IPA Bulletin
President's Message by Joel Sadavoy

This will be my final column for the Bulletin as President of IPA. It has been a great honor
and pleasure to serve IPA as President over the past very eventful two years. This is a wonderful organization in many ways but, in particular, it has been a revelation to me to see how committed and selfless our leadership and members have been in working on behalf of the IPA. Since 2005, IPA has faced, and I am pleased to report successfully dealt with, a number of major challenges including the seminal transition in executive directors. One of the highlights of my term has been the opportunity to work with our executive director, Susan Oster, who has been a remarkable and wise ally and support. Many others have given unstintingly of their time, expertise and energy to ensure that IPA and IPA’s mission are fulfilled. I especially want to express my admiration and thanks to the IPA Executive Committee: Immediate Past President Dr. George Grossberg, President-Elect Dr. Helen Fung-kum Chiu, Treasurer Dr. Philippe Robert, Treasurer-Elect Dr. Jacobo Mintzer, and Secretary Dr. Masatoshi Takeda. This very strong leadership group was complemented by the heads and members of key committees including the new Corporate Strategy Committee, the Meetings Committee, the Board Affairs Committee, the new Advocacy Committee, the new Website Committee (including Learning Portal), the task force leads and the chairs of our many meetings and congresses. I also should acknowledge David Ames, John O’Brien, and Nicola Lautenschlager for their leadership of the International Psychogeriatric Association Journal, and of course, David Folks and Richard Bonwick of the IPA Bulletin. I want to warmly thank all of these leaders and everyone else who has participated so ably and effectively over the last two years. I look forward to the next two years serving on the Executive Committee of our new president, Dr. Helen Chiu.

The business of the organization has continued to progress in the past few months. Since my last column, we have formalized an agreement with GE Healthcare for a first seminar on neuroimaging to be convened by its chairs Dr. John O’Brien and Dr. Philip Scheltens in Amsterdam in November. We have successfully finalized developing the agenda for action with our special emphasis on working with them to define international patterns of care and treatment of elders. We continue to talk to other potential partners. Our initiatives over the past year together with the remarkable achievement of Dr. Masatoshi Takeda in creating the Osaka Congress combined to put IPA on a much firmer financial footing. Having said this, it is important to issue my usual caution that we have a considerable way to go before the organization can feel fully secure financially.

At the recent IPA Board of Directors meeting, the Board approved the outline of our priority agenda for the coming two years. It includes a plan to focus our key programming initiatives such as consensus conference, regional meeting, live broadcast, and partnership initiatives within the broad frame of the approved advocacy and public policy initiative. While there is flexibility in the planning process for each of these activities, it is the Board’s intent that public policy and advocacy be the guide for their themes.

IPA moves into its second quarter century under the inspiring leadership of our new President, Dr. Helen Chiu. She, together with our outstanding new Executive, will continue to vigorously promote IPA’s mission to ensure better mental health of seniors around the world ahead. IPA’s strong forward-looking agenda and committed membership, its highly effective administrative leadership, and improved financial base, are all clear indications of IPA’s strength. I am in no doubt that our organization will continue to grow and be a strong catalyst for the development of Psychogeriatrics around the world. Let me end this column by reiterating my deep and warm thanks to all of you for your support and issue you a warm invitation to join me in Osaka to continue to discuss IPA and the field’s priorities and future.

Reprinted from IPA Bulletin, Volume 24, Number 3