SEPTEMBER 2007--
The Community Education and Outreach Committee (CEO) continues its community outreach effort. NESTTD is offering a two-hour introductory training on Dissociative Disorders to mental health organizations in the Boston and greater Boston areas. By offering this training, we are hoping to spark interest in learning more about trauma and dissociation while also helping clinicians understand the central role that trauma and dissociation play in the lives of many of our clients. With dissociative disorders being so frequently under-diagnosed and misdiagnosed, we are hoping that by educating clinicians about diagnosis and treatment, dissociative-disordered clients can receive more appropriate treatment and clinicians’ frustration with “stuck” (and possibly dissociative) clients can be minimized.
To date, members of our Speaker’s Bureau have presented the training to four organizations. Susan Aeschbach, LICSW, presented to Child and Family Services, Inc. in New Bedford. Rhonda Sabo, Psy.D., presented to Health and Education Services in Lawrence. Suzanne Hoffman, Psy.D., presented to the South End Health Center and Deborah Block, Ph.D., presented to the Boston Healthcare For the Homeless. Four more presentations are scheduled: Mark Geer, Ed.D., will be presenting to the Latin American Health Institute in Boston this July 11; Joanna Duda, RN,MS,CS will present to the North Shore Medical Center in Salem on Nov. 2, 2007 and then again to the Private Practice Colloquium in Salem on Nov. 14, 2007; And Joanne Twombly will be presenting to the Family Counseling Program in Lawrence in Sept/Oct (date to be announced). Finally, there are two other organizations that have requested trainings and we are in the process of making arrangements with them.
We continue to welcome names of organizations that may be interested in the training along with personal contacts within the organizations. As of July 2007 the cost of the two-hour training for non-profit organizations is $250 and for private organizations is $350.
Suggestions of organizations should be directed to Susan Aeschbach via e-mail (susanaeschbach@comcast.net) or phone (617) 527-2613. She, along with other CEO members will match a speaker to the organization taking into consideration the location of the organization, availability of the speaker and prior experience of the speaker.
Thank you for your support of this community education effort!
MAY 2007--
It is with great enthusiasm that the Community Education and Outreach committee (CEO) is actively launching a community outreach effort. We are now offering a two- hour introductory training on Dissociative Disorders to agencies/clinics in the Boston and greater Boston areas. We are pleased to share that several presentations have already been scheduled. A training manual, developed by Susan Aeschbach, LICSW and Joanne Twombly, LICSW, and edited by Rhonda Sabo, Psy.D., now provides a guide for speakers from our newly developed Speaker’s Bureau.
Historically, NESTTD’s Speaker’s Bureau has given trainings on Dissociative Disorders to community agencies. Our committee has essentially provided a convenient format for the training, precluding the need for speakers to “re-invent the wheel” each time a training is requested. The newly enlarged Speaker’s Bureau now consists of 20 seasoned clinicians who are either current or past Board members. All have demonstrated a commitment to the mission of NESTTD, are well versed in the dissociative disorder literature and have experience treating dissociative disordered clients. While we are aware that there are many other NESTTD members who fit these criteria, we have decided for now to begin with current and previous board members. Depending upon demand and speaker availability, the Speaker’s Bureau may be enlarged at some point in the future.
The CEO committee was created in January 2005. Its mission is “to provide education and resources about trauma and dissociation to professionals in a variety of settings.” The idea for the committee sprang from the recognition that within our organization there is a wealth of knowledge that could be disseminated to professionals who work on a daily basis with traumatized individuals. Our hope is to spark interest in learning more about trauma and dissociation while also helping clinicians understand the central role that trauma and dissociation play in the lives of many of our clients. With dissociative disorders being so frequently under-diagnosed and misdiagnosed, we are hoping that by educating clinicians about diagnosis and treatment, dissociative-disordered clients can receive more appropriate treatment and that clinicians’ frustration with “clients who seem stuck” (and may be dissociative) can be minimized.
We are actively soliciting names of agencies/ clinics/ organizations (and contact persons) that you think might be interested in receiving training, the cost of which is quite reasonable. We encourage you to “spread the word” amongst colleagues about the availability of the training. Suggestions of agencies should be e-mailed directly to Susan Aeschbach (susanaeschbach@comcast.net). Please type Community Education and Outreach in the subject line so that it can be readily identified. She may also be contacted at (617) 527-2613. Once she receives the name and address of the agency and a contact person, a letter will be sent to the agency publicizing the training. If the agency is interested, they should call Susan directly and she, along with the other CEO members, will match a speaker to the agency, taking into consideration agency location, availability of the speaker and prior experience of the speaker. For example, if a hospital requests a presentation, we would try to select a speaker who has had experience working in a hospital setting.
We are also pleased to mention that an electronic bulletin board, spearheaded by Kari Gleiser, Ph.D., has been created on the NESTTD website for posting research projects relevant to trauma and dissociation in order to foster collaboration and participation.
The CEO committee is currently being chaired by Susan Aeschbach, LICSW. Due to the time commitments involved in being a new mother, Kari Gleiser, Ph.D. has stepped down as co-chair but continues to be an active member of the committee. Other committee members are Joanne Twombly, LICSW, Rhonda Sabo, Psy.D. and Suzanne Hoffman, Psy.D.
Thank you for your support of this community education effort!
Respectfully submitted,
Susan Aeschbach LICSW
Chair of the CEO Committee
(617)527-2613