Clinical psychologist and president of the NJ Psychological Association Dr. Kenneth Freundlich was featured in an article in The Star-Ledger’s magazine called Inside Jersey.
Kenneth Freundlich: Leading advocacy on mental health policies
Kenneth Freundlich, a managing partner at the Morris Psychological Group in Parsippany, is also president of the New Jersey Psychological Association.
Michael J. Fensom | The Star-Ledger By Michael J. Fensom | The Star-Ledger, March 19, 2015
Raised in West Orange, Kenneth Freundlich is a managing partner at the Morris Psychological Group in Parsippany. This year, he took over as president of the New Jersey Psychological Association, an organization of nearly 2,000 members that advocates for psychologists and mental health policies in the state.
- A survey by the Mental Health Association in New Jersey in October found that 49 percent of psychiatrists in the state who accept insurance were either taking new patients under narrow circumstances or not at all. Has the Affordable Care Act limited options for patients with mental disorders?
I think we’re just starting to see the effects of the health care law. I think the situation is evolving. From my perspective as a practitioner, I’m not the biggest fan. But insurance has been a challenge for a lot of people for a long time. There are a lot of people who don’t accept new patients because, in a lot of cases, I think that has to do with participating in a plan and not wanting to take on lower-fee patients. Our practice has always chosen not to participate (as) in-network providers because we believe this gives us the best opportunity to work directly with the patients, without having an insurance company as an intermediary. The New Jersey Psychological Association has what is called the NJPA Foundation, which is the charitable arm of the organization. It provides services to underserved populations. As members, we realize that, in addition to trying to provide reduced-cost services or pro bono services individually, our organization also makes a very concerted attempt to do that organizationally, as well.
- Is there a shortage of psychologists in New Jersey, and if so, what can the NJPA do to help patients with mental disorders find care?
One of the legislative priorities of the NJPA is prescriptive authority for certain psychologists. There is a shortage of psychologists in New Jersey, and it’s made worse by the fact that a large number of them are over 55 and heading toward retirement. I believe the number is 80 percent of psychotropic medication prescriptions in the state are written by non-psychiatrists. That is a huge number. That may sound like that is convenient for patients, but the fact of the matter is you wouldn’t go to your general practitioner for heart surgery, so why is it okay for psychiatric conditions? Psychologists who have been licensed to diagnose and treat mental disorders for years are now seeking to be able to get additional training to do prescribing. And the training would be an additional post-doctoral masters’ degree in clinical pharmacology that would take about two years of schooling and a supervised period of additional training under a physician. And then — and I think this is one of the key parts of it — the psychologist would only be able to prescribe after speaking with the patient’s primary care provider and getting that physician’s approval. Psychologists have been prescribing in the military since 1991. There have not been any adverse reports. It would increase the pool of providers and I think it would be a good thing for the patient population of New Jersey.
- What do you say to psychiatrists in the state who have vocally opposed a bill passed last June by the state Assembly proposing this certification for psychologists?
This is something that has been percolating for several years, and obviously not everybody sees it the way we see it. At the individual level, there are many physicians (who) are in support of it. In terms of organized medicine, obviously they are against it. It’s not surprising. I certainly don’t want to speak to someone else’s motives, but there is opposition. I think there are enough studies and good data to support that it is a good program. And again, this is something that will only be pursued by a small percentage of licensed psychologists, not just anyone who calls themselves a counselor. This is someone who already has doctoral-level training and is licensed to diagnose and treat mental disorders.
- A number of psychiatric hospitals in the state have either closed in the past few years or reduced their number of beds. Are there fewer options now for psychiatric patients in New Jersey who need hospitalization?
Psychiatric hospitals — free-standing state facilities — are different than having psychiatric beds in a general hospital. For example, Morristown Medical Center is actually expanding its (number of) psychiatric patient beds. I’ve been on staff at Morristown for many years and have a very good relationship with the psychiatry department there. But that is a very different treatment model than, say, Greystone (Park Psychiatric Hospital in Morris Plains), which is a long-term residential program. Many years ago, patients were sent to residential programs and lived out their lives there. Clearly, that is not the norm today. Unfortunately, there are still situations where institutionalization is the only option for someone. But where people can be treated in less restrictive environments, it is generally favorable.
- You mentioned that Morristown Medical Center has expanded its number of psychiatric beds. Do you see that as a trend at general medical hospitals around the state, and are those facilities better suited now for admitting patients with mental disorders?
I don’t know for sure, but my understanding is that more hospitals have reduced the (number of) psychiatric beds rather than increased them. However, any effort that reduces the stigma of mental health is a good effort. We don’t have separate hospitals to treat other kinds of disorders. So, including psychiatric treatment at a hospital that treats other medical conditions is a good thing.