(Major topics for discussion at the annual meetings of the Board on Professional Standards and the Executive Council on April 28 and 29 as well as at the Meeting of Members on May 1, were plans for a National Conference on Psychoanalytic Training and Research and the Nixon Administration's decision to cut drastically training funds for psychiatrists and other mental health professionals. These items are covered in separate stories in this issue. In this section will be given a brief review of other significant reports made to the two bodies and the actions taken.)
New Training Analysts: The Board approved the appointment of a number of new training and/or supervising analysts. Their names and the names of their Institutes are as follows:
Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute — Dr. Arnold H. Modell.
Division of Psychoanalytic Education, State University of New York, College of Medicine at New York City (Downstate) — Drs. Samuel Abrams, Harold P. Blum, Bernard D. Fine.
Los Angeles Psychoanalytic Society and Institute — Drs. Jack S. Abrams, Justin D. Call, Abraham H. Gettesman, Joshua A. Hoffs, William S. Horowitz, Arthur J. Ourieff, Kenneth Rubin, Morton Shane.
New Orleans Psychoanalytic Institute — Drs. Andrew J. Sanchez, Vann Erwin Spruiell, Ernest O. Svenson, E. Burton White, Jr.
Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute — Dr. Judith S. Schachter.
San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute — Dr. James R. Faircloth.
Seattle Psychoanalytic Institute — Drs. Theodore L. Dorpat, William D. Horton.
The following new Geographic Training Analysts, approved at the Board meeting in December, 1970, were announced:
Baltimore — District of Columbia Institute for Psychoanalysis for Miami — Drs. Gabriel E. Casuso, Alberto de la Torre, Jose N. Gurri.
Los Angeles and Southern California Joint Committee for San Diego — Drs. Sanford M. Izner, Allan D. Rosenblatt, James T. Thickstun.
The Board approved a waiver request from the Southern California Psychoanalytic Institute to permit the appointment of Rudolf Ekstein, Ph.D., as Supervisor in Child Analysis.
Child Analysis Committee: Unanimous approval was given to two established child analysis programs, at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute and at the Institute of the Philadelphia Association, and one new program, that of the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute. This brings the number of approved programs to 12 (out of 15), Dr. Calvin Settlage, the Committee Chairman, reported.
Committee on Institutes: Dr. Edward Weinshel, Chairman, described four recent or current workshops of the Committee: a Library Conference; a Workshop on “Candidate Participation in the Educational Process;” one on “Candidate Assessment for Matriculation;” and one on “Problems of Prolonged Training.” He also reported on the findings of a sub-Committee which studied the procedures of the several Institutes relative to the tenure, reappointment, and retirement of training analysts. By the end of 1972 all Institutes except one will have had a site visit within a ten year span. Concerned with the cost to the Association and the Institutes, the Committee is considering alternatives to the present Periodic Review Program. It was the sense of the Board that the site visit process is tremendously useful and that it should be modified and supplemented rather than discontinued. The Fellows endorsed the Committees proposal to explore follow-up procedures which would provide evaluative data on the impact and usefulness of the site visit and reinforce the collaborative potential of the relationship between the Committee and Institutes.
Committee on New Training Facilities: Continuing and generally favorable progress was reported by Dr. Homer C. Curtis for the geographic area training programs in St. Louis, Cincinnati, New Jersey, Seattle-Portland, Atlanta, New Orleans-Houston-Galveston, and North Carolina-Duke. A Miami Training Committee has been formed of three Geographic Rule Training Analysts under the sponsorship of the Baltimore-D. C. Institute. A recent site visit to the San Diego Joint Committee program indicates that training there has had a good start under favorable auspices. The Denver Provisional Institute is continuing its vigorous program of psychoanalytic development.
Membership Committee: Fifteen applicants were approved by the Committee, endorsed by the Board, and duly elected to membership at the Meeting of Members. The Committee has initiated the practice of sending a letter to new graduates of Institutes, outlining the functions and values of membership in the Association, inviting their application and offering help in the process. Similar letters will be sent to those who were graduated earlier but have not yet applied.
Dr. Alan J. Eisnitz is the new Chairman of this Committee. The outgoing Chairman, Dr. Leo S. Loomie, received the hearty thanks of the Fellows for his six years of outstanding leadership.
Committee on Psychoanalytic Education: The report of Dr. Kenneth Calder summarized the questions this Committee is raising about its future functions. These were amplified in a plenary session during the scientific meeting devoted to a panel on the past and future of COPE.
Committee on Training for Research: Dr. Morton Reiser announced
plans of the Committee to meet with research candidates to consider problems of empirical research and methodology. The Fellows voted unanimously to accept the Committee's recommendation that the criteria for acceptance of non-medical candidates be broadened to include those identified as significant scholars and educators in their field. In addition to its usual task of screening researchers, the Committee was authorized to evaluate applicants in this new category, who are academicians and educators of excellence.
Committee on Residency Training: The latest effort of this Committee, reported by its Chairman, Dr. James Mann, involved a comparison of 36 psychiatric residents who are also candidates in psychoanalytic training and 36 residents who are not. The study reached some tentative conclusions as to the factors that may decide whether a resident decides to enter analytic training or not.
Osteopathic Physicians Acceptable for Training: The fact that a number of osteopathic physicians have applied for psychoanalytic training has demonstrated the need for a statement of policy regarding their eligibility. The Board noted that osteopathic physicians are being increasingly integrated into medicine by changes in the licensing regulations of many states, and at the December, 1970, meeting the Fellows adopted the position that they would be eligible if they have been accepted for psychiatric training by an accredited residency program. A relatively simple By-Law revision to effect this change has been approved by Council and will be presented to the members for mail ballot vote.
Invitation to IPA: An invitation to the International Psycho-Analytical Association for a Congress in the United States in 1975, proposed by the Executive Committee, was unanimously approved by the Executive Council. The exact time and place are yet to be determined.
Candidates on Editorial Board of the Journal: The Council accepted the recommendation that two psychoanalytic candidates be added to the Editorial Board of the Journal by a method yet to be determined. The special qualifications of the persons nominated would be presented to Council, since they would not be as well known as the long term members of the Association who are nominated.
Provisional Programs to go to Candidates: The Executive Committee, responding to a request from the Chairman of the Program Committee, announced that in the future Provisional Programs will be mailed directly to candidates provided there is no objection from the Institutes. Previously, provisional programs have been sent in bulk to the Institutes for distribution to candidates with some consequent delay.
Liaison with Other Professions: The Executive Committee proposed, and the Council approved appointment of a new Committee on Liaison with Other Professional Organizations. The proposal stemmed from the fact that numerous requests for collaborative approaches to various problems have been received in recent years. Members of the new Committee will be selected from those whose activity in other professional associations has established contacts which will facilitate liaison.
By-Law Amendment Passed: Council heard that the By-Law Amendment providing recognition to non-medical Training and Supervising Analysts, prepared by a Committee under the Chairmanship of Dr. David Kairys, was passed on mail ballot by a vote of 627 to 254, a majority of 71 per cent. According to the By-Law, nonmedical Training and Supervising Analysts are eligible for membership by special invitation two years after their appointment. Those appointed prior to January 1, 1971, are eligible at once, and it was announced that letters of invitation from the President will go out to this group immediately after the meeting. The Committee was discharged by the Council with thanks for the task it had carried to a successful conclusion.
Co-ordination of Council Committee Work: An effort to improve the coordination and integration of the work of the Committees of the Executive Council will follow the pattern established in the Board. In December the President and President-Elect will have a coordinating meeting with the Chairmen of Council Committees before the meeting of the Council. It is hoped that the Council Committees will meet earlier in the week, before this coordinating session.
Members to Receive Abstracts of Standard Edition: Dr. Bernard Fine, Chairman of the Committee on Indexing, announced that the National Clearing House for Mental Health Information will publish a book of abstracts of the Standard Edition in connection with the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the National Mental Health Act in June. The Committee on Indexing had promoted this project, corrected the abstracts, and maintained quality control over them. A preface by Dr. Fine will make appropriate mention of the participation of the APsaA in the undertaking. A free copy of the book will be sent to each member of the Association.
Representatives to IPA: Dr. Marcel Heiman and the Executive Secretary, Mrs. Helen Fischer, were appointed as representatives of the Association to the 27th Internationa] Psycho-Analytical Congress, to be held in Vienna in July.