Anne Kopp, PhD

	Joined Nov, 1994 Department: Chronic Pain Occupational Medicine [Map] Title: Psychologist Degree: PhD Interests: Cooking, swimming and yoga. Practitioner Homepage
Bio I am a licensed psychologist and I work in the departments of occupational medicine and chronic pain at Kaiser Santa Rosa. I have worked for Kaiser since 1994, beginning in occupational medicine one year after the clinic opened and I was there in the early years of the chronic pain clinic, when it evolved from health education to physical medicine, and eventually into its own site at Round Barn. I have felt fortunate to be a part of both departments since the beginning and to work with an excellent group of professionals in both clinics. Early in my tenure at Kaiser I attended the department of psychiatry team meetings, which helped me build relationships with that department as well. In my role as a psychologist with dual sub-specialties in occupational medicine and in chronic pain, I have tried to build a bridge between the 2 departments, as well as with psychiatry, as my patients often overlap all 3 clinics. It is one of the things that I value most about working at Kaiser, that our health plan is so integrated, doctors talking to doctors to provide the best possible care to our patients. My interest in psychology went hand in hand with my interest in work wellness and lead to my specialization in occupational psychology. When I began treating the psychological aspects of physical injuries, I developed an interest in the treatment of chronic pain. I enjoy being a psychologist, particularly in these areas of specialization, because it has given me an opportunity to help people who are facing very profound life issues such as workplace injuries, life threatening stress, chronic pain that causes the loss of a career, and other issues that affect one's life. My approach to these problems is to start from a place of acceptance of the life circumstances one finds one self in, and then use the tools of psychological treatment to learn how to cope, adjust, adapt, and some times move on. I prefer to use cognitive behavioral treatment in most cases, but sometimes also help patients to understand how the past events in one's life can be shaping the current point of view. I received my Master's and Doctorate degrees from the California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP) in 1984 and received my license to practice psychology in 1986. I have had specialty training in police psychology, and the treatment of psychological trauma, including the use of Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) for the treatment of trauma. I have had extensive course work in industrial injury issues, as well as in the psychological treatment of individuals with chronic pain.
My Medical Specialty
More details about my specialty: I enjoy being a psychologist because it gives me the opportunity to do such meaningful work every day, helping people confront so many complex life situations. I see my role as providing the space and the tools for individuals to confront some of the most difficult life circumstances that can happen to a person: psychological and physical trauma, chronic pain, occupational stress, and often loss and grief resulting from these circumstances. Although the work is hard, the opportunity to help a patient through an injury, or adapt to the challenges of chronic pain, can be restorative for doctor and patient alike. My specialty interests and affiliations within my field: I have always been interested in helping people with work stress, particularly those individuals who work in high stress occupations such as in law enforcement and other public safety fields. Early in my career I had the opportunity to work with a police psychology consulting firm, providing services to police departments and the local sheriff's office in Yolo County, as well as fire departments in the greater Sacramento area. I frequently went on ride-alongs with patrol officers and firefighters, and gained a deeper understanding of the work, as well as the stress, of protecting the safety of the public. I consulted with Chiefs about how to keep the department healthy, while at the same time maintaining the discipline necessary to help employees meet the challenges that they faced every day. I went on to perform similar work at the University of California, San Francisco, providing employee assistance counseling to the nurses, physicians, and other employees at this health sciences campus. This gave me the opportunity to refine my skills in helping people manage stressful work situations while maintaining their own health and well-being. I continued the speciality of Occupational Psychology by coming to Kaiser Santa Rosa, Department of Occupational Medicine in 1994. It seemed a natural fit, and the result of all the positions that I had held previously, to have the opportunity to work with a team of professionals at Kaiser to help injured workers recover. Ideally my aim is to help workers return to work as good as, or better than before the injury. When that is not possible, then I help the employee to transition to another type of work that suits them equally as well. In the course of helping injured workers into alternative careers when necessary, I treated a number of patients with chronic pain. Over time I developed an interest in the field of chronic pain treatment, consulting more and more with the Chronic Pain Management Program here at Kaiser Santa Rosa. I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with such a fine group of professionals in that program, and have learned much from them in developing my second sub-speciality as a psychologist in the Chronic Pain Department. Current projects or research: I was recently elected chairperson of the Occupational Psychologists peer group, which is a regional body of all of the psychologists in Northern California who work in the Kaiser Occupational Medicine Clinics. I have been very excited about this new role as a leader because it opens me up to thinking about the work we do as Occupational Psychologists in a different way. At this time we are examining our Mission Statement, and I am working with the group on setting goals for 2007.
Interests
In my spare time I like to cook, and also keep physically fit with yoga and swimming. I consider cooking a hobby but might have enjoyed being a chef in another life. I have never taken a formal cooking class but have learned from many friends and family members, and enjoy reading books and articles on cooking. My favorite food to cook these days is Mexican, because of my recent trip to that country. I hope to travel to Asia some day, and have no doubt that I will pick up some ideas about cooking in that part of the world. Beyond the joy of eating what I cook, I find that cooking can be an enjoyable way to get to know new people and share in one of lifeâ€™s most basic pleasures. To balance a healthy appetite, I swim and practice yoga. I find that both activities are centering and stress reducing. Although they are singular activities, I have had the pleasure of sharing many a good yoga class with my coworkers here at Kaiser, where we have twice weekly classes for employees. This has given me the opportunity to get to know some individuals I might not have known, while at the same time also having the opportunity for renewal in the middle of my work day. In the past few years I have also gathered with friends and family to sing songs and play music. We may not be ready for Carnegie Hall, but with enough instruments and the right songs, we sound great, and the uplift is palpable.
Family & Friends
People in my life: I have had the good fortune to have my own family, as well as an extended family of friends that I consider my life long relatives, or chosen family. They are aunts and uncles to my children, and a wonderful source of fun and support for me and my husband. While we see each other throughout the year, Thanksgiving is our favorite get together. Every year we gather together to play, reconnect, and of course to cook and eat. It is encouraging to my generation that as the children have grown, they all make it their priority to return for Thanksgiving. I believe they are drawn to the same things that have drawn groups together over the centuries: the keeping of important rituals, the opportunity for fun and laughter, the making and sharing of good food, and the opportunity to celebrate with music and dancing.

Travel
An adventure I've had: I recently travelled to Mexico with family and friends. It was wonderful to experience another culture, and one so different from the United States, yet so close to us geographically. We travelled to Oaxaca City as well as to the coast of Oaxaca. The food was particularly impressive. As someone who loves to cook, I was very interested in the mercados wherever we went, and was excited to bring back spices and mole paste to experiment with a new way of cooking Mexican food. Favorite place in the world: I am a transplant from the East Coast, and although I have fond memories of the landscape and the seasons, my heart is firmly in California. The land and sea are breathtaking here. Even though I have lived here for almost 30 years, I am still amazed by the beauty of this state. One of my recent trips: The trip to Oaxaca was rich with new and exciting experiences. In the city we witnessed the beginning of the teacher's strike in May, that eventually erupted into the tense political situation that is there today and in all the headlines. Out on the coast we found a peaceful interlude in a beautiful house overlooking a cove. It was sad to leave, but our sadness was soon interrupted by a scorpion, who bit my friend and then jumped on my dress, causing me to dance with fear, and fortunately no bite. We quickly got my friend to a local doctor who was the best physician one could hope for in such an emergency. He distracted my friend with stories of the curanderos while deftly putting an IV of anti-venom into her arm. He sent us on our way with medicine and sound advice, and assurances that Mexico is a good country to come back to some day.	Travel Photos: There are all kinds of items at the market Scenes from the mercado in Oaxaca City Trip Photos: The teachers set up tents on all the streets leading to the Zocolo or city center The teachers strike on the Zocolo in Oaxaca City A peaceful street scene on the outskirts of Oaxaca City The coast of the State of Oaxaca