President's Blog - JUNE 2019
Dear SBSM Members,
June is associated with the annual sleep meeting and the opportunity for ongoing education. The SBSM has also made education a major focus consistent with it being a major component in the BSM concept map. Our committees have developed numerous educational opportunities for members with offerings throughout the year. Upcoming activities include a data blitz covering new and varied topics at the Bootzin Awards and Recognition Reception on June 9th in San Antonio. Then on June 17th, the SBSM's Virtual Journal Club will present its bimonthly webinar at noon EST. The June webinar will be presented by Dr. Carmela Alacantara focusing on an article about the reproducibility of actigraphy scoring in a Hispanic/Latino population. On July 17, there will be a Practice and Consultation webinar at noon EST presented by Dr. Ulmer. Plans are in place to schedule another Journal Club webinar in August that focuses on actigraphy practice guidelines. The webinars continue throughout the year. Future webinars are listed in our newsletter, plus previous webinars are recorded and archived on our website for later access.
Our major educational event, the First Annual SBSM Scientific Meeting will be held September 12-15, at the beautiful Renaissance Resort in Birmingham. This 3.5-day meeting will include presentations by national and international experts, symposia, workshops, special lectures and poster sessions. In addition, there will be a BSM Board Review Course offered on September 12th prior to the start of the meeting.
Our educational initiatives also extend beyond our members. The SBSM’s new Outreach and Public Education Committee was created as a result of our growth and it recognizes the importance of educating others about BSM. With that objective, a letter has been sent to the APA specialty team working on guidelines for the treatment of PTSD offering the services of our members with expertise in the behavioral treatment of sleep problems associated with PTSD and trauma. We have also sent a letter to CAQH requesting that they allow inclusion of the DBSM certification as a credential option in the profile of psychologists.
The SBSM will continue to identify and develop educational opportunities for members and the public. The current educational programs represent a multi-focused approach to providing incredible learning opportunities for new and practicing BSM clinicians and we encourage all members to take advantage of these educational offerings. They are included as a benefit of membership with the exception of the scientific conference that is discounted for members. In addition, the SBSM is committed to educating the community and other organizations about BSM as well as promoting and recognizing our members’ expertise in the area.
We invite our BSM colleagues to participate in the many educational sessions sponsored by the SBSM.
Donna Arand, PhD
President, SBSM