President’s Bulletin – January 2025

Dear SDBP Friends and Colleagues,

During the first two months of my one-year term as SDBP President, I have been guided
by two sayings.  The first is from Winston Churchill:

“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes
to sit down and listen.”
And another quote that is familiar to all of us (this seems to have first appeared
in a 17^th century English book):

“Actions speak louder than words.”

Your Board of Directors has been busy listening and planning in an effort to operationalize the new SDBP Strategic Plan for the benefit of our interdisciplinary members and, most importantly, for the children and families we serve.  In that spirit, here are some of the highlights from the past two months:

Obtaining Input on Strategic Plan Initiatives
BOD liaisons to the Committees, Sections and SIGS have been meeting with the leaders of these groups to hear their ideas about specific projects that will align with and advance our strategic goals.  Once this process is completed, the BOD will engage in a prioritization exercise that will include a consideration of the resources required for each proposed project.  The goal of this exercise is to ensure that the BOD is informed directly by our members about initiatives that are most meaningful and impactful, while also ensuring that our efforts are guided by and aligned with the Strategic Plan.

STAY TUNED FOR A MEETING DATE IN FEBRUARY OR EARLY MARCH:
Once the prioritization exercise is completed, the BOD will organize a series of Zoom meetings with members to obtain additional input on the proposed projects.

Listening Sessions and New Initiatives to Increase SDBP’s Value to Members
I and other members of the BOD have participated in listening sessions with members who have expressed concerns about the ways in which the Society is meeting the needs of our members.  As a direct result of these sessions, the BOD is quickly moving forward with new offerings in education and support for clinical practice:

“SDBP Grand Rounds”: A New Clinically Focused Educational Offering to be Launched.
Beginning this winter, SDBP will offer new online educational sessions.  These sessions will be aimed at meeting the needs of experts in our field and will provide diagnostic and treatment information for complex clinical care.  If the sessions are well-received, they will become a permanent part of our educational offerings, with the possibility of CME credit in the future.

Return of the “Clinical, Educational and Research Tracks” for the Annual Meeting.
In order to make it easier for meeting attendees to select sessions that are most meaningful to them, we will indicate which sessions are primarily focused on clinical care, education and research.  This will go hand-in-hand with continuation of the Clinical Symposium as a regular annual meeting offering.

SDBP Billing and Coding Resource.
In the past, members of SDBP have provided guidance on billing and coding for clinicians in our field.  The BOD is working with leaders in the Society who have extensive experience with billing and coding, with the goal of developing an ongoing resource for our members.  Additional information about this resource will be forthcoming over the next several months.

Re-engaging the Past Presidents
Among the “listening sessions” this fall, we have met with our Past Presidents group to obtain their input on the state of the Society and our strategic directions.  The Past Presidents will be meeting with Society leaders on a regular basis and will assist both with their advice and with efforts to obtain resources to support our strategic initiatives.

Advocacy for the HEADs UP Act
With the leadership of our Advocacy Committee, we will continue our collaborative efforts—working with like-minded organizations-- to advocate for the passage of the HEADs UP Act.
The provisions of this bill would have a direct, positive impact on our members ability to meet the needs of children with neurodevelopmental and behavioral challenges in many tangible ways by:

• Designating individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) as a medically underserved population.
• Giving people with IDD access to more than 25 federal programs/agencies and increases federal research funding.
• Providing access to loan repayment and training programs for providers who work with people with IDD.
• Increasing CMS reimbursement rates for services delivered.

The members of your Board of Directors, Committee/Section and SIG chairs and others have continued their outstanding efforts to move SDBP forward.  The highlights outlined above are just a sampling of those efforts.  I look forward to sharing more information about these and other projects in the coming months.

I would be happy to hear from you if you wish to share your ideas about ways in which we can continue in our mission to improve the lives of children with neurodevelopmental and behavioral challenges and support the professionals who serve these children and their families.

Happy New Year and I’m listening!
Billwilliam.barbaresi@childrens.harvard.edu