Continuing education

The Marriage of Neuroscience, Trauma and Dissociative Disorders

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A continuing education activity presented by the VCU School of Social Work. This program is designed for social workers and their community partners.

Course description and objectives

This workshop will provide an overview of recent research and empirical data linking neuroscience, childhood sexual trauma and dissociative disorders — a complex protective trauma response. A combination of didactic, experiential and audio-visual materials will be used to provide an interactive workshop utilizing a biopsychosocial framework for assessment and intervention with survivors of childhood sexual trauma. A focus on the connection between attachment disorders, borderline personality disorder and dissociative disorders will also be examined.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

  1. Understand and describe basic principles of neurobiology and complex consequences of childhood trauma
  2. Recognize symptoms of dissociative functioning
  3. Understand the BASK Model of Dissociation (Braun, 1988)
  4. Differentially assess for dissociative disorders
  5. Use the DES (Carlson & Putnam, 1993) and other assessment tools for identifying Dissociative Identity Disorder
  6. Develop basic dissociative disorders clinical practice skills

Category I contact hours: 6
Continuing education units: 0.6

Agenda

9-10:15 a.m.
Welcome and introductions
A brief overview of recent research and empirical data linking neuroscience, childhood sexual trauma and dissociative disorders- a complex protective trauma response, will be presented. A combination of didactic, and audio-visual materials will be used to illustrate the impact trauma has on neurological development and childhood/adult psychological and behavioral functioning.
Understanding the BASK Model of Dissociation (Braun, 1988)

10:15-10:30 a.m.
Break

10:30-11:30 a.m.
Identification of symptoms of dissociative functioning

11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m.
Lunch

12:15-2:15 p.m.
Introduction to the Dissociative Experiences
Scale (Carlson & Putnam, 1993) and other assessment tools for identifying dissociative identity disorder

Differential assessment of dissociative disorders

Basic clinical practice skills for intervention with dissociative disorders (Dissociative Protocol)

2:15-2:30 p.m.
Break

2:30-4:30 p.m. 
The connection between attachment disorders, borderline personality disorder and dissociative disorders.

Practice Laboratory – Assessment and Intervention of Dissociative Functioning

Evaluation and closing

Program session

March 27, 2009
9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
VCU University Student Commons — Virginia Rooms
907 Floyd Avenue
Richmond, Virginia 23284
Phone: (804) 828-1981

About the facilitators

Delores  Dungee-AndersonDelores Dungee-Anderson, Ph.D. LCSW, CSOTP, is an associate professor and director of the M.S.W. Program at VCU. She received her M.S.W. from VCU and her doctorate in Social Work from Howard University. She is a clinical social work practitioner and has extensive training and practice in the area of trauma, neuroscience, personality disorders and dissociative disorders. She serves as a site visitor for the Council on Social Work Education and as a faculty mentor in the Hartford CSWE Gero-Ed Curriculum Development Initiative, focused on infusion of content on aging in curricula of CSWE accredited social work programs in the U.S. She is a NASW-VA Clinical Supervision and Licensure Preparation Trainer. She chairs the Clinical Practice Track of the Council on Social Work Education’s Annual Program Meeting.

Cost and registration*

  • Regular: $110
  • Student: $55
  • Senior: $85
  • VCU faculty and field instructor: $85
  • Agency group of three or more: $85 each

* Includes lunch.

Registration opens March 6, 2009.

Please register online at www.pubinfo.vcu.edu/conf/socialwork/register.asp.

Registration closes on March 24, 2009 at 9 a.m.

Participants may register for CEUs by completing a CEU registration form and making a check payable to the VCU School of Social Work in the amount of $15 on the day of the event. No cash or credit cards will be accepted for this purpose.

Questions?

Contact Angela Basmajian at (804) 828-0403 or sswce@vcu.edu.