Midway through my term as president is an auspicious time for reappraisal, for asking myself and the Executive Committee, “How are we doing?” We have a vital organization, functioning smoothly, and are active on many fronts. By such standards as meeting attendance and membership we are doing rather well. Recently our membership, for the first time, exceeded 3,500 analysts.
But how well are we meeting the needs and expectations of our members, for whom the organization exists? How are we functioning as a professional organization? To answer these questions we need feedback from our members.
What do members want and expect from their professional organization? A professional organization should reflect and enhance the status of the profession. It should contribute to its members' professional identity and strengthen their pride in their profession. The organization should foster scientific development and insure its growth by welcoming new, qualified members. It should present the profession to the scientific and general publics in an effective manner and protect it against threats to its continuing development.
Do members feel the APsaA is enhancing the field of psychoanalysis and contributing to their satisfaction with their careers? How effective do members feel our public information and political activity in Washington have been in representing psychoanalysis? Is there more we could be doing? How might we improve similar activities on the local level?
On a more personal level, a professional association should provide a community where members can find collegial interaction that broadens perspectives and enhances personal development. The results of the recent survey of our meetings highlighted the importance of this dimension. Topping the list of reasons for attendance was the “chance to meet with friends and colleagues from around the country.” A close second choice was the “opportunity to participate in discussion groups and workshops” where interaction is actively encouraged. Clearly members attend meetings for the opportunity to be part of a community of professional colleagues.
How effective have we been on behalf of our members who are unable to attend our meetings? JAPA presents recent scientific and scholarly contributions to our field, and TAP offers information about the organization, its members, and activities. To what extent do the members and opinion lists on our e-mail server contribute to a sense of participation? Are these sufficient to meet members' professional and social needs? How might we involve all members more actively in our professional community?
A professional organization must also provide certain services that would be more difficult or impossible for the individual member to acquire on his or her own. These include insurance coverage both professional and personal, venues for meeting continuing education requirements, access to recent scientific developments relevant to our field, and information about governmental actions that may affect our professional careers.
In a society in which large corporations are wielding increasing influence, we look to our professional organization to respond to monolithic entities such as are found in the managed care, pharmaceutical, and information industries and to address governmental agencies and programs that impinge on our profession. Are we being effective in these areas?
Perhaps the leading question a psychoanalyst has for his or her professional organization is what it contributes to practice. In the changing clinical environment, practice development represents a major challenge for practitioners. Does membership in the APsaA contribute to practice growth and satisfaction?
Practice surveys over the years have indicated an approximate 1 percent annual decline in the number of analytic patients, a decrease that may be accelerating. This erosion in clinical practice represents the major challenge for our profession and for our organization. Is this decrease in psychoanalytic caseloads partially offset by an increase in psychotherapy practice, or is psychotherapy also in decline? We have initiated a marketing survey to help us explore this problem and suggest recommendations for addressing it. Is there more the APsaA can do to enhance the clinical practice of its members?
Having presented many more questions than answers, I would like to invite our members to help us assess how we are doing as a professional association and where we should focus our efforts and resources. Each member has a contribution to make to this re-examination. The Executive Committee wants to hear directly from members, either by e-mail or by letter. To increase communication between members and their leadership, the Council Membership Committee is implementing a “Suggestion Box” on the APsaA Web site. The committee will also be developing other avenues to encourage members to make their views known. We want to make the APsaA a vital and effective force in strengthening psychoanalysis and improving the professional careers of our members.
Get involved, get active, and participate. This remains the most effective way of strengthening the APsaA.