Accreditation

Without reading any comments re: my comments to Cons DistList Inst.
12:87, let me say these things, and then I will be silent, unless
provoked.

Conrad, Bishop of Utrecht was stabbed to death by his master mason
because he had learned a trade secret (yr. 1099, C.E.). [John
Harvey, Mediaeval Craftsmen_Drake Publishers, Inc., NY, 1975, p.
88.]

In the United States, doctors and lawyers (and architects?) are
given their walking papers by State bodies, not National bodies. And
the requirements vary from State to State.  So, it is only in some
States that a lawyer, for instance, may 'read' for the law.

Fine Arts Conservators are not controlled by any State body in the
United States (yes, I know about Calif. and Mass. efforts); but
there is, once again, an effort by some, to create the semblance of
control through voluntary acquiescence to a national body.

I am aware of the trials and tribulations of the medical and legal
professions over the past couple of centuries to establish control
over their membership and income.

I am also aware of the history of trade unionism in the United
States (see: A History of Trade Unionism in the United States by
Selig Perlman.)

We, as conservators, are not supposed to split our fees with other
conservators, but one of our ideals (the lawyers) are still split
over how to deal with fee splitting.  But I digress.

You may believe that the example of Conrad, Bishop of Utrecht is
extreme and not applicable to our controversy.

A colleague of mine has a wife who earned a degree in mental health
counseling from the Univ. of California at Berkeley some 20 years
ago.

She has been practicing her profession all these years in Oregon.
The State of Oregon has lately begun debating whether or not she
(and many of her colleagues) are competent to practice (and earn
money) in the State of Oregon.

Well, not actually the State; rather, the professional State body
which seeks to certify the capability of 'professional'
practitioners.  Because only 'professional' practioners may bill
MediCare.

Now, the people who are advocating certification are good, sound
hospital bureaucrats.  They have discounted my friend's wife's
degree, because it is 20 years old.  They have denied her
application for certification because, in one instance, she had
spent 20.3 hrs with a client, instead of 20.0 hrs. of client contact
before referring the client to the next level of 'expertise.'

This is what happens when one gives over one's control of their
professional life to peer pressure.  This ain't the school yard, but
we can still identity the bullies.  The choice, as always, is up to
you.

Just a thought.

Jack C. Thompson
Thompson Conservation Laboratory
7549 N. Fenwick
Portland, OR  97217
503-735-3942  (voice/fax)

                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 12:88
                   Distributed: Tuesday, May 18, 1999
                       Message Id: cdl-12-88-015
                                  ***