Disability Affirmative Psychotherapy

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Rhoda Olkin, PhD Related seminars and products

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Rhoda Olkin, PhD, is a distinguished professor at California School of Professional Psychology, the developer of disability-affirming therapy, and the author of four books on disability and psychotherapy including What Psychotherapists Should Know about Disability and Disability-Affirming Therapy: A Case Formulation Template for Your Clients with Disabilities. She has researched and taught about disability for over 35 years and serves as and expert witness related to disability. As a polio survivor, Dr. Olkin has used her lived experiences to illustrate various aspects of living well with a disability or chronic medical condition.

 

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Rhoda Olkin has employment relationships with Alliant International University and the Institute on Disability and Health Psychology. She receives royalties as a published author. She receives grants from Alliant Educational Foundation, and the American Psychological Foundation. Dr. Olkin receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Rhoda Olkin is a member of the American and California Associations for Marital and Family Therapy, the American Association of Spinal Cord Injury Psychologists and Social Workers, the American Association of University Professors, the American Counseling Association, and others. For a complete list, please contact info@pesi.com.

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Objectives

1. Describe three models of disability and their clinical implications.
2. Utilize a checklist to discover ableist assumptions.
3. Distinguish pathologizing versus disability-affirmative language.
4. Conduct a disability-affirmative psychotherapy assessment.
5. Develop a case conceptualization and treatment plan that considers disability in the context of the client’s lived experience.
6. Employ two strategies for responding to microaggressions.

Outline

Core Concepts in Disability Studies
What Therapists Need to Know

• Congenital and acquired disability – similarities and differences
• Visible and hidden disabilities
• Moral, medical, and social models of disability
• The three most typical disability symptoms
• Language and etiquette when interacting with clients with disabilities
• The use of assistive technology and devises
• Special concerns in assessment and diagnosis
• Published guidelines on working with clients with disabilities
• What not to do with clients with disability
• Video demonstration: Male therapist of color working with white blind female with service dog, coming for issues in her marriage

Disability-Affirmative Psychotherapy
How to Provide Culturally Competent Care

• Current disability status – two management techniques
• Developmental history – educational, medical, advocacy history
• Three main models of disability
• Intersectionality – SES, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation
• Disability culture and community
• Microaggressions and their management
• Affective experiences - mourning and inspiration
• The role of social support
• Families and intimate relationships – dating, sexuality, parenting
• Case study: Gay male wheelchair user having difficulty managing microaggressions
• Video demonstration: Woman with cerebral palsy with new baby, having trouble managing personal assistant

Clinical Issues
Bringing It All Together

• Integrate Disability-Affirmative Psychotherapy into existing treatment approaches
• Four steps to making your practice accessible
• Best practices for creating a strong alliance and repairing ruptures
• Address differences between therapist and client
• Modifications for couples
• Confronting therapist bias to ensure a non-pathologizing lens
• Limitations of the research and potential risks

Target Audience

• Counselors
• Social Workers
• Psychologists
• Psychiatrists
• Marriage & Family Therapists
• Addiction Counselors
• Other Mental Health Professionals
• Physicians
• Physician Assistants
• Nurse Practitioners
• Nurses