President's Message: What Does the Song "Auld Lang Syne" Mean and Does Anyone Really Know The Words? 

Bernard Fuemmeler, PhD, MPH, FSBM, SBM President

For many, December marks a time to reflect on significant events or accomplishments that occurred in the past year. I often tend to look back at the end of the year questioning: “Did I get enough done this year?”, “Did I spend enough time with my friends and family?”, “Did I accomplish my new year’s resolutions (what were those again?)?” Reflecting back can be a worthwhile exercise, as it helps us remember those who we have lost, appreciate our good fortunes, and consider what the future has to hold. It centers us and readies us for the next 365.25 days ahead.

We were saddened this year to learn of the passing of Neil Schneiderman, PhD, FSBM, the University of Miami James Knight Professor of Health Psychology. While I didn’t know him, I had the opportunity to listen to the lovely celebration of life and career reception held last month at the University of Miami. It was very touching to hear his former trainees and colleagues speak of his contributions to advancing the field of behavioral medicine both national and internationally, while at the same time maintaining a humble and service-oriented approach toward his work. I also learned that he and Norman Anderson, PhD, (#20) helped establish the first co-ed basketball game at the SBM conference (I’m sort of glad we have left that tradition behind being vertically challenged and all). Without taking time to reflect, however, it’s easy to overlook the many contributions of our colleagues that came before us and helped shape our field. 

Nevertheless, with some bumps along our path, we have made many remarkable accomplishments this year. Our strategic plan has helped guide our SBM efforts and initiatives, and I am pleased to report on some of our notable successes. For one, our Membership Council (led by Dani Arigo, PhD, LP) released six expertly-produced videos about what behavioral medicine is, why it’s important, and why everyone needs a behavioral scientist on their team (these videos already have 800+ views!). A second accomplishment relates to the outstanding work of our journal editors, Tracey Revenson, PhD, FSBM (Annals of Behavioral Medicine), and Cheryl Knott, PhD (Translational Behavioral Medicine), who have enacted a Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) plan that includes among other tactics a detailed strategy for recruiting diverse associate editors, editorial board members, and peer reviewers; increasing article submissions on health disparities/minority health (including sexual orientation and gender identity minority health); and updating journal keywords to be more inclusive.

We also expanded non-Annual Meeting programming by hosting four behavioral medicine local meetups this fall. With a focus on students and networking, these events give members a way to meaningfully connect year-round. Special thanks to each city’s lead local host: Megan Lewis, PhD, FSBM, Jacob Szeszulski, PhD, Anna Gorczyca, PhD, and Ellen Beckjord, PhD, MPH, FSBM. Our efforts at fundraising have also been laudable. This year, generous donors committed funds for of our early-career Bridging the Gap Award to be sustainable through 2027.

As we move forward in to 2024, there are many activities planned to keep us on track. We aim to continue our strategic partnership with peer organizations focused on clinician audiences and climate change. We also want to continue to grow industry sponsorship. The funds we bring in are critical to increasing tangible benefits for members, making our society more inclusive, giving members a sense of belonging, and extending our influence beyond our field to advance advocacy and behavioral science within the broader public health and healthcare ecosystems. For more details on our strategic plan and progress I encourage you to visit our website.

In closing, while the year has passed and time continues to march forward, let’s remember those days of friendship and the time gone by. A lot has transpired, and we have a lot more to look forward to. So, as 2023 comes to an end, I will raise my pint-stoup and sing, “Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and auld land syne?” Hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm…(I really need to learn the words to that song)…Anyway, in the words of Sally (Meg Ryan) from the movie “When Harry Met Sally,” regarding the meaning of “Auld Lang Syne,” “It’s about old friends.” She’s right, that’s basically what it’s about. Happy New Year, and I’m looking forward to making new memories with old and new friends in 2024. See you in Philly.