The National Alliance of Professional Psychology Providers (NAPPP) is a new, non- profit organization for professional psychologists to advance and secure the practice of psychology. The purpose of NAPPP is twofold. First, we will function as an advocacy organization to assertively protect and advance scope of practice issues through lobbying, legislative and litigation strategies. Second, we want to help educate and inform practitioners about the business of practicing psychology so that this much ignored aspect of the profession can grow and develop.
NAPPP's mandate is to present solutions as expeditiously as possible. Because current psychology organizations comprise practitioners as well as academics, these structures areslowand too cumbersome to address practitioner issues in a timely and effective manner. NAPPP will form alliances that will not only add value to psychological practice, but also to the life of the psychologist. NAPPP seeks members who appreciate being assertive and who are interested in being honest with what works and being honest with what needs change. Since our mission is singularly focused on practitioner issues, NAPPPis not a competing organization with any other established organization of psychologists.
NAPPP is invested in being proactive on issues relating to practitioners than in being merely reactive. We are interested in novel and constructive actions to help and produce positive outcomes for our members than engaging in endless "talk" with limited action, or in burying issues vital to our livelihood in layer upon layer of committees and bureaucratic structure. NAPPP will give our profession a more assertive voice in the practicing arena. This may include litigation to protect the practitioner and our scope of practice. Focused and proactive niche marketing and practice development campaigns can be much more practical and useful and can deliver better results than many of the "preaching to the choir" activities of so many organizations. As practicing psychologists we know who we are and what we can do. NAPPP is committed to assertively marketing those qualities so that practitioners can be proud of our accomplishments. Too many of our colleagues feel the desperation and hopelessness that are a result of bureaucratically induced isolation by our present organizations. Education and science are an integral part of psychology but so is practice. NAPPP is a practice focused organization where only practitioners can decide on practice issues.
Along with addressing the day to day dilemmas, NAPPP will respond to the changing needs of a maturing practicing profession. We have labored hard and long to establish ourselves as an independent doctoral level practicing profession. We must protect the doctoral degree as the entry level to practice. We must become more resolved in our desire to help our patients and help ourselves. NAPPP is ready to take the initiative in addressing todayÕs practitioner concerns and take the lead in developing solutions for the concerns that will inevitably present themselves in the future. We are not about being "politically correct." We are about action.
NAPPPis committed to providing more value and benefits to practitioners within an affordable dues structure. The major portion of our budget will be directed to concerns where the practitioner is personally or directly impacted. The focus and effort will be more specific to practicing psychologists, rather than being diluted by political, moral or religious concerns or the multitude of competing interests within psychology in general. As a result, decision-making will be streamlined so practical action can be expedited.
| NAPPP Board of Directors | |
|---|---|
| Michael Baer, Ph.D. | Stanley, Graham, Ph.D., ABPP |
| Stephen E. Berger, Ph.D.,ABPP | Matthew Nessetti, Ph.D., M.D |
| John Caccavale, Ph.D., M.S. | David Reinhardt, Ph.D., M.S. |
| James Childerston, Ph.D. | Howard Rubin, Ph.D. |
| Nicholas Cummings, Ph.D., Sc.D | Lenore Walker, Ed.D, M.S. |
| Jack Wiggins, Ph.D., Psy.D., ABPP | |