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December 2013
The Institute Insider
Keeping you connected ~ Nurturing your professional growth
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Pro Bono Counseling Project clients are uninsured, with limited incomes from minimum wage jobs. Something terrible happened in their lives and they must find help to regain their balance and continue to contribute to their families and communities. When the Pro Bono Counseling Project recently received a $1,000 gift and calculated that it paid for nearly three months of telephone bills, simply stated, that gave 820 people access to mental health care who would not have received care by any other means.
Please donate today! »
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Message from Lisa Ferentz LCSW-C, DAPA
Founder and President
Dear Friends, It is with a heavy heart that I dedicate this month's newsletter to the memory of my dear friend and colleague, Pamella Pressman, who passed away suddenly several weeks ago. Pam was incredibly dedicated to her clients. She had a rare ability to always view them through a bio-psychosocial lens, and worked tirelessly to advocate on their behalf, navigating even the most complicated systems in the process. Anyone who knew Pam was struck by her incredible kindness, her gentle nature, her wisdom, and her compassion. She had keen clinical insights, and a sophisticated understanding of trauma. Pam worked hard to empower her clients and understood the value of using both the therapeutic relationship and psycho-education to help them grow and heal. Pam's death was sudden and unexpected, and she had not prepared for the possibility of leaving a professional practice behind. It is in the spirit of Pam's commitment to education that this month's newsletter will focus on the important and often ignored issue of therapists creating a professional will. I know Pam would appreciate our honoring her by taking a very tragic situation and finding a way to learn from it. Pam will forever be missed. I know her clients cherished their time with her and will continue to grow from the many gifts she gave them. I know that Pam adored her husband, daughter and son-in-law, so let's also honor Pam's memory by spending joyful time with loved ones this holiday season. If you are interested in making a contribution in Pam's honor, her family has requested that you make one to The Pro Bono Counseling Project. This organization was close to Pam's heart and represents the best part of her legacy: a steadfast belief that everyone is entitled to high quality mental health services, and an unwavering desire and commitment to providing those services to the underinsured and uninsured in ways that honor and respect the dignity and integrity of all clients. You can reach them at probonocounseling.org.  Warmest Regards,
Lisa Ferentz
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 The Importance of a Professional Will
by Lisa Ferentz,
LCSW-C, DAPA
For those of us who work in private practice and love what we do it's hard to imagine not doing it. It's even more impossible to imagine our own sudden and untimely death, and the impact that would have on our clients. Therefore, most of us have not even considered the necessity of creating a professional will. And yet it is vitally important as it goes a long way towards lessening the burden that loved ones are left with, while reducing the untethered feeling that clients experience when they lose a beloved therapist.
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Eye on Ethics
Planning Ahead - Drafting a Professional Will
by Frederic G. Reamer, PhD
August 2013
Recently, I received a frantic telephone call from a clinical social worker who works in a group independent (private) practice. The social worker informed me that her longtime colleague in the group practice-also a clinical social worker-died suddenly following a heart attack. The social worker who called me posed a series of questions: Should I notify my colleague's clients? What do I need to do to access her confidential client records to obtain contact information? Am I allowed to review my colleague's confidential client records to determine whether there are crisis situations that need careful clinical management? What do I do with my colleague's records? Should I refer my colleague's clients to other practitioners or offer to serve them myself?
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| Seats Still Available in December Trainings |
 Register today for one or more of our fall trainings. Receive continuing education on a wide range of clinical topics including:
- Enhancing Self-Care Through Sand, Symbol and Story -
learn more> - Using Ericksonian Hypnosis for Grounding, Containing and Self-Soothing - learn more>
- The Balancing Act of Dr. Melfi and Tony Soprano: Walking the Tightrope of Ethical Clinical Practice (Ethics CEU's) - learn more>
Our informative and experiential workshops provide clinicians with current theory, tools for assessment, evaluation and diagnosis, as well as strategies for creative and effective treatment.
Click here for our calendar of trainings and register today!
*** REMINDER ***
The Institute will be on break during January and February. We'll look forward to welcoming you back to our classes in March. |
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Register Today for Spring Level I & II Trauma Certificate Programs
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Registration for both Spring 2014 Level I and Level II Trauma Certificate Program is now open. Join peers and colleagues in an exciting, supportive, professional environment where you will gain an in-depth understanding of the myriad dynamics related to trauma and its reverberating effect on clients' cognitions, affect, social functioning, and behavioral choices.
Level I Training dates include:
March 5 and 7
April 1 and 24
May 5, 20 and 30
June 11 and 20
Both trainings are for clinical social workers, students enrolled in clinical programs, and other mental health professionals.
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Talk Radio With Lisa Ferentz
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Missed a previous episode of Lisa's talk-radio program Inspired Journeys?
Now you can listen to full recordings of each broadcast right on your computer.
Click here to listen to previous broadcasts on VoiceAmerica. Then click on "Episode Directory" and the month and program that you wish to listen to.
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| Save the Date - 2014 Psychotherapy Networker Symposium |
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Join over 3,000 therapists in Washington, DC to be inspired by the profession's latest developments, network with other dedicated practitioners, and immerse yourself in a meeting devoted to the spirit of creativity and discovery.
This year's workshops include a training by Lisa Ferentz on "Post-Traumatic Growth." Be sure to sign up when the schedule of workshops is released.
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The Institute for Advanced Psychotherapy Training and Education, Inc. is an approved sponsor of the Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners for continuing education credits for licensed social workers in Maryland. CEU approval for all trainings is also granted to Psychologists, LCPC's and MFT's. In addition, reciprocity has been granted for clinicians in Washington, D.C., Virginia, and West Virginia.
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