Mental Health Continuing Education Seminars

Using adult learning techniques and case studies to illustrate common clinical issues, the Co-Occurring Training offers opportunities for clinicians to discuss common psychiatric disorders or issues that our patients tend to experience along with their addiction. To increase competency, this training exposes common signs and symptoms, what to look for when symptoms escalate, behavioral patterns, specific interventions to use, and clinical blind spots.

Other topics covered include: Counter-transference, Differential Diagnosis, Staff-Splitting, and Suicidality.

This training discusses what ADHD is and the neurobiology and etiology that increases the likelihood of someone being diagnosed with ADHD.  The training explores the symptoms and strengths of ADHD and ties in how SUD is linked to this diagnosis. And finally, effective treatment options will be identified to help stop the trend of people with ADHD being at higher risk for substance abuse, including working to know the facts, the use of medication, and understanding the triggers.

A vast majority of people with substance use disorder have also experienced some type of trauma in their lives resulting in Complex PTSD. This training helps clinicians strengthen their skills in providing trauma-informed treatment to individuals living with Complex PTSD and substance use disorders. This is accomplished by enhancing clinicians understanding of the effects of both trauma and substance use on the brain and exploring effective methods of helping people heal from trauma.

The United States is in the midst of an addiction crisis. The treatment field and the public have been increasingly viewing addiction as a chronic medical illness in the past 5-10 years, however, our approach to treatment delivery and measurement have not reflected these changes.

The Institute of Medicine has specifically called for greater development, implementation, and measurement of evidence-based practices (EBPs) but ensuring adequate adherence and competence in the clinical delivery of these practices has lagged. This training looks at the development, delivery, and measurement of EPBs in addiction treatment. We examine the role of stigma, the evidence that addiction is a chronic medical illness, and the results of clinically based research on current treatment available for drug and alcohol dependence.

Research shows that Justice involved populations enter treatment with a higher prevalence of trauma. To treat this population effectively we need to address the trauma in combination with the addiction symptomology. Trauma is a challenging topic not only for the patients but for providers and support staff as well. In this training, participants learn about the various types of trauma justice-involved individuals experience and the impact of such traumas interpersonally. This training educates attendees on techniques and interventions that can be utilized in creating a trauma-informed space for healing and an environment that benefits direct service and support staff.

This training provides education on ethical standards specific to substance use disorder treatment. Specific consideration is made in the areas of dual relationships, boundaries, self-disclosure, and the use of social media.

Treatment of substance use disorders has made great strides recently – from changing the way addiction is viewed to the development of new therapies and medications. We look at the current state of the treatment field and explore the effectiveness of treatment– from examining the public’s expectations of treatment to studies comparing treatment vs. no treatment, various treatment goals, and the role of motivation in treatment. We look at genetic heritability, twin studies, and predictors of relapse for addiction compared to other chronic medical disorders. Finally, we look at the ways to measure effective care and the argument against defining “total abstinence” as the only form of success.

Cultivating compassion, connection and kinship goes beyond feeling more empathy and concern for others. It develops the strength to be with suffering, resilience in the face of life’s challenges, and the courage to take compassionate action. These qualities support a wide range of goals, from improving personal relationships to making a positive difference to those suffering from the disease of addiction. Preliminary research suggests that creating an environment of compassion, connection, and kinship leads to healing and understanding. Similar programs can increase self-compassion and self-care, reduces stress, anxiety, and enhanced connection with others. These are beneficial practices for those who work in the behavioral health field, as well as those who are connected to those in active addiction, and recovery.

Trends in the healthcare industry and in our field are fueling a move to value-based and recovery-oriented care. To be value-based necessitates the ability to measure our effectiveness, while recovery-oriented care must include a long-term plan like those implemented in other chronic diseases. These new demands have compelled behavioral health treatment and recovery organizations to achieve some consensus on standards to be used for benchmarks – of organizational and patient-level success. The COVID-19 pandemic has driven an unprecedented expansion of technology and telehealth adoption. This has provided many new opportunities to deliver care that individuals struggling with substance use disorders could not have previously received. This brings with it both a myriad of new questions and tremendous opportunities. How will we know if telehealth options work at least as well as traditional service delivery? Will people who would have not gotten help otherwise be interested in treatment? This session will provide data from an industry survey on issues related to changes in our field, examine the benefits, effects, and value of the skyrocketing adoption of technology-based services, and the escalating need for industry outcomes measurement.