WACPP Mental Health Teleconference Earns National Recognition: Special Achievement Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics

Kimberly, WI, September 08, 2011 --(PR.com)-- The Wisconsin Alliance of Child Psychiatry and Pediatrics (WACPP) was recently honored by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). WACPP’s webinar series received the “Special Achievement Award” for distinguished service and dedication to the mission and goals of the Academy. The five-session pilot program addressed education for primary care providers in assessing, screening and treating children and adolescents with mental health issues. The program is a potential blueprint for other states.

“There is a shortage of child psychiatrists in Wisconsin and nationwide,” said Joseph O’Grady, MD, FAAP co-chair of WACPP. “By providing real-time education, case studies and open question forums, primary care providers had the opportunity to improve their education and confidence in the identification and treatment of a range of mental health issues.” Over 100 pediatricians, nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and social workers took part over the course of the program.

Webinar topics and faculty included:

Depression – Kambiz Pahlavan, MD and Mark Siegel, MD
Anxiety – Atit Desai, MD and Moitreyee Reddy, MD
Mood Disorders and Suicide – Richard Bartel, MD and Heena Desai, MD
Eating Disorders – Jennifer Derenne, MD and Doug Kramer, MD
ADHD – Joseph Bergs, MD and Barbara Hale-Richlen, MD

Jim Meyer, MD, FAAP, co-chair of WACPP added, “We exceeded the goals of the program in every way – attendance, reach and participation, relevance and interest in continuing to offer the program in the future. The success of the webinars reflects the power of the WACPP collaboration between primary care and child psychiatry.”

Funding for the effort was provided in part by a grant from the Landis Endowment of the Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation. The Landis Endowment was created with the Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation by Mrs. Mary Landis as a tribute to her husband, Charles W. Landis, MD, a psychiatrist and one of the state’s most influential physicians on issues of mental health and mental illness, who died in 1986. Dedicated to professional and public education programs relating to psychiatry and mental health, the endowment supports lectures and programs. Accreditation and logistics were coordinated by the Wisconsin Medical Society.

The Wisconsin Alliance for Child Psychiatry and Pediatrics (wiaap.org/wacpp.php) is a joint initiative by the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (wiaap.org) and the Wisconsin Council on Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (www.wisccap.net) whose goal is to improve the assessment and treatment of psychiatric disorders for children and adolescents in the state of Wisconsin.

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