Workshop Descriptions

Monday Workshops

An Introduction to Transference-Focused Psychotherapy
Monica Carsky, Ph.D. 3 CEs

Intermediate- Psychologists who have experience in the content area or are familiar with the literature.


This workshop presents an introduction to the theory and techniques of Transference-Focused Psychotherapy (TFP), an empirically supported dynamic treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) that has also been found useful for other personality disorders. TFP not only reduces borderline pathology symptoms but improves personality functioning, identity, and reflective functioning in PD patients. The workshop will use PowerPoint slides, examples, videos, and a discussion of attendees' questions.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Describe the TFP model of psychopathology and treatment
  • List three important steps in practicing TFP
  • Describe the therapist’s attitude and stance, and how countertransference is understood and managed
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The Ethics of Telemental Health
Meets the MD Licensing Requirement for Laws/Ethics or Risk Management
Meets PsyPact requirement for annual renewal
Becky Beaton-York, Ph.D. 3 CEs


Many psychologists are confused about what even constitutes telemental health, which is much more far-reaching than people know. Basically, if a device requires electricity and you are using it to deliver mental health care, you are practicing telemental health. This includes phones (voicemail and texting), computers & tablets (email, billing, or storage of files), fax machines, the Internet (cloud storage of records, EHR platforms, billing transactions, videoconferencing, and even recommending apps and websites to clients). There are a multitude of ethical issues and requirements related to each of these options, and APA’s Guidelines for Telepsychology states we need training in telemental health as well as a written Informed Consent that addresses telemental health. This workshop will help clarify numerous concerns and address the ethical requirements and considerations we all need to be making, including updated information regarding crossing state lines and HIPAA-compliant requirements that have changed due to COVID-19.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Explain the complexity of what actually constitutes telemental health
  • Assess the dangers of practicing across state lines and the options available to do so legally
  • Identity HIPAA compatible video, texting, and emailing and where to go to stay up on the most recent options
  • Summarize what you need to include in your informed consent to treatment regarding telemental health
  • Demonstrate ways to respond to and manage emergencies, including a thorough assessment of client fit for telemental health
  • Discuss the ethical considerations of social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Google searches
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Tuesday Workshops

So, you think you would like to be a Disaster Responder? Let's Talk!

Lynn Hottle, LCSW-C and Hoai-An Truong, PharmD, MPH, FAPhA, FNAP 3 CEs

Introductory- Psychologists who have little or no background in a specialized skill or content area, but do hold a doctorate degree

After a disaster people are often wondering what they can do to help. But the immediate aftermath is often chaotic and fast-moving, the best time to plan to help is before the help is needed. This workshop will describe how to become a disaster responder. Included will be the continuing professional development model, opportunities to be involved as well as the required training.  The differences between disaster mental services and traditional mental health services will be explored. 

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Apply the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) model to prepare for training in disaster preparedness and response
  • Identify the opportunities to be involved in disaster preparedness and response
  • Identify the required training in becoming a disaster responder
  • Describe the differences between working in disaster mental health and providing traditional mental health services
  • Utilize psychological first aid in our work to service clients, staff and volunteers
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Sex Tech, Sex Robots and the Future of Intimacy
Marianne Brandon, Ph.D. 2 CEs

Introductory- Psychologists who have little or no background in a specialized skill or content area, but do hold a doctorate degree

We are a part of a massive social experiment. Sex, gender, and relationship dynamics are changing faster than at any time in recorded history, all within a backdrop of exploding artificial intelligence (AI). Younger generations are increasingly comfortable with technology interfacing all aspects of their lives. The potential risks inherent in human: human sex have been highlighted by COVID-19. Enter virtual reality porn and yes, sex robots. Experts predict that within 20-50 years, robots that move and interact in humanoid ways will be affordable for many. It is highly conceivable that an infant born today can have their first sexual experience with a robot. Mental health professionals will better serve their clients if they understand the increasingly powerful impact new developments in sex tech and AI have on sex and intimacy. The time is now for us to begin this critical discussion.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Identify at least three advances in sex tech that may already be impacting your client's intimate lives
  • Recognize at least four potential risks that sex tech will likely bring to human intimacy within the next few decades
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Wednesday Workshops

Spirituality and Science Working Together in Treating those Affected by the Experience of Dementia
Janice Hicks, Ph.D. and Dorothy Linthicum 3 CEs

Introductory- Psychologists who have little or no background in a specialized skill or content area, but do hold a doctorate degree

Because spirituality intersects dementia in several ways, spiritual aspects help navigate the experience of dementia for those with a diagnosis and their caregivers/families. We will explore how spirituality supports the selfhood of those with dementia, easing the stigma that often results in dehumanizing and marginalizing them. Spirituality also provides a coping mechanism for both those with a diagnosis and caregivers/families. We will survey the science behind dementia and spirituality in order to understand the link more deeply (the limits to current understanding will be included.) The emphasis will be for psychologists who work with caregivers/families of people with dementia, helping patients understand dementia and related conditions and interacting from a spiritual perspective with their loved ones who have dementia.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to
  • Demonstrate how spirituality can support those diagnosed with dementia and their caregivers, especially in areas of coping and maintaining selfhood
  • Utilize scientific explanations about dementia and spirituality in supporting your clients
  • Select the spiritual interventions that work best for different stages of dementia-related illnesses, and utilize scientific explanations that are applicable.
  • Provide resource suggestions to families dealing with dementia such as memory cafes and memory boxes
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Liberation Psychology: Healing the Wounds of Racism
Gives you 1.5 of the 3 CE for the MD Licensing Requirement for Cultural Diversity

This workshop will NOT be available for home study CE, however those that register will get a copy of the recording. 
Thema Bryant-Davis, Psy.D. 1.5 CEs

This presentation will illuminate ways the field of psychology and student services can serve communities who live with the psychological effects of racism.  Insights from liberation psychology, decolonial psychology, Black psychology, and womanist psychology will be presented.  This 90-minute training is for beginner and advanced clinicians, educators, and administrators, as most training programs have not offered training in addressing racial trauma.  The training will encompass both theory and practical application of anti-racism. 

 The training also touches on sustainability, self-care, and community-care as clinicans may be affected by vicarious trauma when working with students/clients in the aftermath or continued exposure to racial trauma.

 Topics discussed will include:

  • The need for anti-racism therapeutic practice as an ethical mandate given the prevalence of racism-related stress and trauma
  • The overlapping theoretical frameworks of liberation psychology, decolonial psychology, and anti-racism psychology
  • Anti-racism in assessment and treatment.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • List at least three potential mental health consequences of racism
  • Apply decolonial, trauma-informed principles to assessing racial trauma
  • Describe an appropriate liberation, trauma-informed framework to a racial trauma intervention

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Thursday Workshops

Integrating Assessment Results into Psychotherapy
Mary Jo Coiro, Ph.D. 3 CEs

Intermediate- Psychologists who have experience in the content area or are familiar with the literature.

Psychologists who receive assessment reports conducted by other clinicians (e.g., medical doctors or other mental health providers) may struggle to integrate the assessment results into psychotherapy. This workshop will provide psychologists with a series of steps for interpreting assessments results and explaining them to both pediatric and adult clients, including:

  • Interpreting commonly used tests and scores
  • Separating facts from opinions
  • Evaluating diagnostic evidence
  • Recognizing strengths as well as weaknesses
  • Prioritizing recommendations for your client
  • Assessing your client’s understanding of the findings and recommendations
  • Incorporating the assessment into treatment goals
  • Using test results to inform clients’ functioning in various aspects of their lives (e.g., school, treatment, community supports
  • How race/ethnicity and other identity factors influence assessment results
  • Legal and ethical considerations with using assessments.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Identify and interpret results from tests commonly used in psychoeducational assessments
  • Help clients’ gain a better understanding of their own strengths and weakness based on assessment results
  • Use test results to help clients engage with other treatment/service providers
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Anxiety, Development, and Emerging Adults: A Primer for Clinicians
Anne Marie Albano, Ph.D. 3 CEs

Intermediate- Psychologists who have experience in the content area or are familiar with the literature.

In the best of times, the developmental transition from adolescence to early adulthood is a time of uncertainty and anxiety but also of optimism and growth (Arnett, 2004). However, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a two-fold increase in anxiety in youth. For those youth with anxiety and related mental health disorders, everyday tasks are often insurmountable, resulting in a failure to achieve independent functioning. Disruptions to in-person schooling, limitations of resources, and various other ways that youth are able to 'fall through the cracks' can solidify anxiety and take youth off of their developmental trajectory. CBT and medication are effective treatments for anxiety in adolescents and children (Walkup, et al., 2008), however, long-term remission through the transition to adulthood is not maintained for nearly half of effectively treated youth (Ginsburg et al., 2014). Traditionally, families have been of secondary focus or minimally involved in empirical studies of treatment outcome, and often kept at a distance in youth-focused community-based treatment. In addition, developmental milestones and age-appropriate functioning has not been the primary target of treatment. And, the unique contextual features of the environments and situations experienced by adolescents and young adults calls for specific attention of CBT therapists in delivering exposures that are ecologically valid to the youth. Hence, it is proposed that a systematic approach to assisting youth and their caretakers in understanding and meet the tasks of development as well as the nature of anxiety increases outcomes for CBT in youth. Central also, to treatment, is for youth to take on the challenges of anxiety and daily living with appropriate parental guidance and support. In this workshop, Dr. Albano will discuss the challenges facing youth at the transition, and a model integrating the core components of effective CBT for anxiety in adolescents and young adults with novel components designed to address patient-caretaker dependency, role transitions, and attainment of behaviors necessary for independent functioning within the contexts that are unique to this developmental age.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Recognize the tasks of development necessary for adolescents to transition to adulthood
  • Devise strategies for addressing parental over involvement and adolescent dependency including family communication and problem-solving
  • Develop a CBT treatment plan with exposures that maximize the use of context and address developmental stage issues to increase ecological validity and reduce or develop tolerance of anxiety

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Friday Workshops

Centering Anti-Racism in Counseling with African American Men
Meets the MD Licensing Requirement for Cultural Diversity
Bill Johnson, Psy.D. and Jocelyn Markowicz, Ph.D. 3 CEs

Intermediate- Psychologists who have experience in the content area or are familiar with the literature.

In his seminal book “The Souls of Black Folk” published originally in 1903, scholar and activist W.E.B. Dubois powerfully declared that “the problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line” (Dubois 1989, p15). The year 2020 presented global challenges with the interface of a pandemic alongside the resurgence of visual displays of historical racism. African American men have uniquely been impacted by racism. Understanding the interface of institutional racism on our provision of psychological services is necessary to work actively to implement anti-racist practices. Diversity training was long touted as a dynamic mechanism to reduce racist practices. However, Bezrukova, Spell, Perry, and Jehn’s (2016) meta-analysis of research on diversity training illuminated weaknesses in our goal to mitigate the impact of systemic racism. They found that we maintain knowledge of diverse cultures, but changes in attitudinal/affective learning are not maintained long-term. Racism is not reduced by the mere learning of cultural norms and morays of diverse groups. Our presentation will emphasize the impact of racism on African American men and offer practical ways to provide anti-racist care. Participants will be able to describe racial biases negatively impacting the mental health of African American men. They will be able to define and provide examples of anti-racist therapy and diagnostic strategies. They will also be able to explain how anti-racist centered treatment extends outside the therapy room. Lastly, they will understand why anti-racist centered treatment is a necessity, not a consideration.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Describe racial biases negatively impacting the mental health of African American Men
  • Define and provide examples of anti-racist therapy and diagnostic strategies
  • Explain how anti-racist centered treatment extends outside the therapy room

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Neurobehavioral and Neurocognitive Functioning of Pediatric Patients with Long COVID
Rowena Ng, Ph.D. and Gray Vargas, Ph.D. 1.5 CEs

Intermediate- Psychologists who have experience in the content area or are familiar with the literature.

There have been a lot of questions on the effects of COVID, especially on children. This presentation focuses on a review of the literature regarding the psychosocial and cognitive sequelae (long-term symptoms that might be experienced weeks to months after primary infection) associated with COVID-19 infection among children. We will also review neurocognitive data of patients followed by the Pediatric Post-COVID-19 Rehabilitation Clinic at Kennedy Krieger Institute. Clinical implications and future directions in research will be discussed.

By the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

  • Identify the psychosocial sequelae associated with Long COVID
  • Identify the neurocognitive sequelae associated with Long COVID
  • Learn about the neurobehavioral presentation of the current pediatric patients with Long COVID followed by Kennedy Kreger Institute

 

 Register Now