Considerable work has been done to expand and bring our member services up to date.

Highlights

• Member Services Centre was re-launched in March 2019 and now answers a wider range of enquiries on national registration, areas of practice endorsement, CPD requirements and membership administration.
• Professional Advisory Service – run by a team of highly skilled psychologists from across the different practice areas – received close to 9,000 member contacts, with the most common queries being about legal matters, Medicare and confidentiality.

APS and the Publications and Resources teams have continued to produce engaging, relevant and topical training and publications for members this year.

APS highlights

• Over 7,500 psychologists took part in the continuing professional development webinars offered by the APS.
• In October 2018, the Professional Development offered a package deal for the three-part PsyBA-approved Supervisor Training to become a Board Approved Supervisor.
  • Several hundred psychologists completed all three parts and were granted supervisor status, whilst over 100 completed the Part-4 refresher course to maintain their status as a Board Approved Supervisor.
• A new online course, ‘Suicide prevention: A practitioner's guide’ was released in December 2018.

The language was simple I enjoyed reading the content but also attempting the questions to test my understanding.

I was very impressed with this course and will use the accompanying resources for years to come - thank you.

Publications and resources highlights

• InPsych was distributed bimonthly to over 24,500 members. Cover features included loneliness, non-suicidal self-injury, and the changing nature of work, and members were kept up-to-date on issues including mental health, science and education, compliance, ethics, law, and mentoring and supervision.
• The Power of the Minds – Celebrating 50 years of the Australian Psychological Society was published.

A range of resources were developed and updated to meet member and community needs, including:

• An updated literature review on evidence-based psychological interventions in the treatment of mental disorders
• A practice guide to support members in the assessment of young people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) backgrounds, along with updated practice guides and web resources
• Resources and templates to support members working in private practice
• Information sheets targeting members of the public about a range of mental health issues, including autism spectrum disorder and specific learning disabilities.

The following Ethical Guidelines were approved by the APS Board:

• Ethical guidelines for psychological practice with clients who disclose memories related to traumatic experiences
• Ethical guidelines for working with and in the media
• Ethical guidelines for working with young people

In 2019, members took advantage of the professional support and networking – and reduced member rate – that come with attending APS conferences and Member Group events.

College conferences

A total of 1300 delegates attended the College conferences in 2018-19.

• APS College of Clinical Neuropsychologists Conference, 8-10 November 2018, Brisbane, 236 delegates
• APS College of Educational and Developmental Psychologists Conference, 21-22 March 2019, Hobart, 185 delegates
• APS College of Health Psychologists Conference, 24-27 April 2019, Adelaide, 117 delegates
• APS College of Clinical Psychologists Conference, 24-26 May 2019, Melbourne, 816 delegates

2018 APS Congress

The APS Congress held in Sydney on 27-30 September at the International Convention Centre was a resounding success.

I learnt so much that is directly relevant to my current practice … The range of CPD opportunities, the seamless organisation, the opportunity to socialise and network and the lovely food were all highlights.

The people, the participants, the speakers and the topics were great. In addition, the student volunteers were great help as well.

The APS presents more than 90 awards to recognise the contribution made by members and psychologists at the highest level.

Highlights

Recipients of the 2018 APS Awards

President’s Award for Distinguished Contribution to Psychology in Australia
Prof Nancy Pachana

Distinguished Contribution to Psychological Science Award
Prof Alex Haslam
Prof Kaarin Anstey

Distinguished Contribution to Psychological Education Award
Prof Kathryn von Treuer

Media Award for Public Engagement with Psychological Science
Prof Nick Haslam

Outstanding Academic Mentor Award
Prof Frank Dean

Early Career Research Award
Dr Fiona Kumfor
Dr Scott Griffiths

Early Career Teaching Award
Dr Dana Wong
Dr Kirsten Murray

Award for Excellent PhD Thesis in Psychology
Dr Kate Bartel
Dr Stephanie Wong
Dr Hannah Thomas

The APS achieved a considerable increase in student members in 2019.

Highlights

• Membership was made more affordable by reducing the fee for students from $85 to $55.
• The fee was waived for new members who are postgraduate psychology students.
• The online joining process was upgraded.
• A new Student HQ and Early Career HQ for APS members was launched to assist students and early career psychologists navigate those first steps in their psychology education and career.

The APS continued to be the national authority for the assessment of academic qualifications in psychology for migration, university entry into Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) courses and assessments of skilled employment history.

Highlights

479 assessments of psychology qualifications were completed:

• 152 for migration to Australia under the skilled migration categories of psychologist
• 312 for entry into an APAC course
• 15 for skilled employment history purposes