The School of Social Work is pleased to offer its third year of the Clinical Lecture Series, where area practitioners, students, and faculty learn together from esteemed and innovative clinicians. The CLS offers monthly lectures to enhance the clinical curriculum for students and offer continuing education for graduates and practitioners. It also aims to foster and strengthen relationships among clinically-oriented students and the wider clinical community. Selection of topics and speakers come from participant feedback.
We are also proud to be hosting Advocating for Mental Health, Parts I & II as our Carroll Butts Heins Endowed Lectureship and in conjunction with co-sponsoring organizations.
All events take place in the Tate-Turner-Kuralt Auditorium of the School of Social Work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill located at 301 Pittsboro Street.
Clinical lectures take place on Mondays, from 12 noon to 2:00 p.m. We encourage you to arrive early to mingle with colleagues before the lecture. Light refreshments will be served at 11:30a.m. Bring your lunch if you wish. Lectures will begin at 12 noon. (No food allowed in the Auditorium). Individual lectures = $15. Two contact hours are available for each.
Advocating for Mental Health workshops take place on Fridays, from 1:30p.m. – 5:30p.m. These include a wine and cheese reception in which participants collaborate as advocates for mental health. Individual conference = $30. Four contact hours are available for each.
You may register for the entire series of lectures for $125. (20 contact hours)
NEW EVENT Co-Sponsored with the NC Psychoanalytic Society on Saturday, March 31, 9am-12noon, New and Exciting Approach to Diagnosis presented by Nancy McWilliams.
“NO REFUNDS.” You may transfer your seat to a colleague (just send an email to that effect).
Parking: Due to construction, the most reliable place to park is in the UNC Hospital lot on Manning Drive. Parking fee $ 0.75/ hour. For directions
Additional Questions: Deborah Barrett, PhD MSW dbarrett@email.unc.edu
Schedule of Events
| Monday, September 18, 2006 |
| Aging and the Power of Reminiscence |
| Florence Soltys, MSW, ACSW, LCSW |
At all stages of life, reminiscing or reviewing our past helps us understand who we are and find meaning in our existence. For older adults, sharing memories can be affirming and therapeutic, particularly in the face of monumental life transitions. Yet there is a bias in our youth-oriented culture that discounts this meaning-making activity with an unhealthy “dwelling in the past” or even senility. In this session, Florence Soltys presents “life review” as a powerful tool for healthy adaptation to the tasks of aging. When properly done, the sharing of memories helps individuals to accept loss, reduce depression, and increase their sense of identity, self-esteem and belonging. With examples from her work, Ms. Soltys illustrates how memories provide continuity and completeness, essential to the developmental tasks of older adulthood.
Florence Soltys, an associate clinical professor at three Schools at
UNC-CH (social work, nursing, and medicine) is a leader in the field of
aging. She is the recipient of an award for distinguished teaching and
the Ned Brooks Award for Community Service. For the past twenty-some years,
she has championed the rights of older adults both locally and nationally,
as advocate, activist, researcher, educator, consultant, and practitioner.
She has been an early and consistent champion of restraint-free facilities
in North Carolina, spearheaded the Orange County Master Aging Plan, and
is active on numerous Advisory Committees and Boards. She has served as
Director of a center of bereavement services and launched the Chapel Hill/Carrboro
Meals on Wheels program. She is currently president of the International
Reminiscence and Life Review Society and of Orange Seniors, Inc (nonprofit).
She has published widely on aging, including a forthcoming book, Reminiscing:
Valuing and Enriching the Lives of Older Adults and served as the
interviewer in the documentary film An Unlikely Friendship.
| Monday, October 16, 2006 |
| Men and Depression: the Descent that Heals |
| Lou Lipsitz, LCSW |
Discussions of men and their emotions often lead us into confusing territory. Though more men are seeking therapy, we also encounter in the psychology literature the paradigm of “normal male alexithymia” (the loss of connection with one’s emotions) - which is treated as appropriate for understanding most American men. In this presentation, Lou Lipsitz demonstrates how experiences in the so-called “men’s movement” (though it represents only a tiny fraction of men) can help us learn about deeper layers of male experience. In relation to depression in particular, these experiences help us understand what men are afraid of and what can help depressed men heal.
Lou Lipsitz,
has been in private practice for twelve years in Chapel Hill and Raleigh.
He has a general adult practice with specialties including men’s
issues, grief work, depression, creativity and life transitions. He has
also worn many other hats, including: poet, political scientist, activist,
father and son, all of which have shaped his perspective and therapeutic
approach. After his own transformative experience in therapy, Dr. Lipsitz
decided to transition from a position as full professor of political science
to student of social work, both at UNC-CH. As a psychotherapist, he is
particularly interested in the emotional impact of father/child relationships
and issues of grief, anger and comradeship in men’s lives. He has
been active in the men’s movement and a member of the leadership
council of the Triangle Men’s Center in Raleigh. His poetry has
been published widely; he is currently working on a book of poems about
the process of psychotherapy as experienced by both patient and therapist.
His literary work can be found at loulipsitz.com;
his psychotherapy website is psychotherapyresources.com.
| Monday, November 13, 2006 |
| Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with Difficult to Treat Clients |
| Cathy Forneris, PhD, ABPP |
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) focuses on three levels of thought
to promote behavior change: automatic thoughts, underlying assumptions,
and core beliefs. In this presentation, Dr. Forneris will provide an overview
of each of these cognitive structures and describe methods for helping
clients access them. Emphasis will be placed on working with clients with
long-standing or recurrent problems to help them develop and strengthen
core beliefs to promote sustainable emotional and behavioral change.
Catherine A. Forneris is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry
at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is a licensed
clinical psychologist who specializes in cognitive-behavioral therapy
(CBT) and is the Director of the CBT and the Dialectical Behavior Therapy
(DBT) programs and training clinics for psychiatry residents and psychology
graduate students. She is a diplomat with the American Board of Professional
Psychology, and an active member of the North Carolina Psychological Association
and the Academy of Cognitive Therapy. She has co-authored several research
articles and been lead author on several papers and presentations on personality
disorders, CBT, DBT, trauma, PTSD, and health care utilization.
| Monday, January 22, 2007 |
| Using CBT to Treat Psychotic Symptoms |
| David Penn, PhD |
In this presentation, Dr. Penn describes how to use cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to help clients reduce stress and build skills to deal with difficulties of living with psychotic disorders. This includes ways to treat “positive symptoms” by combating auditory hallucinations and addressing distorted beliefs as well as “negative symptoms” by building self esteem and self efficacy. Dr. Penn also discusses how CBT can be used to help individuals identify and cope with triggers for psychosis. He will also discuss research in this area. Throughout, Dr. Penn draws on his extensive work as a clinician and researcher.
David Penn, a
clinical psychologist and Professor of Psychology, shares his time between
the departments of psychology and psychiatry at UNC Chapel Hill, where
he is an active teacher, clinician, mentor, and researcher. Dr. Penn’s
focus is the treatment of psychotic disorders. At the Schizophrenia Treatment
and Evaluation Program (STEP) in the department of psychiatry, Dr. Penn
trains psychiatric residents and graduate interns from a variety of disciplines
in cases involving individual, family, and group modalities. He has also
developed extensive research projects on psychosocial treatments for individuals
with schizophrenia, social cognition and schizophrenia, and methods for
reducing stigma toward individuals with these conditions. Among his current
work is an investigation of group CBT for medication-resistant auditory
hallucinations, CBT for first episode psychosis, and social cognition
and interaction training.
| Monday, February 19, 2007 |
| Using Personality Adaptations in Couples Therapy |
| Vann Joines, PhD |
In this workshop, Dr. Joines demonstrates how knowledge about partners’ personality adaptations can be a useful tool in couples work. By understanding personality adaptations, practitioners can guide partners to connect, communicate, and problem-solve with each other more easily and to steer clear of “stuck places.” Dr. Joines also describes how knowledge about personality adaptations predicts when couples will do well and when they are more likely to struggle, and the reasons for this. Throughout, Dr. Joines illustrates this approach by drawing on specific examples from his work.
Vann Joines, a
clinical psychologist, licensed marital and family therapist, certified
group therapist, and certified transactional analyst, is President and
Director of the Southeast Institute for Group and Family Therapy. His
work includes co-authoring Personality Adaptations: A new Guide to Human
Understanding for Psychotherapists and Counselors and the creation of
the Joines Personality Adaptation Questionnaire and the JPAQ Administration,
Scoring and Interpretive Manual. Dr. Joines was the winner of the 1994
Eric Berne Memorial Award for Integration of TA with other theories and
approaches. Dr. Joines has lectured and taught workshops throughout the
United States and has been the Keynote Speaker at conferences of the Transactional
Analysis Association of Japan and Brazil. His work has been featured on
videotapes, including by the International Transactional Analysis Association.
| Monday, March 26, 2007 |
| Inside Ethics Violations |
| Ravita T. Omabu Okafor, LCSW |
When we come across a list of clinicians whose licenses were suspended or revoked for ethical infractions, we can’t help feeling curious. What did they do? We may try to seek comfort in the idea that their behavior must be very different from our own. But each of them, like us, has likely been trained in the values of social work and has the NASW Code of Ethics as a guide. In this illuminating presentation, Mrs. Omabu Okafor uses real case examples to reveal specific actions that precipitated practitioners’ descent from sound ethical practice into professional misconduct. Moreover, she helps us to evaluate and strengthen our own ethical practice by providing ways to assess and monitor ethical aspects our professional conduct.
Ravita T. Omabu
Okafor practices psychotherapy with children, adolescents, and adults
through her private practice in Knightdale, NC. Previously, Mrs. Omabu
Okafor worked with community mental health agencies. She is Chair of NASW-NC’s
Ethics Committee and is an Editorial Board member for the Journal of Social
Work Values and Ethics. Mrs. Omabu Okafor is a UNC-CH’s School of
Social Work alumnus.
Advocating
for Mental Health
Carroll Butts Heins Endowed Lectures
Description of events:
The "Advocating for Mental Health" meetings are a primer for the clinical community on the organizational, regulatory, and political context in which we provide services and the ways in which we can most effectively advocate for our profession and our clients. Many of us are concerned about ongoing threats to psychotherapeutic practice but lack direction about what, if anything, we as clinicians can do about them. These meetings aim to provide leadership as well as provide a forum in which we, as front-line clinicians, can share our experiences and concerns. Each event will include a panel of experts including advocates from professional organizations and policy shapers.
Co-sponsors:
AHEC - Greensboro
Carolinas Group Psychotherapy Society
Jordan Institute for Families
Mental Health Association in North Carolina
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) North Carolina
National Association of Social Work – North Carolina
North Carolina Coalition of Mental Health Professionals
North Carolina Psychoanalytic Foundation
North Carolina Society for Clinical Social Work
Friday, November 3, 2006
Advocating
for Mental Health Part I - Mental Health Reform
Part I focuses
on mental health reform as the most significant driving force of immediate
change in North Carolina. This workshop aims to update clinicians on the
latest developments and challenges of reform as it is being implemented
throughout North Carolina, and identify key areas for collaboration and
advocacy. Our mental healthcare system is in the throes of radical change
and this is a critical time for involvement. This workshop brings together
leaders - from social work, psychology, and psychiatry - who have been
consistent promoters of quality mental healthcare and who can provide
direction for constructive approaches to the current privatization of
services and strategies for longer-term improvements. Let's unite in our
shared interest to promote quality professional services. Come equipped
with your thoughts and your questions!
Panel:
- Anna Scheyett, MSW, LCSW, Clinical Associate Professor, School of Social Work, UNC Chapel Hill; Member, NASW-NC Board of Directors; and Member, NC Commission for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse (MH/DD/SA) Services has over 15 years experience teaching, researching, consulting, and advocating in the area of public mental health.
- John Tote, Executive Director, Mental Health Association in North Carolina, is a long-time advocate for high quality services for people suffering from mental illness, and the promotion of mental health and wellness for all.
- Beth Melcher, Ph.D., Clinical Director of The Durham Center LME, has served as a consultant to the North Carolina General Assembly Legislative Oversight Committee on MH/DD/SA Services; Director of the North Carolina Science to Service Project; and as Director of NAMI North Carolina (for nine years).
- Jeffrey Chambers, MD, a psychiatrist in private practice in Durham and Raleigh and an advanced candidate in psychoanalysis, has more than a dozen years of experience in public mental health in Virginia and North Carolina. Member, Board of Directors of NC Psychoanalytic Foundation, Former President of the NC Mental Health Coalition.
- Rep. Verla Insko, House Co-Chair, Legislative Oversight Committee on Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse (responsible for monitoring the implementation of mental health reform) has special interests in social and economic justice, programs for aging, and mental health issues.
Friday,
February 2, 2007
Advocating for Mental Health Part II - Mental
Healthcare Parity
Part II focuses
on "parity," or the equitable provision of mental healthcare
services (at least on par with other healthcare services). This workshop
highlights the urgency of this matter, describes how the parity debate
affects each and every one of us, and outlines the steps that can be taken
by each of us - as concerned yet busy clinicians - to help advance mental
health as a priority for our community.
Panel:
- Jack Register, MSW, LCSW, Director of Advocacy and Legislation for NASW-NC, the professional association of social work in NC, is a grass roots organizer, liaison to the General Assembly on all social work issues, registered lobbyist, and advocate for the profession in the state.
- Sally R. Cameron, PhD, Executive Director of the NC Psychological Association (for 25 years), chair of Coalition 2001, and chair of the Provider Relations Leadership Forum, has been active in the Coalition for Persons Disabled by Mental Illness, and a leader in North Carolina on issues of mental health parity and increasing access to mental health services for all.
- Janet Schanzenbach is Chair of the State Rehabilitation Council and President of Indigo Consulting, where she lobbies for the NC Council of Community Programs and the NC Association of Rehabilitation Facilities. Previously, she served as Deputy Director and staff lobbyist for the NC Council of Community Programs, and Chair of the DD Consortium.
- Laura Galbreath, MPP, Director of Healthcare Reform for Mental Health America, tracks national policy trends, conducts policy research and analysis, and provides technical assistance to states working to improve access to mental health services.
- Senator Martin Nesbitt. Co-Chair, Legislative Oversight Committee on Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse (responsible for monitoring the implementation of mental health reform) has supported efforts to increase insurance coverage for mental healthcare and promote mental healthcare parity. [He has expressed interest; not yet confirmed].
Advocating for Mental Health workshops take place on Fridays, from 1:30p.m. – 5:30p.m. These include a wine and cheese reception in which participants collaborate as advocates for mental health. The cost for each workshop is $30. Four contact hours are available for each.
You may register for the entire series of lectures for $125. (20 contact hours available)
Questions?
Deborah Barrett, PhD MSW dbarrett@email.unc.edu
| Saturday, March 31, 2007 9:00 – 12 noon (3 CEUs) 8:30 registration and refreshments |
| A New and Exciting Approach to Diagnosis |
| Nancy McWilliams, PhD |
Co-Sponsored with
the North Carolina Psychoanalytic Society $25 on line ($30 at door)
Sick of the limits of the DSM? Come hear Nancy McWilliams present a new diagnostic tools, the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM), which offers a supplement (or alternative) to existing psychiatric taxonomies of mental illness. More than simply cataloguing symptoms, the PDM explicates the full range of mental functioning, based on the premise that our understanding of disorders must begin with an understanding of healthy mental functioning. The PDM systematically describes healthy and disordered personality, emotional and social functioning, individual profiles of mental functioning, and the subjective experience of symptom patterns. Developed by a scientific task force, the PDM is based on current neuroscience and research in psychopathology, development, personality, affect, and treatment outcomes. Dr. McWilliams, will summarize the project and provide insights into its utility for the practice and teaching of psychotherapy. Come hear this award-winning author share insights about this revolutionary, new tool.
Nancy McWilliams, Ph.D., Associate Editor of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual, teaches at the Graduate School of Applied & Professional Psychology at Rutgers University and has a private practice in Flemington, New Jersey. She is a graduate of the National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, and affiliated with the Institute for Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy of New Jersey and the National Training Program of the National Institute for the Psychotherapies in New York City. She is President-Elect of the Division of Psychoanalysis of the American Psychological Association, Associate Editor of the Psychoanalytic Review, Honorary Member of The American Psychoanalytic Association, and on the editorial board of Psychoanalytic Psychology. Dr. McWilliams has written widely on personality structure and personality disorders, psychodiagnosis, sex and gender, trauma, intensive psychotherapy, and contemporary challenges to the humanistic tradition in psychotherapy. Her work has won many awards, including the Rosalee Weiss Award for contributions to practice by the Division of Independent Practitioners of the American Psychological Association, and the Gradiva Award for best psychoanalytic clinical book.