2013 Bulletin

Editor���s Corner With this edition, we are excited to introduce a new format for the Bulletin. As an official publication of NAN, we want to provide our membership with the tradition of excellence that they have come to expect but now we are expanding to include five sections. The next few issues of the Bulletin will include familiar content as well as a new organizational structure. We will highlight some of these sections in the current issue. The new format will include: Michelle L. Mattingly, Ph.D., ABPP/CN NAN Bulletin Editor Eric Rinehardt, Ph.D., ABPP/CN NAN Bulletin Associate Editor ��� Patient Corner is dedicated to patient education and information. This will provide patients and their caregivers with informative and balanced coverage of the latest advances in neuropsychology and neurological conditions This will include a page or two that practitioners can print out and have available in their waiting rooms for patients to read and use as a reference tool/guide. ��� Student Corner is dedicated to addressing issues critical to students or early career neuropsychologists. ��� Journal Section (starting next edition) will allow an author to take a particularly complex and/or technical article they have written, and simplify the content into a more easily accessible and digestible read. ��� Professional Issues will include topics relevant to clinical practice. ��� Spotlight Corner (starting next edition) will consist of an interview with a public figure or leader in our field who has made a contribution to or supports neuropsychology. We would like to take this opportunity to give a very special thanks to previous editors, Drs. Deborah Koltai-Attix and Tyler Story, for maintaining as well as advancing the excellence of the Bulletin. We would also like to thank Mr. Scott Barnett and Drs. Geoffrey Kanter, Paul Kaufmann, Manfred Greiffenstein, Mike Williams, Diana Goldstein, Lisa Sworowski, Bernice Marcopulos, Beth Caillouet, and Chriscelyn Tussey, who have agreed to contribute on very short notice to this edition. We are so appreciative of your willingness, timeliness, and excellent work product. Thank you! We look forward to delivering this new look and believe that it will provide you with information essential to your clinical practice. Michelle L. Mattingly, Ph.D., ABPP/CN NAN Bulletin Editor Eric Rinehardt, Ph.D., ABPP/CN NAN Bulletin Associate Editor In This Issue For this Bulletin we have chosen a forensic theme, but will not necessarily remain theme-specific for future editions. As the field of neuropsychology continues to develop and establish itself into mainstream medicine, so will its utility in a wide variety of forensic settings. Many neuropsychologists, for example, conduct independent forensic neuropsychological examinations in civil cases to render opinions regarding 1) the presence or absence of cognitive impairment, 2) suspected etiology for cognitive impairment, 3) the presence or absence of confounding factors (e.g., medication side effects, psychiatric disorders, poor effort), 4) treatment to improve cognition, and 5) prognosis and ability to return to pre-existing functioning. In criminal litigation, neuropsychologists may be asked to help determine competency to stand trial, responsibility for the crime, or factors which may be taken into consideration for sentencing/ mitigation. Given the adversarial nature of litigation, neuropsychologists and the underlying science our profession is frequently under scrutiny. Advanced training and knowledge are required to succeed in such an environment. The goal of the current NAN Bulletin is to provide readers with a stepping stone for future development and stimulate thought regarding important topics in the field of forensic neuropsychology. Opinions expressed by the authors and advertisers do not necessarily re���ect the position of the National Academy of Neuropsychology. 4 | Bulletin vol. 27 no. 1

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