IPA - Bulletin -
Volume 18, Number 4 - President's Report - A New Day
IPA Bulletin
President's Report
Alistair Burns
A New Day
It is with a mixture of trepidation and pleasure that I
became President of the IPA at the end of the Nice Congress in September. Trepidation because of the task of
succeeding Ed Chiu whose tenure as the head of our organization has been tremendously successful and who
is not so much a hard act to follow but an entire play. Second, because I take over at a very significant time for
IPA when we are facing a great number of challenges but also many opportunities. I feel very fortunate to inherit
the mantle at a time when the organization is in such a strong position scientifically, culturally, administratively
and financially. This is due to the hard work of my predecessors and I only hope I do not inflict too much damage
on the organization during the tenure of my presidency.
When I first became aware of IPA, it was through
Raymond Levy who, as my mentor, encouraged me to
join. As luck would have it, I was a runner up in the 1989
IPA Research Awards at this time as well. The Congress of
that year in Japan is forever etched in my memory. The
organization has grown so much since its early years that
it could have become barely recognizable since its early
days, but thanks to the stewardship of Fern Finkel, it
retains the feel of a much smaller, more friendly confederation
of like-minded people. The administrative office
has been considerably strengthened and currently fields
an incredibly strong team with Diane Nickolson, Melanie
Neal, Caroline Connelly, Kerri Leo and Diane Gnatek. This
is largely due to the success of recent meetings where the
financial underpinnings of the IPA have given us the confidence
to make substantive appointments as well as given
others the confidence to invest their own time and energy
in us. It is reassuring to have the safe hands of George
Grossberg as our most recent Treasurer and to have Eric
Caine taking over that role with Thea Heeren in her new
role as Treasurer-Elect.
Our meetings are now being organized in-house. The
combined expertise IPA has accrued has enabled us to
take this forward in the capable hands of Joel Sadavoy.
This gives us more say in the
running of our meetings and
is an indicator of how we have
matured over the years. One of
Ed Chiu’s many achievements
as President has been to have
formalized procedures that
empower us to forge ahead
with plans such as the meetings
arrangements and other
issues.
Three Goals in Sight
Part of my vision for IPA is to have the organization
express in reality its genuine multidisciplinary nature.
As nurses form a significant proportion of our membership,
I encouraged an informal meeting of nurses
attending the Lorne meeting to get together to think
about how they, as a group, may participate more actively
within the organization. The head nurse of my unit,
Alice Cheung, generously undertook the task to organize
this meeting. It is hoped that during the Nice Congress,
nurses and other allied health disciplines may meet
together informally to examine ways of more active
involvement within the organization.
I have been challenged to identify my goals for IPA during
my term. Thanks to the hard work of my predecessors,
and the current administrative support, I know I do not
need to worry about the day-to-day (or week-to-week)
running of IPA. I do have three objectives in my sights:
increasing membership involvement in the organization,
optimizing the committee structure and developing the
IPA Regional Initiative Program.
1. An Active, Engaged Membership. First, I want to
encourage members to take a more active part in the
organization. It is all too easy to view the Board of
Directors (BOD) as a rather distant group that makes decisions.
I want members to think about the organization
and let the leadership know what we can do to help them.
Members may rightly ask what they get out of joining—a
reduced rate to attend the conferences, the IPA Bulletin
and International Psychogeriatrics. But I think
members get much more. All members should feel they
belong to an organization that reflects a collegiate body
and provides a ready resource of friends and contacts
internationally. It is its international flavor that makes the
IPA unique. We need to encourage people to make the
most of their membership. A good example is the development
of special interest groups within the organization
such as the nurses’ initiative created by Ed Chiu and Alice
Cheung in Lorne.
2. An Eye on Efficiency. We need to make sure the administration of
IPA is responsive to members. There are a number of committees, task
forces and special projects and we need to maximize their efficiency. A certain
number are required by statute and we must ensure these are active
and involve as many non-BOD members as possible. The committee structure
is one way to encourage people to become more active and to grow
into leadership positions where they can truly influence our direction.
3. Regional Initiatives. I would like to further develop the regional
initiatives. IPA is the only international organization representing practitioners
from a number of disciplines and if we do not capitalize on our
global links, we will not maximize our potential. Meeting in areas of the
world normally eschewed by large organizations is one way to truly
influence for the better the care of older people with mental health
problems throughout the world.
Responding to World Events The Tenth International Meeting in Nice was clearly overshadowed by
the horrific terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C.
News came through on the afternoon of Tuesday, 11th September, 2001,
the second day of the conference. The BOD responded by meeting early
on Wednesday, 12th September 2001, and after much discussion the following
statement signed by Ed Chiu and myself, was read out at the
beginning of each scientific session of the morning.
With a deep sense of sadness, the International Psychogeriatric
Association (IPA) expresses its sympathy to those who have suffered
from yesterday’s tragic events in the United States. We recognize the
resilience of all people in such times of tragedy and offer our hopes
for their rapid restoration to full physical and mental health.
With heavy hearts, the President, Officers and Board of Directors
wish to announce that the IPA will continue the scientific program
of its Congress as a sign of steadfastness to our Mission of improving
the mental health of all older people and their families. We will
convene the planned Congress Dinner as a time of togetherness and
solidarity for our members, and in support of all those who seek to
improve the lives of others.
We believe that all our members and participants in this Tenth IPA
Congress will join us in expressing deep grief and sympathy for the
people of the United States. It is the fundamental purpose of the IPA to
bring together colleagues from around the world to enhance the mental
health of others. IPA fundamentally rejects and condemns the terror
and violence that we all have seen during the days of our meeting.
The evil acts of violence are not heroic. As an association of mental
health caregivers, we recognize them only as abnormal, unacceptable
behaviors. Our organization represents cross-national solidarity and
promotes the noble side of human nature, our capacity to care for one another. We call on other international organizations to affirm at
this time their missions to support and consolidate international collaboration
to meet the challenges that we all face now.
We hope this captured the mood and sentiments of the moment and of the
organization. A moment of silence was held at the beginning of each session
and participants joined with the rest of Europe in the three minutes of
silence at noon on Friday 14th September, just before the closing ceremony.
The Nice Congress was a fantastic success. There were over 2,000 registrants,
and attendance at the meeting, despite the tempting distractions of
Nice, was very good. Inevitably, the disruption to travel arrangements
stopped some speakers from arriving and delayed the departure of many
people already there. The invited lectures were particularly well attended
and were of an extremely high standard. Individual symposia produced
much discussion and presented new and exciting information. The Annual
General Meeting of the Organization attracted more members than usual.
The poster sessions provided the opportunity for presenters to discuss issues
with participants and the fact that they were facilitated greatly helped this
process. The Gala Evening was a subdued but collegial affair.
We are most grateful to Phillipe Robert as the Congress Chair, Joel Sadavoy,
Chair of the IPA Meetings Committee, and Francois Boller, Chair of the
Scientific Committee, as well as all the support staff from Acropolis, our
participants and sponsors.
Eagerly Anticipating Chicago
The 2003 Congress in Chicago will be a milestone in IPA history. The Third
Congress was held in Chicago and the IPA offices always have been based
just outside the city. It is fitting that the 21st anniversary of IPA will be celebrated
there and, as it is the Congress over which I will preside as President,
it will be a special occasion for me. The organization is at an advanced stage
under the capable and watchful eyes of Sandy Finkel and Jacobo Mintzer.
It is an amazing honor to have been selected as the next President of IPA.
I look forward to serving the organization to the best of my ability.
It is with a mixture of trepidation and pleasure that I
became President of the IPA at the end of the Nice Congress in September. Trepidation because of the task of
succeeding Ed Chiu whose tenure as the head of our organization has been tremendously successful and who
is not so much a hard act to follow but an entire play. Second, because I take over at a very significant time for
IPA when we are facing a great number of challenges but also many opportunities. I feel very fortunate to inherit
the mantle at a time when the organization is in such a strong position scientifically, culturally, administratively
and financially. This is due to the hard work of my predecessors and I only hope I do not inflict too much damage
on the organization during the tenure of my presidency.