Conference Highlights

AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention, August 2012

	Outgoing AVAPL President Pam Fischer hands the traditional "Chief of Chiefs/Leader of Leaders" sweatshirt to incoming President Mary Levenson. The sweatshirt honors years' worth of Presidents of AVAPL and has often been decorated to reflect the personality of the President.
Past President George Shorter makes an emphatic point at the annual AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention in Orlando.
	AVAPL President Pam Fischer honors Past President George Shorter for his three years of service on the Executive Committee of AVAPL.
President-Elect John Klocek and Secretary Steve Cavicchia listen to questions from the attendees at the annual AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention in Orlando.
	Amy Street receives the AVAPL Leadership Award from incoming President Mary Levenson during the annual AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention in Orlando.
Diane Elmore (right) and Heather Kelly (left) from the American Psychological Association discuss their efforts to support and advocate for VA psychologists.

AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention, August 2011

The AVAPL Executive Committee presides over the Annual Business Meeting at the APA Convention. From left to right, outgoing President George Shorter, Treasurer Ann Landes, incoming President Pam Fischer, and Secretary Lisa Kearney.

 

Outgoing AVAPL President George Shorter presents the Antonette Zeiss Distinguished Leadership Award to Bob Gresen. Dr. Gresen is a former President of AVAPL.

 

Bob Gresen introduces Toni Zeiss, the newly selected Chief Consultant for the Office of Mental Health Services in VA Central Office. Dr. Zeiss is the first woman and the first psychologist to hold this position in VA history.

 

Outgoing AVAPL President George Shorter congratulates Toni Zeiss for her appointment as Chief Consultant for the Office of Mental Health Services.

 

Lisa Kearney and Toni Zeiss discuss the upcoming workload productivity directive during the Office of Mental Health Services update at the 2011 APA Convention.

 

 

13th Annual VA Psychology Leadership Conference, May 2010

Advancing Psychology in the Evolving Veterans Health Care System

(Note: All presentations are in Adobe Acrobat format, and many of the files are very large and will take a substantial amount of time to access unless you're on a broadband connection to the internet.)

Thursday, May 13, 2010

• Opening Keynote Address

  • Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D., Deputy Chief Consultant, VACO Office of Mental Health Services

• Invited Panel

  • VA Programs for Justice-Involved Veterans. Sean Clark, J.D., National Coordinator, Veterans Justice Outreach, VA Central Office

  • Homeless in America: Responding to the Challenge of Homelessness among Veterans. Victor Carlson, Psy.D., Chief, Homeless Services, VA New Jersey Health Care System

• Invited Address: Office of Academic Affiliations Update

  • Update on Psychology Education in VA. Robert Zeiss, Ph.D., Director, Associated Health Education, Office of Academic Affiliations, VACO

  • VA Psychology Training Council Update. Jeanette Hsu, Ph.D., Chair, VA Psychology Training Council

• Invited Panel

  • An Overview of Family Services being supported by the VA Office of Mental Health Services. Shirley Glynn, Ph.D., VA Office of Mental Health Services, VA GLAHS at West Los Angeles

  • Behavioral Couples Therapy for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse. Timothy O’Farrell, Ph.D.,ABPP, VA Boston Healthcare System and Harvard Medical School

• Invited Address

  • The APA Practice Organization: Working on Behalf of Professional Psychology. Randy Phelps, Ph.D., APA Deputy Executive Director for Professional Practice

Friday, May 14, 2010

• Invited Address

  • Evidence Based Practice and Outcomes: A View from APA. Carol Goodheart, Ed.D., President, American Psychological Association; Independent Practice, Princeton, NJ

• VA Central Office Invited Panel

  • Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D., Deputy Chief Consultant, VACO Office of Mental Health Services

  • John Allen, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Addictive Disorders, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Sonja V. Batten, Ph.D., Deputy Director, Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and TBI
  • Jeffrey Burk, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Services, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Bradley Karlin, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Psychotherapy and Psychogeriatrics, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Kathleen Lysell, Psy.D, Associate Chief Consultant, Informatics, VACO Office of Mental Health Services

• Invited Address

  • Pat DeLeon, Ph.D., MPH, JD, Past President, American Psychological Association

• Invited Panel

  • Treating Tobacco Dependence and Providing Smoking Cessation Services: What Have We Learned? Mark Ackerman, Ph.D., Health Psychologist, Atlanta VA

  • Integrated Mental Health and Pain Care for Returning OEF/OIF Service Members. Michael E. Clark, Ph.D., Clinical Director, Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program, James A. Haley VA Hospital

  • Using Technology to Support Screening, Identification, and Early Intervention for Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders. Ken Weingardt, Ph.D., Director, Web Services, Office of Mental Health Services, Veterans Health Administration

Saturday, May 15, 2010

• Workshop

  • Ethics and Ethical Decision Making for Practicing Psychologists. Stephen Behnke, J.D., Ph.D., Director, APA Ethics Office

Twelfth Annual VA Leadership Conference, May 2009

(Note: All presentations are in Adobe Acrobat format, and many of the files are very large and will take a substantial amount of time to access unless you're on a broadband connection to the internet.)

Thursday, May 7, 2009

• Opening Keynote Address
  • James Bray, Ph.D., President – American Psychological Association
• Thriving During Times of Organizational Change
  • Bob Gresen, Ph.D., Consultant to the VACO Office of Mental Health Services; Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical College of Wisconsin
  • Kendra Weaver, Psy.D., Mental Health Services Manager, VISN 9
• Invited Address: Update from the Office of Academic Affiliations and VA Psychology Training Council
  • Robert Zeiss, Ph.D., Associated Health Education, Office of Academic Affiliations, VACO
  • Wayne Siegel, Ph.D., ABPP, Chair, VA Psychology Training Council
• VA Central Office Invited Panel
  • Vision, Goals, and Principles of the Uniform Mental Health Services Handbook (Part I). Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D., Deputy Chief Consultant, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Metrics for Evaluating Implementation and Challenges to Implementation. Tim Cuerdon, Ph.D., Director of Measurement and Evaluation, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
• VA Central Office Invited Panel
  • Substance Use Disorder Care in VA and Handbook Requirements. John Allen, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Addictive Disorders, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Psychosocial Rehabilitation and the Recovery Model: Care in VA and Handbook Requirements. Jeffrey Burk, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Services, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Update on Implementation of Hybrid Title 38 Authority in VA. Jeffrey Burk, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Services, VACO Office of Mental Health Services

Friday, May 8, 2009

• Invited Address: Advocacy for the Practice of Psychology
  • Randy Phelps, Ph.D., Deputy Executive Director for Professional Practice of the American Psychological Association
• VA Central Office Invited Panel
  • Vision, Goals, and Principles of the Uniform Mental Health Services Handbook (Part II). Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D., Deputy Chief Consultant, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Collaboration of VHA with the Department of Defense Centers of Excellence: Supporting Handbook Implementation and Supporting DOD Advances in Care for Psychological Health and TBI. Sonja V. Batten, Ph.D., Deputy Director, Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and TBI
• VA Central Office Invited Panel
  • Psychogeriatric Care and Evidence Based Psychotherapy Dissemination: Support for Handbook Requirements. Bradley Karlin, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Psychotherapy and Psychogeriatrics, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Mental Health Informatics in VA: Advances and Challenges. Kathleen Lysell, Psy.D., Associate Chief Consultant, Informatics, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
• Breakout Groups:
  • Evidence Based Psychotherapy (Drs. Lemle and McNamara)
  • Mentoring/Leadership Development (Drs. Lovett and Adler)
  • Psychosocial Rehabilitation (Drs. Madden and Neale)
  • Primary Care-Mental Health Integration (Drs. Fischer and Kearney)
• Invited Address
  • Pat DeLeon, Ph.D., MPH, JD, Past President, American Psychological Association
• Progressive Leadership and Psychologists: Executive Career Fields in VHA
  • Dee Ramsel, Ph.D., Training Director, VHA National Center for Organization Development
  • Michael Jorge, Ph.D., Associate Director, James A Haley Tampa VA Hospital and Clinics

Saturday, May 9, 2009

• Workshop 1: New Training Directors' Workshop
  • Wayne Siegel, Ph.D., ABPP, Director of Training/Psychology Supervisor, Minneapolis VA Medical Center Chair, VA Psychology Training Council
• Workshop 2: Assessing and Treating Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Within the VA: Unique Opportunities and Challenges
  • Stacey J. Pollack, PhD., Director Trauma Services Program, Washington DC VA Medical Center
  • Pamela J. Fitzpatrick, Ph.D., ABPP-RP, Acting Program Manager - Polytrauma Support Clinic Team, Director of Training, South Texas Veterans Health Care System
    • Reference List

 

---

2008 AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention in Boston

	Bob Gresen accepting the Distinguished Career Award from Past President Jamie Adler.
	Treasurer, and newly elected President-Elect, June Malone presents Richard Greenblatt the AVAPL Leadership Award.
	Lisa Kearney accepts the AVAPL Professional Service Award for Stephen Getsinger. Secretary Jim Besyner presents the award.
	AVAPL President presents Wayne Siegel with the AVAPL Professional Service Award.
	June Malone accepts awards for the completion of her term as Treasurer and for her tireless work as Chair for the annual VA Psychology Leadership Conference.
	Jamie Adler is recognized for the completion of his work as President-Elect, President, and Past President of AVAPL. President Steven Lovett presents the award.
	Mark Hinterthuer takes over as President of AVAPL and dons the traditional "Chief of Chiefs/Leader of Leaders" sweatshirt.

---

Eleventh Annual VA Leadership Conference, April 2008

(Note: All presentations are in Adobe Acrobat format, and many of the files are very large and will take a substantial amount of time to access unless you're on a broadband connection to the internet.)

• Opening Keynote Address
  • James Bray, Ph.D., President-Elect, American Psychological Association
• Returning Troops Panel
  • Sonja Batten, Ph.D., Coordinator, Trauma and Recovery Center, VA Maryland Health Care System
  • Suzy Gulliver, Ph.D., Director, VISN 17 Center of Excellence on Returning War Veterans
  • Melissa Polusny, Ph.D., Post Traumatic Stress Recovery Team, Minneapolis VA Medical Center
• Suicide Prevention
  • Bradley E. Karlin, Ph.D., Director, Psychotherapy Programs, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
• Traumatic Brain Injury Panel
  • Rose Collins, Ph.D., Lead Psychologist, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center, Minneapolis VAMC
  • Rodney Vanderploeg, Ph.D., Head of Neuropsychology, Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, Tampa VAMC
• Timothy Shea, FACHE, Director, Veterans Health Administration, VISN 17
• Invited Address
  • Robert Zeiss, Ph.D., Associated Health Education, Office of Academic Affiliations, VACO
• Central Office Update
  • Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D., Deputy Chief Consultant, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • John Allen, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Addictive Disorders, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Kathleen M. Lysell, Ph.D., Associate Chief Consultant for Informatics, VACO
  • Kendra Weaver, Psy.D., Acting Associate Chief Consultant for Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Services, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Jeffrey Burk, Ph.D., Chair, Psychology National Professional Standards Board, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
  • Bradley Karlin, Ph.D., Director, Psychotherapy Programs, VACO Office of Mental Health Services
• Invited Address
  • Pat DeLeon, Ph.D., MPH, JD, Past President, American Psychological Association
• Primary Care Panel
  • Julius Gylys, Ph.D., Director of Primary Care Behavioral Health, N. Florida/S. Georgia Veterans Health System, Gainesville, FL
  • Ann Landes, Ph.D., Primary Care Psychologist, N. Florida/S. Georgia Veterans Health System, Gainesville, FL
  • Anna Dematatis, Ph.D., Coordinator of the Primary Care-Mental Health Integration Program, John D. Dingell VA Medical Center, Detroit, MI
• Workshop 1: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
  • Robyn Walser, Ph.D., Acting Associate Director for Education National Center for PTSD, VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Menlo Park, CA
• Workshop 2: Implementing the Recovery Model
  • Kendra Weaver, PsyD, Acting Associate Chief Consultant, OMHS PS&R Services Section, Office of Mental Health Services, VACO, Implementation of Recovery Principles & Services
  • Anthony Campinell, PhD, Director, Therapeutic & Supported Employment, Office of Mental Health Services, VACO, Therapeutic and Supported Employment Programs (TSEP)
  • David Carroll, Ph.D., Director, Recovery Services, Office of Mental Health Services, VACO, VA Recovery Transformation & Local Recovery Coordinators
  • Peggy Henderson, Ph.D., Director, Consumer Liaison Services, Office of Mental Health Services, VACO, Consumer & Liaison Services
  • Tim Smith, Ph.D., Director, Outpatient PSR&R Services, Office of Mental Health Services, VACO, Psychosocial Rehabilitation & Recovery Center (PRRC): A New Mental Health Paradigm
  • Kathy Dohoney, Psy.D., Dallas VA Medical Center, The Power of Peers Within a Mental Health Care System
  • Susan J. McCutcheon, Ph.D., Director, Family Services, Women's Mental Health, and Military Sexual Trauma, VACO, Family Services
  • National Recovery Advisory Committee Reading List

   

Tenth Annual VA Leadership Conference, May 2007

• Did You Know... (part of Russ Newman's presentation). This presentation uses Flash and should play in your web browser. The file is very large (over 8 MB) and may take some time to start even with a high-speed connection. You may want to download this file to your hard drive (right-click the link above and choose "Save Target As..." or "Save Link As..." Once the file is downloaded, open it with your web browser. The original presentation is by Karl Fisch, Director of Technology at Arapahoe High School in Colorado. With his permission, Scott McLeod made the different versions available here. Mr. Fisch's original (and his sources) are here.
   
• PowerPoint Presentations and Handouts or Supplemental Materials (all are PowerPoint presentations unless otherwise specified; to save on your hard drive, right click on the link and select Save As... or Save Target As...; some files are quite large)
  • Opening Keynote
    • APA and VA Psychology: An Enduring Partnership -- Sharon Stephens Brehm, Ph.D.
  • Psychosocial Rehabilitation
    • Robert Gresen, Ph.D.
    • Wayne Gregory, Ph.D.
  • Invited Address
    • Robert Zeiss, Ph.D., Office of Academic Affiliations
  • Advances in Tele-Health Care for Veterans
    • Jamie Adler, Ph.D.
    • David Mohr, Ph.D.
  • Traumatic Brain Injury Assessment and Treatment
    • Rodney Vanderploeg, Ph.D.
  • Opening Remarks
    • Michael J. Kussman, M.D., Acting Under Secretary for Health (now confirmed) addresses the conference. This file is very large at over 10 MB in size.
  • Keynote Address
    • Russ Newman, Ph.D., J.D.
  • Central Office Update
    • Ira Katz, M.D.
    • Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D.
    • Kathleen Lysell, Psy.D.
  • Organizational Development
    • Jill Draime, Psy.D.

 

Ninth Annual VA Leadership Conference, April 2006

• PowerPoint Presentations and Handouts or Supplemental Materials (all are PowerPoint presentations unless otherwise specified; to save on your hard drive, right click on the link and select Save As... or Save Target As...; some files are quite large)
  • Keynote Speaker: Gerald Koocher
    • Family Perspectives on Coping with Loss
  • Panel: OEF/OIF
    • Polytrauma Rehabilitation: A New Model of Care -- Rose Collins
    • Traumatic Brain Injury within the VHA and DOD Systems of Health Care -- Rodney Vanderploeg
    • Traumatic Brain Injury: Independent Study Course -- Rodney Vanderploeg (Adobe Acrobat)
    • OIF/OEF Women -- Darrah Westrup
  • Invited Address: Linda Johnson, Ph.D., RN
    • The Office of Academic Affiliations: An Update and How It Impacts the Support of Psychology Education
  • Panel: Leadership Models for Behavioral Health
    • The Shared Leadership and Management Model -- Rich Carothers
    • Leadership in Psychology -- Terence Keane
    • Leadership Models in Behavioral Healthcare -- Kendra Weaver
  • Panel: Chronic Pain
    • Chronic Pain and PTSD: Developing an Integrated Treatment Approach -- John Otis
  • Hybrid Title 38 Conversion Status -- Antonette Zeiss
  • Central Office Update
    • Central Office Update -- Ira Katz
    • VACO Activity -- Antonette Zeiss
    • Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Services -- Bob Gresen
    • Mental Health Informatics Update -- Katy Lysell
  • Integrated Models of Care
    • Primary Care Psychology -- Lisa Kearney
    • Integrated Models of Care: Pain Management -- Bob Kerns
    • Integrated Models of Care: Examples from HBPC and Cardiology -- Steven Lovett
  • Prescribing Psychoactive Medications in Public Service Psychology: Demographics of Applicants -- Dolly Sadow
  • Sunday Workshop: Providing care to OIF/OEF veterans -- Steve McCutcheon, PhD Matthew Jakupcak, PhD
    • Part I: Epidemiology
    • Part II: Northwest Network Post-Deployment Health Service Delivery Model
    • Part III: Deployment Health Clinic
    • Part IV: Integrating Acceptance-based Behavior Therapy into Exposure-based therapy for PTSD
    • Part V: Behavioral Activation Strategies for the Treatment of PTSD

2005 APA Convention — Washington, DC

Kathy McNamara, incoming President of AVAPL, received the ceremonial "Chief of Chiefs/Leader of Leaders" sweatshirt from outgoing President Terry Keane at the 2005 Business Meeting held at the APA Convention in Washington, DC. Jamie Adler, Ph.D., was introduced as the new President-Elect at the AVAPL Business Meeting at the APA Convention in Washington, DC.

• History of Psychology in the VA — Documents
  • Treatment Contributions of VA Psychologists After WWII — Rodney R. Baker
  • Laying the Foundation for Research By Psychologists in the Veterans Administration (VA): 1946-1980 — Walter Erich Penk
  • VA Psychology in Central Office: A View From the Top — Charles A Stenger, PhD

  (These documents are in Adobe Acrobat format. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer, click here to download the free program.)

2005 VA Leadership Conference — Dallas, Texas

• Letter and recommendations to Deputy Secretary Mansfield
  • Response from Secretary Mansfield
• Combat Handouts (Adobe Acrobat file)

Previous conference highlights can be found on the AVAPL Archives page.