Cutchins Care

Collaborative Community

Narrative Therapy and Trauma-Informed Care

Presented by SuEllen Hamkins, MD & Beth Prullage, LICSW

Sponsored by Cutchins Programs for Children & Families

January 14 and 15, 2016, Northampton, MA

Description

The goal of this experiential two-day training is to enhance participants’ abilities to apply the principles and practices of narrative psychiatry and trauma-informed care in their clinical work. The focus will be on cultivating resilience through strengths-based, collaborative approaches for psychotherapy, psychiatric care and mental health treatment, guided by the family’s or individual’s values, cultural context and vision of well-being.

Throughout the workshop, we will focus on core principles that inform narrative therapy and trauma-informed care, including transparency, collaboration, empowerment, choice, voice and social justice. Our central goal will being helping participants develop tools to foster resilience in those who consult with us through cultivating strengths-based narratives in therapeutic conversations. We will teach externalizing practices to develop culturally-contextualized understandings of problems that are separate from the person’s identity. Participants will develop practices for conducting strengths-based initial assessments in their treatment contexts and learn how to cultivate a person’s or family’s vision of wellbeing and create collaborative treatment plans.

In addition, we will also attend to cultivating that which sustains and nurtures us as clinicians in doing our work, presenting several peer supervision models.

Educational Objectives

As a result of this workshop, the participant will be able to:

  • After attending this workshop, participants should be able to:
  • Describe core principles that inform narrative therapy and trauma-informed care, including transparency, collaboration, empowerment, choice, voice and social justice.
  • Explain how to foster resilience through cultivating strengths-based narratives in therapeutic conversations.
  • Employ externalizing practices to develop culturally-contextualized understandings of problems that are separate from the person’s identity.
  • Understand the concept of “the person without the problem” and apply strengths-based principles and practices in conducting initial assessments.
  • Outline how to cultivate a person’s or family’s vision of wellbeing and create collaborative treatment plans.

Faculty

SuEllen Hamkin, MD, is a psychiatrist and author. Her passion is helping people cultivate their values and strengths in the face of difficulties and has centered on three main areas: narrative psychiatry, college student mental health and mother-daughter relationships. She is Assistant Director of the Center for Counseling and Psychological Health at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and Assistant Professor at University of Massachusetts School of Medicine. Dr. Hamkins regularly leads training workshops and presents her work at professional conferences and for parents.

Her latest book, The Art of Narrative Psychiatry (Oxford University Press, 2013) brings narrative psychiatry alive through vivid case reports and offers detailed guidance in strengths-based, collaborative practices. From 1997 through 2007, she co-created The Mother-Daughter Project, a grassroots initiative that explored how to best support the wellbeing of adolescent girls, mothers, and mother-daughter relationships, co-authoring the resulting book, The Mother-Daughter Project: How Mothers and Daughters Can Band Together, Beat the Odds, and Thrive Through Adolescence (Penguin, 2007). Mother-daughter groups based on the model she helped develop have formed throughout the world. SuEllen lives with her family in western Massachusetts, where they love to swim outdoors, cross-country ski, dance, cook and lie around the living room, reading.

Beth Prullage, LICSW, is the Director of Clinical Programming at Providence Behavioral Health Hospital in Holyoke, MA.  She has worked at Providence for ten years in a number of clinical positions, including the Director of Social Services, and as the Senior Clinician on the Child and Adolescent Unit.   She is also an Adjunct Associate Professor of Social Work and Faculty Field Advisor at Smith College School for Social Work, where she teaches courses in Clinical Practice, Narrative Therapy and  Family Therapy.

Target Audience

The target audience for this training is clinicians working with adults, children and families who are dealing with mental health challenges, including social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and nurses.

Download the complete training brochure here

Date/Time/Location

January 14-15, 2016, 8:30 am – 5:00 pm

Smith College Conference Center
49 College Lane, Northampton, Massachusetts 01063 (View in Google Maps)
413 585-6977

Accessibility: Conference site is an accessible, barrier-free location. Reasonable accommodations can be made for individuals with visual and/or hearing impairments if needed.

Area Lodging

Tuition and Registration

  • Full Price: $250 per person
  • Discounted Price for Teams of 3 or more: $200 per person
  • Student Price (Graduate Students in MH Professions): $125 per person

Important: If you are part of a team, make sure to select the Team Ticket option when registering to receive the discount. If you would like to register a group in one transaction please contact Pamela Wicinas: pwicinas@cutchins.org

  • Registration Deadline: January 6, 2016, or until all training spaces are filled, whichever comes first.
  • Notification of Acceptance: Upon completion of registration and payment, applicants will receive email notification of acceptance.
  • Refund/Cancellation Policy: Registration fee is non-refundable. Any questions about this policy should be directed to Pamela Wicinas at pwicinas@cutchins.org