PRE-MEETING FALL
OCTOBER 2013
CIRCULAR LETTER #627
P.O. Box 570218 Dallas, Texas 75357-0218 972-613-0985 • Fax: 972-613-5532 www.ourgap.org
Message From the President It’s that time of year – the kids are back in school, the leaves are beginning to turn and we are looking forward to the Fall Meeting of GAP in White Plains. Remember the White Plains Renaissance Hotel has made a bit of a change with the renovation but we are still the same. Like wise it is an unsettling time across the world but we at GAP remain true to our work. Jack Drescher, M.D., our very active Past President, is forming a Committee of Psychiatry and the Media. I’m certain that it will be a great success! I’m also happy to report that the formation of a Psychosomatic Committee is moving forward under the tutelage of Vis (Ramaswamy Viswnatha, M.D., D.S.) It will start in the Spring of 2014 and will play a valuable role in GAP’s work. The formation of a Committee on the Military is in the offing for the Spring 2014. It would seem not only a timely event but also a necessary one. Good luck to those who will be organizing it. Don Fidler’s play, “BoogieBan” will be presented at the November Meeting Plenary. The juice bar will start at 4:30 p.m. and end at 5 p.m. sharp when the program begins, the cocktail hour will be at 7:15 p.m. and the banquet will start at 8 p.m. I’ve seen only part of the play when Don presented it at Grand Rounds at USC and it is amazing! I believe you won’t want to miss any of it. And again, congratulations to the Committee on Disasters for their book Disaster Psychiatry: Readiness, Evaluation, and Treatment [Paperback] for which they received the British Medical Association book award. Also kudos to Joe Merlino for the publication of his book, Lean Behavioral Health: The Kings County Hospital Story by Joseph Merlino. The GAP Family Committee will hold a focus group on Saturday, November 16th, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., whose purpose will be to define their topic, discuss how they should open the project to other GAP committees as well as look at funding. There will be a follow up report in the next Circular Letter. Our Fellows are working hard – remember to seek them out and once again welcome them to our meeting. I look forward to seeing you in November….until then have a great Fall.
Marcia Kraft Goin, M.D., Ph.D. Professor of Clinical Psychiatry Keck School of Medicine University of Southern California