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VAMFT Newsletter (v. 6, no. 1)

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Caring for the Commonwealth
(Volume 6, Isssue 1)
Spring 2001
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Inside This Issue:


Legislative News is Good!
by Alison Galway, Ph.D., LMFT, LPC

Several exciting things have happened as a result of our work with the Virginia General Assembly and with the United States Congress!

First, Delegate Jim Shuler of Blacksburg was a major supporter and facilitator in helping Virginia LMFTs gain mandated provider status. Nationally known among among AAMFT members as "vendorship," mandated provider status in Virginia removes our dependence on the "and others" category of mental health service providers, and names LMFTs in the Virginia Code along with Licensed Professional Counselors and Licensed Clinical Social Workers. Insurance companies can no longer decline to accept our license (Medicaid and Medicare are still an exception, alas). Delegate Schuler introduced House Bill 1284 in the 2000 session of the Assembly. It passed the House of Delegates easily, but the Senate referred it to the Mandated Benefits Commission chaired by Senator Steve Martin of Chesterfield. David Bailey &Associates, our lobbyist, was extremely helpful in getting us organized and keeping us and the legislators informed. Information was provided by VAMFT to the Commission, and letters from VAMFT members from around the state helped clarify the issues for the Commission members. A hearing on August 3 was attended by David Bailey and Bonnie Atwood of David Bailey &Associates, VAMFT Board Members Alison Galway and Mary Eve Zangari, and VAMFT Member Maurice Graham. Senator Martin was very well-informed and helpful to us in clarifying questions and prompting informative responses. On August 30, the Commission voted unanimously to recommend that MFTs be listed as mandated providers of mental health services. The vendorship legislation was reintroduced by Delegate Schuler as House Bill 1922 in January 2001, passed both the House and Senate, and was signed into law by Governor Jim Gilmore in April, 2001. Our gratitude and thanks to all who participated in this long process, and congratulations to all the current and future LMFTs of Virginia who will benefit from this legislation!

On the national level, AAMFT has been lobbying for several years for MFT inclusion as mental health providers in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as well as by Medicare. AAMFT Division leaders from around the country lobbied on Friday, April 20, during their annual Leadership Conference in Washington, DC, for inclusion of MFTs in the language of ESEA (currently up for renewal) and Medicare (3 active bills in process). Scott Johnson and I visited aides for Senators Warner and Robb, and Representative Boucher, in 2000. This year Peter Michaels and I visited aides for Senators Warner and Allen. We also visited a number of Representatives from Virginia, including Representative Boucher. It was a busy morning on the Hill!

We found out on May 1 that Representative Boucher, of southwest Virginia, has agreed to cosponsor the two House Medicare bills that include MFTs, and may be willing to help us with inclusion in the ESEA also (which will probably require an amendment to the larger bill). We are grateful to Representative Boucher for this. We are also grateful to his legislative aides, who have been so helpful in facilitating his becoming informed on this issue and his decision to help us. Please consider thanking him yourself, as well as contacting your senator and your representative on these issues. Hoaring your personal experience in dealing with Medicare and/or the school system can really resonate with a Senator or Representative. They do respond!

If you would like more information about the specific bills involved, please see the AAMFT Members Only secion of www.aamft.org.

 
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2002 VAMFT Conference Update
by Anne Prouty, Ph.D., LMFT, Conference Cha

Preparations have begun for VAMFT's next conference! We are planning to hold it at the Virginia Tech Northern Virginia MFT program's facilities in Falls Church. The building is great, and is easily accessible via the Metro. We have not developed a catchy title yet, but (per popular demand) we'll be focusing on how MFTs can provide their systemic expertise as consultants to corporations and businesses and in other non-traditional avenues. Call for proposals will go out next fall. If you are interested in joining the Conference Committee, please call (540/231-3160) or e-mail (agalway@vt.edu) Dr. Alison Galway.

 
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Calling All Students!
Students Wanted!
by Jennifer Lambert-Shute, M.S.

Hello fellow students. My name is Jennifer, I have recently moved to Virginia, and am finishing up my first year as an MFT doctoral student.

Periodically a publication called Caring for the Commonwealth has magically appeared in my mailbox. I read it, but more often than not it ends up in the circular file before it gets a thorough review. If you're like me, you may be wondering, "How does this newsletter affect me? What do I get out of it? Is this one more thing I am supposed to be reading that I just don't have time for? Why in the world should I bother reading it, or even pay attention to VAMFT? I'm already a Student Member of AAMFT, isn't that enough?!"

Then I realized I may have been asking the wrong questions, or maybe the right questions to the wrong people. I decided it was time to find out what VAMFT can do for me, a student. I was lucky enough to find out that the VAMFT President-Elect, Dr. Alison Galway, and the VAMFT Past President, Dr. Anne Prouty, are both at Virginia Tech (where I go to school). They agreed to an interview with me about what VAMFT can do for us, the students.

First let me give you a little background about VAMFT. VAMFT is a separate organization from, but a sub-unit of, AAMFT. AAMFT provides VAMFT's charter. If you are a Clinical, Associate, or Student Member of AAMFT then you are automatically a member of VAMFT.

Student and Associate Members vote to elect their own Representative to the VAMFT Board of Directors. Clinical Members vote for all other Officers on the Board. All Clinical Members vote to elect the President Elect, Treasurer, and Secretary. VAMFT divides Virginia into four regions (Northern, Eastern, Southwest, Central) and each region is represented by a Vice President who is elected only by the Clinical Members of their region. Now, back to what VAMFT can do for us as students.

I found that VAMFT:

  1. Provides an opportunity for me to meet local Marriage and Family Therapists who can provide job leads, approved supervision, and support. (And aren't they always telling us that peer supervision and support is one of the best ways to prevent burnout and unethical behavior?)
  2. Keep me informed of current events at AAMFT. For example, the new "Job Connection" service at the AAMFT website.
  3. I can run for the Student-Associate Representative position, which offers an opportunity to attend the AAMFT Leadership Conference, allows for networking with other leaders in the field, and to find out more about being a member of a Board.
  4. Provides a place for my voice to be heard. Sometimes it can be hard for students to be noticed at AAMFT. VAMFT provides a forum for we students to be heard and, yes, maybe even to make changes.
  5. Can be a place for me to meet other MFT students and be part of a community, not just of students, but of professionals as well. I, for one, would love to meet more of the MFT students across Virginia!
  6. Can be someplace I can go for help. One day I hope to be a practicing MFT, out in the work world, and I believe it will be good to know there is somewhere I can go to get help with professional concerns. For instance, during my interview Dr. Galway explained her reason for getting involved in VAMFT. She had just graduated with a doctorate in MFT and was having trouble getting a job due to the fact that MFT's were not named on the mandated list of providers for insurance reimbursement in Virginia. VAMFT was a sanctuary for her to voice her concerns and enabled her to fight for change. As you may have heard, after a long battle, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists are now named as mandated providers in Virginia.
  7. Provides local continuing professional education. As mentioned elsewhere in this newsletter, VAMFT is organizing another conference, and the 2000 Conference was a great success. Local conferences are a chance to learn and to network without having to travel too far and pay too much. Wow, conferences even a student can afford!


One on my professors keeps proclaiming:
One day you guys will be it. You will be the ones who will be Division Presidents, will be on the AAMFT Board of Directors, will be faculty and Directors of MFT programs. You will be the leaders of the profession! You are it!

If we are one day going to be "it," then I think we should start standing up now. What are we waiting for? Why not get more involved with VAMFT? Now, that's a good question!
 
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AAMFT Job Connection Reminder
by Karen Shue, AAMFT Division Affairs

I'd like remind you about the "AAMFT Job Connection," a FREE new service for AAMFT members. It has become a popular member benefit, and the value of the service is directly related to the number of jobs posted.

As you hear of available jobs or internships, you should go online and post information about them. AAMFT members (including student and associate members) can search/post jobs and search/post resumes. To access the "AAMFT Job Connection," please visit http://www.aamft.org/jobconnection.

All prospective employers, AAMFT members as well as non-members, can list a job and search resumes free of charge. However, searching jobs and posting resumes is a valuable and exclusive member benefit that you can access only through the restricted "members only" section of the AAMFT web site.

We'd really like to see the number of job and internship postings grow, so feel free to tell others about the service! Thanks.

 
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You Can Be a Part of AAMFT's Next Publication!
by Jeannie Bertioli, AAMFT Products

AAMFT is upgrading the AAMFT Forms Book and we want your input. In an attempt to obtain the best possible forms, we would like to invite you to submit a form or two, or three, or more! If you would like to share your work (or that of your school, agency, or organization) with other MFTs, send us those forms! If your form is selected, you will be acknowledged in the upcomming AAMFT Forms Book as the contributor of that form. Suggested topics include: intake forms, informed consents, releases of information, treatment plans, assessment forms, medical screenings, therapeutic contracts, evaluations of therapy and supervision, progress/prose notes, financial forms, and insurance forms. If interested, please contact Jeannie Bertioli by e-mail at jbertoli@aamft.org, or by phone at (202) 452-0109.

 
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