Presented by
Adèle Lafrance, Ph.D., C.Psych &
Co-developer of EFFT

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Introduction to Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT)
Date: March 19, 2019
Facilitator: Adèle Lafrance, Ph.D., C.Psych., Co-developer of EFFT, clinical psychologist, associate professor at Laurentian University and a supervising/consulting psychologist for a number of mental health agencies in Canada and abroad.
Location: The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Hollywood Theatre, 1st Floor, Room 1246 Black Wing, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X8.
This training is suitable for: Medical professionals, psychiatrists, pediatricians, nurses, direct service workers, clinicians, drop in workers, shelter and hostel workers, child and youth workers, youth justice workers and social workers. |
The essence of Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) is to increase the positive role of caregivers in their child's emotional health and wellness. The clinician's role is to support parents and caregivers to increase their involvement in specific ways included in the four main domains of behavior coaching, emotion coaching, relationship repair and fears and obstacles.
Using the EFFT model this workshop will cover the specific modules designed for clinicians in applying skills for supporting caregivers to identify, understand, and transform "emotion blocks" that lead to therapy-interfering attitudes, or behaviors that can come into play throughout the course of treatment. These “interferences” can create challenges in treatment for the most experienced clinicians. Dr. Lafrance will also cover the EFFT module for clinician and team challenges as well, including how to identify markers of emotional processes underlying problematic patterns of caregiving and the skills needed to work through potential clinician blocks to implementation.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Offered as a webinar, or in-class training!
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Mental Health of Refugees: Identify, assess and support refugees experiencing mental health challenges.
Date: March 19, 2019
Facilitators: Debra Stein, Ph.D., Branka Agic, Ph.D. and Priya Raju, MD., FRCPC.
This training is suitable for: All mental health professionals, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists, social workers, medical professionals and psychiatrists.
Location: The Peter Gilgan Centre for Research and Learning at 686 Bay Street, 3rd floor, Room 03.9320, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4. |
Gain the key information and skills required to identify, assess and support the specific needs of refugees experiencing mental health challenges.
Refugees are vulnerable to mental health problems, though not all refugees experience them. The rates of mental health problems and illnesses vary considerably between and within different groups. These variations reflect differences in exposure to, and effects of, risk factors on specific refugee populations and groups within these populations. Refugees are less likely to seek mental health services than the general population. When they seek services, they tend to experience disparities in access and quality of care and health outcomes.
Spend a day with us and learn:
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The key determinants of refugee mental health.
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To implement appropriate assessment for mental disorders.
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Outline key considerations when working with refugee children.
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Distinguish between mental distress and mental disorders.
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Discuss pathways to care.
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Identify main issues in treatment of refugees.
This training is offered as a webinar, or as an in-class workshop. For more information on this workshop/webinar please click: More
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What's Going On? An innovative model for assessing children and teens
Date: April 3, 2019
Facilitator: Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., best-selling author and one of Canada's foremost presenters on childhood trauma.
This training is suitable for: Mental health professionals, clinicians, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists and social workers. |
The initial phase of therapy is perhaps the most important as it forms the foundation for successful ongoing work. An atmosphere of safety must be created in which the child is made to feel accepted, understood, and respected. A comprehensive assessment needs to be conducted so that an appropriate treatment plan can be developed. This course will focus on the beginning phase of therapy, namely, how to build a positive therapeutic rapport, engage resistant clients, conduct a comprehensive assessment, and develop a treatment plan. This is Learning Module 1 of the 2019 Certificate in Essential Skills for Assessing and Treating Children and Families. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Wanna Come Out and Play? The creative use of games, stories, puppets, and art with children and teens
Date: April 26, 2019
Facilitator: Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., best-selling author and one of Canada's foremost presenters on childhood trauma.
This training is suitable for: Mental health professionals, clinicians, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists and social workers. |
The creative use of games, puppets, stories, and art engages children and teens in therapy and helps them to resolve their psychological difficulties. Through this hands-on training, participants will learn to describe key processing skills to deepen therapeutic work and how to utilize a variety of therapeutic techniques to make sessions more meaningful and effective. The activities presented can be used with a wide range of presenting problems and difficulties. Videos and live demonstrations will be used to illustrate techniques. This is Learning Module 2 of the 2019 Certificate in Essential Skills for Assessing and Treating Children and Families. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Children at the Bedside: Preparing children for the death of someone close to them
Date: May 6, 2019
Facilitator: Andrea Warnick, RN, MA.
This training is suitable for: Front-line workers, volunteers, medical professionals, clergy, social workers, administrators, residential workers, counsellors, funeral service providers, and hospice volunteers. |
This workshop will provide real-life and real death narratives to identify practical strategies that can be used to support children and youth who are experiencing the impending death of someone in their lives. Societal discomfort, myths and misconceptions surrounding the topic of children and death will be addressed through open discussion. Participants will gain practical strategies and creative approaches for preparing children for a death of someone close to them. This is Learning Module 1 of the 2019 Certificate Program in Children's Grief and Bereavement. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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When Death Darkens the Door: Supporting bereaved children and youth
Date: May 7, 2019
Facilitator: Andrea Warnick, RN, MA.
This training is suitable for: Front-line workers and volunteers, mental health professionals, medical professionals, educators, clergy, social workers, administrators, residential workers, counsellors, funeral service providers and hospice volunteers. |
This workshop will focus on supporting children and youth after a death has happened in their lives, regardless of whether the death was a recent event or occurred years ago. Participants will learn how to identify grief support strategies that can be used with children and youth in a wide variety of settings. Participants will leave with innovative and practical tips for helping children and youth understand the concept of death, and for supporting their grief process. The role of cultural humility in grief work and what not to say to a bereaved child or youth will be covered. This is Learning Module 2 of the 2019 Certificate Program in Children's Grief and Bereavement. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Using Mindfulness and Compassion to Support Grieving Children and Families
Date: May 8, 2019
Facilitators: Andrea Warnick, RN, MA, and Andrew Blake.
This training is suitable for: Front-line workers and volunteers, medical professionals, educators, clergy, social workers, administrators, residential workers, counsellors, funeral service providers and hospice volunteers. |
This workshop will explore the concept that when awareness is balanced between self and other, compassion has a dual pathway, where our care extends both to ourselves and to those in our care. In addition to the use of compassion in clinical work, mindfulness practices that can be used with children, adolescents, and families will be explored, along with the clinician's own mindful practice. Participants will gain essential skills and strategies to develop mindfulness practices that can be incorporated into clinical work with those who are grieving a death. This is Learning Module 3 of the 2019 Certificate Program in Children's Grief and Bereavement. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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When Grief Gets More Complicated: Supporting harder-to-serve populations
Date: May 9, 2019
Facilitators: Andrea Warnick, RN., MA., Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., and Esther Rhee, MSW.
This training is suitable for: Front-line workers and volunteers, medical professionals, educators, clergy, social workers, administrators, residential workers, counsellors, funeral service providers and hospice volunteers. |
This workshop will explore the concept that when awareness is balanced between self and other, compassion has a dual pathway, where our care extends both to ourselves and to those in our care. In addition to the use of compassion in clinical work, mindfulness practices that can be used with children, adolescents, and families will be explored, along with the clinician's own mindful practice. Participants will gain essential skills and strategies to develop mindfulness practices that can be incorporated into clinical work with those who are grieving a death. This is Learning Module 4 of the 2019 Certificate Program in Children's Grief and Bereavement. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Dancing in the Darkness: Creative approaches to working with grieving children and youth
Date: May 10, 2019
Facilitators: Andrea Warnick, RN, MA, and Lysa Toye, MSW, RSW.
This training is suitable for: Front-line workers and volunteers, medical professionals, educators, clergy, social workers, administrators, residential workers, counsellors, funeral service providers and hospice volunteers. Any professional who is in a position to support/influence a grieving child or youth. |
The emphasis in this workshop will be on supporting participants who already have a theoretical foundation in children's grief and bereavement to build their toolkit and confidence in creatively engaging with children and youth who are grieving a death. Many easy to use (and modify) creative techniques in working with grieving children and youth will be shared, and participants will have the opportunity to engage in safe, experiential activities to better understand the process of using creative approaches. This is Learning Module 5 of the 2019 Certificate Program in Children's Grief and Bereavement. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Essential Theory and Practical Skills for Child-Focused Family Therapy
Date: May 13, 2019
Facilitators: Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., & Greg Lubimiv, MSW., CPT-S.
This training is suitable for: Mental health professionals, clinicians, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists and social workers. |
Working with children in the context of their family has unique benefits. This course will present the rationale for child-focused family sessions, and will outline the major models and essential skills of family therapy. Participant will be able to articulate common challenges in family therapy and identify strategies to overcome these challenges along with how to effectively contract and set goals with families. This is Learning Module 3 of the 2019 Certificate in Essential Skills for Assessing and Treating Children and Families. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Identifying, Assessing and Treating Concurrent Disorders: A clinical overview for assessment, practical applications, tools and techniques when working with concurrent disorders in teens and adults.
Date: May 15, 2019
Facilitator: Ian Robertson, MSW., RSW.
This training is suitable for: Mental health professionals, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists, social workers, medical professionals, direct service workers, shelter and hostel workers, child and youth workers, youth justice workers and educators. |
Participants will gain an overview for assessment, practical applications and clinical tools and strategies when working with clients having a concurrent disorder. This workshop will discuss effective clinical practices when working with the individual and the family and building capacity within your agency to provide effective care for this complex population. By the end of this workshop participants will be able to screen and assess for the treatment of concurrent disorder, have acquired skills in using motivational interviewing along with an overview of working with concurrent disorder integration treatment approaches.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Creative Techniques for Child-Focused Family Therapy
Date: May 24, 2019
Facilitator: Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., best-selling author and one of Canada's foremost presenters on childhood trauma.
This training is suitable for: Mental health professionals, clinicians, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists and social workers. |
The use of creative techniques in child-focused family therapy sessions provides a medium for all members to participate and promotes positive family interaction. This workshop will outline innovative techniques to engage, assess and treat families. Interventions to strengthen parenting skills will also be described and demonstrated. The facilitator will present the key ingredients for an effective termination and integrate techniques into ending sessions with families. This is Learning Module 4 of the Certificate in Essential Skills for Assessing and Treating Children and Families. This module may be taken separately from the certificate program as a stand-alone workshop.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Blending theory with innovative techniques
Dates: June 6 & 7, 2019
Facilitator: Liana Lowenstein, MSW., RSW., CPT-S., best-selling author and one of Canada's foremost presenters on childhood trauma.
Prerequisites: Understanding of the impact of trauma on children, good child psychotherapy skills.
This training is suitable for: Mental health clinicians. |
Learn how to implement this empirically-supported psychotherapy model for treating traumatized children and adolescents into your practice.
Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) is an empirically-supported psychotherapy model for treating traumatized children and adolescents. This two-day workshop will provide the theoretical framework of TF-CBT, and will present creative interventions for each of the 8 treatment components of TF-CBT. Workshop participants will come away with a solid understanding of TF-CBT, strategies for working with hard-to-engage children and learn how to utilize TF-CBT to treat a range of childhood traumas including sexual abuse, domestic violence, traumatic grief, car accidents, natural disasters. This workshop will combine theoretical material with hands-on therapeutic interventions.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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Promoting Adaptive Anxiety in Children: Confronting the rising anxiety disorders in children and youth
Date: July 24, 2019
Facilitator: Alex Russell, Ph.D, C.Psych.
This training is suitable for: Counsellors, educators, early childhood educators, school counsellors, mental health professionals, psychotherapists, psychologists, and social workers. |
This workshop will provide participants with a healthy perspective on anxiety, in which childhood anxiety is understood as a necessary building block of adaptation and an essential gateway to a child’s creative engagement with the world. Participants will learn how to work with parents caught between protecting their children and supporting their independence. Understanding and working with children and youth who have developed maladaptive forms of anxiety and tools for working with this group will be covered in detail.
For more information on this workshop and full registration details click: More
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