Gene Brodland Sits with Cambridge Who's Who in a Revealing Interview

Sir William Osler, one of the fathers of modern medicine, once said "Don't tell me what type of disease my patient has, but tell me what type of person has this disease." This is a quote that Gene Brodland has come to practice by, as a psychotherapist specializing in social work and driven to render patient-centered care with a humanistic emphasis. In the last 50 years, Brodland has made invaluable contributions to the fields of psychology, higher education and social work. Today, he treats addictions and anxieties through Bohlen & Associates, a psychotherapy practice, while continuing to advance the treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

"I am passionate about understanding the human mind," said Brodland in a recent interview with Cambridge Who's Who. "Humans are much more than something that can be viewed under a microscope; they need to be viewed in a larger context. Humans are complex biological, psychological and spiritual beings." Born and raised on a farm, Brodland came to understand this well before stepping foot in any educational institution. As a young boy, he watched his father mentor and care for his neighboring farmers. He watched as they celebrated economic highs and celebratory times, and as they helped each other through hardships. Through it all, his father was always known to lend a kind ear to anyone who needed it. This experience sparked within Brodland what would become a lifelong interest in helping others through the art of listening.

Over the last eight years, Brodland has worked with the Central Illinois Stress Debriefing Team to help officers deal with occupational stress. He provides marital, family, adolescent, addiction, anger management and individual therapy through Bohlen & Associates and works with HIV/AIDS patients. Most recently, he has worked around the clock to develop a psychotherapeutic approach to treating OCD. In the realms of this disease, Brodland believes that modern medicine has only been minimally effective. He will seek to develop
additional therapies through which to treat OCD and its related dysfunctions as he moves forward. In addition to this work, Brodland inspects juvenile prisons and evaluates inmate care in cooperation with the John Howard Association.

For his longevity in the field of psychotherapy, Gene Brodland has received numerous accolades including the National Association of Social Workers' 2005 certificate of recognition. He was named Cambridge Who's Who Professional of the Year in 2009, and chosen for inclusion in "Cambridge Publishing's Top 101 Industry Experts" the same year. Although humbly grateful, Brodland does not consider such honors to be the shining crowns of his career. Rather, he notes, "The most rewarding aspect of my job is seeing people who [were] in pain...get to feel better and walk away as happier, more functional people."