This will serve as the main entry point for issues related to using ACT in private practice settings.
There is a great deal of activity occurring in academic settings--both in research on RFT and ACT and in the practical application of the products of this labor. In the meantime, many therapists are translating this work into a wide variety of therapeutic environments. Therapists in private practice, in taking ACT out into the mental health "marketplace," face issues and challenges particular to this setting. In the pages that follow, we can explore some of these issues and have an arena to move the work forward.
See Powerpoint presentation attached....
This will be the main page for discussion of issues related to managed care. Please read the suggestions for adding content to this section.
As an ACT therapist in private practice, what issues do you struggle with? How is doing ACT in a private practice setting different from other settings and what challenges have you encountered? Do you have ideas or suggestions for navigating the private practice environment?
I am interested in gathering ideas for a posible "ACT in Private Practice" Panel or Case Conference at the World Conference in London. If you have ideas about relevant topics we should discuss, even if you do NOT plan to attend, please share them.
Please visit our online poll and present feedback about the topic(s) you would like to hear discussed at the ACT in Private Practice I session at World Con II.
While it is doubtful that I will be able to make it to London, I have a great interest in a discussion about publishing single case design studies (e.g., where they could get published, what conferences would accept them for presentation, etc.).
I am about to make the jump to full-time practice, but also want to contribute to the literature. Are others doing this? Could there be a discussion about the best way to go about this?
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Suggestions on adding to the ACT in Private Practice section:
(a) For the sake of keeping this organized, if you are introducing a new issue or topic, please use the option for "add child page" to this main page or an existing page instead of adding as comment/reply. Child pages are listed in a nice list that is easy to read and access.
(b) If introducing a new issue/topic/section, give your new page a short, descriptive title (e.g., "Managed Care").
(c) On your child page, write whatever description/comments/requests for feedback that you want directly on the new child page.
(d) Within specific issue pages/child pages, feel free to add comments/replies.
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If you're a VA employee doing ACT or interested in beginning to incorporate ACT into your clinical practice, please send me an email to my VA email account: sonja.batten@va.gov. Please give me your name, location, and most importantly - your VA Outlook email address. Due to the vagaries of the VA system, I cannot add your name unless you have an Outlook account.
Thanks in advance for your interest!
Sonja V. Batten, Ph.D.
Coordinator, Trauma Recovery Programs
VA Maryland Health Care System
Many veterans who have survive trauma experience anger-related problems in living. This page is an open forum concerning ACT perspectives on the treatment of posttraumatic anger-related problems in living within the VA system. Some suggested topics include ACT conceptualizations of anger problems within the context of PTSD, specific protocols and interventions, and potential barriers to incorporating ACT-based anger treatment within the VA system.
Over the next few months I will be posting session outlines and other materials that Sharon Kelly (my co-leader) and I have been using in our HEAT (Honorably Experiencing Anger and Threat) group here in the PRRTP at the Baltimore VAMC. Please note that our protocol is still being developed and that we have not yet collected any outcome data. If anyone is interested in putting the protocol to the test or has any ideas about how it could be improved, please email me at andrew.santanello@va.gov.
Here is a Power Point about the HEAT group that I presented at ISTSS this past month.
Attached is the powerpoint presentation that Hank Robb and I did at Summer Institute III.
Information concerning potential challenges to starting and conducting ACT-based anger interventions within the VA system can be posted here. Suggested topics may include practical issues (e.g., group vs. individual treatment), staff resistance, etc.
Hi all. I am attaching a Word file that provides information about ACT and/or ACT-related work with youth. There are some quick to review charts and lists, manuscript summaries, and references, as well as contact information for individuals working with "kiddos" or parents, teachers, etc.
There is some admitted overlap and also some non-repetition between those things - so, for example, some (but not all) of the stuff listed in charts is listed in summaries and some citations are in summaries but not the reference list, etc. I ask that you just read it all carefully and overlook the imperfections. One of my students (Andrew Scherbarth) and I spent a good deal of time and have worked quite hard to get it looking as good as is does. A lot of information is there.
We have excluded work that is only basic in nature. Therefore, it does not address RFT, stimulus equivalence studies, or the like UNLESS there was a clear clinical application in the title or abstract of the article, chapter, etc. I think that would be a great addition to the RFT section of this website (hint, hint). We are doing some of that in my lab now and may get around to posting it later, but if someone else could do it sooner...
We did include in-press, in-review, in-preparation, ongoing, and even upcoming studies that I know of in addition to the published stuff. We included people doing clinical work without research components, but not in much detail. I did my best to include everything and mention everybody that I know has done or is doing this work. Please, please, forgive me if I forgot anything/anyone. If I wrongly included you, or you don't want to be included, I apologize. Please, let us all know. Also, if I did not know about you/your work and it should be included, please, take an active role in speaking and stepping up. We need more ACT stuff with these groups! What I hope is that people interested in clinical or research work with youth and related populations will "make themselves known" by adding their contact information and interests to this list. Ideally, new communication will be fostered and known contacts will be stregthened in efforts to advance this work. I provided some suggestions at WorldCon2 about where I think we need to go. If you take up those topics or others with youth, please let us all know!
Thanks and take care,
Amy
Dennis Embry and I are currently creating and researching ACT based children's books and other classroom technologies to facilitate ACT in the classroom. We should have data on this book in the next month or so. This is for children over 6.
There are a number of psychiatrists world wide doing ACT work. Often this is in combination with pharmacotherapy. If you would like to be on a small list serve of psychiatrists considering the intellectual and professional issues involved in doing this work, contact Cynthia Cushman, M. D. and let me know of your interest and professional background. She can add you to the list. you can email Cynthia at
cynthia.cushman@stonepathcenter.org