awarded the first grant by the APA Committee for the Advancement of Professional Psychology (CAPP) to develop a curriculum for the training that would be needed to support prescriptive authority. As a faculty member during that time I had the wonderful opportunity to work on this grant, together with our Dean for Academic Affairs Alan Barclay. As we all know, Ron was never at a loss for words, usually capturing in the most succinct way the essence of the issue. And so it was when it came to psychologists and prescribing. In one of our conversations, as we discussed the most recent vocal opposition by other psychologists to the idea, Ron commented how psychologists certainly were capable of learning! So, not to even explore the idea – yes, he saw they were objecting to the idea – in his view was being 'anti-intellectual!' Our profession has lost not only a visionary, but a voice of wisdom. Aloha" (Kathy McNamara).
"I spoke with Ron by phone shortly before he passed. I was aware that he had many calls and visits earlier. We talked for well over an hour, maybe two. Judy scheduled the time. Given his illness, I was surprised how much time he was able to talk. But I was so glad to be able to speak with him. He talked about his memories of our time working together at Wright State (1983-1992). I listened.
"Among other things, he reminisced about our times at SOPP and the many accomplishments. We had both come to Wright State after working as psychologists within Schools of Medicine (Meharry and Ohio State). The circumstances at Wright State provided an extraordinary opportunity for both of us professionally and for psychology as a profession. For example, the structure of the School of Professional Psychology existed on an equal level with the University's Schools of Medicine and Nursing. This meant that the Dean of the School had a direct reporting relationship to the University Provost and as well sometimes to the University President. This had important implications for the School's budget since it would not compete with the numerous departments (including the Psychology Department in the Liberal Arts College) and other programs within the University for allocations and controls. Among other things this added tremendous status to Psychology as an independent health profession, (i.e., not subordinate to psychiatry).
"Ron spoke proudly about the many students who trained at SOPP and who went on to successful careers. He was very proud of our success in identifying talented minority trainees as well as their career successes. He was also proud of our successes in obtaining federal grants for the School from NIMH, the HHS Health Care Opportunity grant program, and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau which at the time was unique for PsyD programs. We were also successful in obtaining support from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and the Department of Health Office of Minority Health. I remember him saying at the end: 'Looking back on it all Rod, we did great work there….' That meant a lot to me…" (Rod Hammond).
One of Ron's most enduring efforts was to significantly increase the governance and policy involvement of psychology's female and ethnic minority members. As has often been the case, Ron was decades ahead of his colleagues. Jacque Gray, a Choctaw and Cherokee descendent, has been working with her Native American colleagues to get as many Early Career Native Americans elected and appointed to various APA Boards, Committees, and Task Forces. As an Associate Editor of the Division 18 journal Psychological Services, she has been outstanding in bringing their unique perspective to the attention of public service psychologists – including those serving within the military, VA, and Indian Health Service. "The Society of Indian Psychologists' Commentary on the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct was published and has contributed to APA's understanding of ethics in a cultural context. In 2015, there were only 10 Native American Fellows of APA and rarely were any indigenous psychologists recognized for their accomplishments by APA. Since that time we have increased the number of APA Fellows by 50% and in 2018, 12 APA awards went to indigenous psychologists. Division 45 now has the Trimble Horvat Awards for a senior psychologist and a student to acknowledge contributions to Native or Indigenous Psychology. In 2016, Division 45 Presidential initiatives focused upon contributions to psychology by Native Americans. These accomplishments include Networking Theory developed by Carolyn Atteneave, Maslow taking his hierarchy of needs from the Blackfeet/Blood tribes of Montana and Canada, Jung going to the Hopi to learn about dream interpretation, Erickson learning about child rearing practices from the Lakota, and Sherif and Sherif taking over a project from three Native American graduate students at Robbers' Cave and never mentioning them. It is important for these contributions to be acknowledged and taught in psychology courses" (Jacque Gray)."
In our judgment, over the past several years, APA Board of Directors' member Beth Rom-Rymer has probably done more than any other single individual to revitalize Ron's vision for prescriptive authority (RxP). The Illinois Psychological Association's stunning 2014 legislative RxP success, under her leadership, after nearly a decade of inactivity at the state level, is simply monumental. Beth truly appreciates the importance of Ron's commitment to the next generation and I have been pleased to serve as a reviewer for her American Psychological Foundation (APF) RxP scholarship submissions, as well as participate in her various Windy City networking dinners, convening those actively seeking clinical psychopharmacology training and those who are committed to providing training for prescribing psychologists. These often include colleagues from the county, state, and federal sectors. Because she has made it a priority to participate on the Boards of mental health and educational institutions, in Illinois, major stakeholders have jumped in to support the training of prescribing psychologists. Most recently, Beth is partnering with AMITA Health, which is the third largest health system in Illinois, to create an innovative program of Graduate Psychology Assistantships in The Advancement of RxP Training.
"AMITA Health, with nine hospitals, 80 clinics and outpatient facilities, and more than 3,000 hospital-affiliated physicians, is expanding its residency training opportunities for prescribing psychologists by hiring two advanced graduate students, per year, at 20 hours/week, with significant stipends, to assist the organization of the residency training in the state-required medical rotations; assist in broadening of the residency training to accommodate the needs of psychology interns and post-docs; assist in the creation of a statewide residency program model that prepares its trainees for a superior level of prescriptive practice; assist in the lobbying efforts to expand the scope of practice of the Illinois Prescriptive Authority statute; and, to become involved in a comprehensive research program that will assess the effectiveness of prescribing psychologists, an oft-requested and much needed initiative.
"Another hospital system, based in the neighboring state of Indiana, is excited about the opportunity to integrate prescribing psychologist training into its existing medical residency program. This system is considering offering a substantial salary to psychology residents, while they pursue their medical residency program and take their place on its faculty roster. [Recall that in 1993 Mike Murphy was successful in amending the Indiana psychology statute to include prescribing; notwithstanding, his Hoosier colleagues have yet to develop an effective implementation plan.] Other new rotation training sites, under discussion, include the Illinois state and county correctional systems; a community-based (and internationally recognized) healthcare clinic for, primarily, LBGTQ residents; the largest and oldest social service organization in Illinois; and a trauma center in one of Chicago's internationally renowned medical institutions" (Beth Rom-Rymer).
Another Exciting Training Program Opening Up: "Idaho State University Department of Pharmacy is finalizing the curriculum of their two year, brick and mortar, Psychopharmacology Master's program. We are in the final stages of interviewing candidates for the director of training position. The plan is to accept students for the 2019-2020 academic year. We continue to be very interested in serving as a military post-doctoral training site and are working to expand our DOD outreach. Great things are happening!" (Page Haviland). Aloha, (German poet, playwright, and historian Friedrich Schiller, 1785).
Pat DeLeon, former APA President – Division 55 – October, 2018
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