Welcome to the PPS Blog

Welcome to the blog of Professional Psych Seminars. This being the first one, I want to touch on what is planned for the blog in the weeks and months ahead.  This blog will address issues in mental health, public health, addiction, integrated health care, and information that may be useful in your clinical practice and your personal life. It will address proposed changes in continuing education requirements, whether you are a psychologist, clinical social worker, marriage and family therapist, educational psychologist, or clinical professional counselor.  Given the interface between physical health and addiction with mental health, it will also be of interest to nurses and drug and alcohol counselors.

There is so much new and exciting information that goes beyond just mental health, including neuroscience, cognitive science, developmental psychology, and psychoneuroimmunology.  Some of it is connected to the classes offered by Professional Psych Seminars (PPS) and the presenters who teach for PPS. In this blog I will point out and discuss this fascinating information, with links to experts in these areas, should you want to read more about it.

This blog will touch on current events in the news.  For example, in our country we are dealing with horrific mass shootings, racial tensions not seen for many years, an opiate epidemic, and one of the most important presidential elections in a generation. The aim will be to clarify the issues by citing information from experts, in the hope of being stimulating thought, understanding different sides of an issue, and pointing out possible solutions.

I probably should tell you a bit about who is writing this blog. I am Ken Bachrach, Ph.D., a psychologist, father, husband, dog owner, and President and CEO of Professional Psych Seminars.  I started PPS over 20 years ago due to concerns about continuing education for our profession.  If you want more details on my concerns and the history of PPS, you can find in on the About Us section of the PPS Website.  I also have been specializing in addiction and co-occurring mental health disorders for the past 30 years, in my role as Clinical Director of Tarzana Treatment Centers, Inc. My current areas of interest are integrated, whole person care, medication assisted treatment (MAT) for addictive disorders, the use of the ASAM Criteria for patient placement, case conceptualization and treatment planning, and applying motivational counseling approaches to engage patients in the treatment process.

If you have any comments, please email me at ken@psychsem.com.