Kristin Waters, PharmD, BCPS, BCPP
Webinar
Tuesday, June 17, TIME?
2 CECs

Dr. Kristin Waters, a clinical pharmacist in psychiatry and assistant clinical professor at the UConn School of Pharmacy will join us to examine current pharmacotherapy for Depression and Anxiety Disorders and Alcohol Use Disorder and Opioid Use Disorder. In the first half of the webinar, Dr. Waters will examine treatment for major depression and anxiety disorders which are among the most common psychiatric conditions affecting adults in the US. She will discuss the medications most commonly used in the management of major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders such as generalized anxiety disorder. While pharmacologic management may not be appropriate for all patients, it is important for social workers to have a basic understanding of these common medications.

The second hour of the webinar will focus on Alcohol Use Disorder and Opioid Use Disorder. Substance use disorders (SUDs) can have a major impact on the individual, their family, and the community. Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is the most common SUD in the United States, affecting approximately 30 million people. While opioid use disorder (OUD) is less common, the mortality rate is significant due to the risk of overdose and/or unsafe behaviors associated with use that can lead to further medical complications. Most people with SUDs do not seek treatment. However, medications used in the management of AUD and OUD can improve outcomes. These medications will be discussed during this webinar.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify medications that are considered first-line therapy for the management of major depressive disorder and the anxiety disorders discussed
• Describe the basic mechanism of action of antidepressant medications and other medications commonly used to manage anxiety
• Describe the most common side effects associated medications discussed including the black box warning for increased suicidal thoughts and behaviors for patients less than 25 years old
• Identify medications that are considered first-line therapy for the management of alcohol use disorder and opioid use disorders
• Describe logistical considerations surrounding how patients obtain medications used for OUD
• Discuss risks and benefits of pharmacologic strategies and role of medications in harm reduction

Antoinette Brown, LMSW
Saturday, May 17, 2025
9:30 am – 4:00 pm
In-person Seminar
5.5 CECs

Registration Fee: $125
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and Current SSW Field Instructors

This seminar is designed for School Social Workers and other education professionals seeking to enhance their understanding of group work as a powerful tool for supporting students’ social and emotional well-being. Participants will explore how group work fosters a sense of belonging, strengthens peer connections, and addresses academic, relational, and behavioral challenges. By creating a supportive group environment, School Social Workers and Group Work Facilitators play a crucial role in fostering a more conducive learning atmosphere for all students.

Key Takeaways:

• Practical strategies for planning and facilitating effective school-based groups.
• A deeper understanding of how group work meets students’ social-emotional needs.
• Tools for creating inclusive, trauma-informed group environments.
• Techniques to navigate common challenges in group dynamics.
• Increased confidence in using group work to support student success.

This interactive seminar will equip participants with the knowledge and skills needed to implement meaningful group interventions that foster student well-being and success in the school setting.

By the end of this seminar, participants will:

• Understand the role of group work in promoting students’ social-emotional growth and academic success.
• Learn strategies for intentional planning and preparation of group sessions.
• Identify different types of school-based groups and their specific purposes.
• Explore trauma-informed practices within the group setting.
• Develop skills to promote cultural competency and inclusiveness in group work.
• Engage in interactive learning activities that reflect real-world group dynamics.
• Discuss the organic nuances and challenges of facilitating school-based groups.

 

 

Qur-an Webb, MSW
Wednesday, May 14, 2025
Live Webinar
2 pm – 4 pm
2 CECs

Registration Fee: $50
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and Current SSW Field Instructors

This webinar explores the dynamic intersection of social work, sports, and societal issues, focusing on how athletics can serve as a platform for addressing social challenges. Participants will examine the mental health needs of athletes, the impact of race and gender in sports, and the crucial role of social work in supporting athletes, coaches, and officials.

Topics include mental health awareness and resilience-building and relationships within athletics. The training will also look into race while preparing participants to foster positive societal change through the lens of sports and social work.

Learning Objectives:
• Explore the role of social work in athletics and the fundamentals of mental health in sports
• Discussing the importance of fostering healthy relationships amongst the spectators, athletes’ coaches, and officials
• Explore diversity, inclusion, and strengthening self-worth and integrity in individual and team dynamics
• Develop strategies for managing goals, their impact on motivation, maintaining focus and achieving long-term success

Jennifer Berton, PhD, LICSW, CADC-II
Tuesday, April 22, 2025
Live Webinar
9 am – 12 pm
3 CECs

Registration Fee: $75
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and Current SSW Field Instructors

Clinicians are faced with significant strains on the ethical boundaries of the clinical relationship in this politically charged climate. Exhausted and pressured, clinicians need support and tools to navigate these unique stressors on clinical practice. This training explores how different ethical principles clash under the unique pressures we face today, and offers the tools we need to address them effectively. Through case studies and interactive discussions, attendees will learn to balance advocacy with ethical boundaries while protecting the therapeutic alliance.

Learning Objectives:
1. Explore the specific ethical principles at risk of clashing.
2. Gain methods on how to build a healthy clinical relationship.
3. Gather tools to avoid ethical pitfalls in the therapeutic alliance.
4. Connect the concept of cultural humility with professional integrity.

Jennifer Berton, PhD, LICSW, CADC-II
Live Webinar
Tuesdays, April 29, May 6, and May 13, 2025
9 am – 12 pm
9 CECs – participants must attend all 3 sessions to earn CECs

Registration Fee: $225
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and Current SSW Field Instructors

Webinar link will be emailed when your registration is complete.

Welcome to the Building a Private Practice Series. This training is not only for people who are thinking about starting a practice, but also for those who have an existing practice. It’s never too late to make some adjustments to your practice that will help it grow more effectively. This training relates to direct practice as it aims to help the clinician build a practice that will benefit the clients it serves and ensure their practice adheres to the strictest of ethical principles. Participants will learn how to build a private practice that meet the needs of the clients they serve and strengthens both the client’s treatment experience and the profession as a whole.

This training is split into 3 consecutive Thursday webinars. Participants must attend all 3 sessions to earn CECs.

DAY 1 covers the top mistakes people make in private practice, and begins to layout the framework for building a better one. We will explore the nuts and bolts of who, why,  where, and when to open a private practice. Then we will dive into how to set up your practice with your own policies and procedures.

DAY 2 begins with ironing out all the financial aspects of your private practice, including how to set a fee schedule, how and why to work with insurances, how and why to work with private pay options, bank accounts, insurances, and taxes. We will then lay out all the clinical paperwork you need to safeguard your practice the right way.

DAY 3 begins with a discussion of how to market your business, where you should focus and what you should ignore. We then round out the series by exploring how to develop your practice, how to effectively close your practice, and how to troubleshoot your practice when it isn’t growing as you would like it to grow.

Provides 2 hours of content on cultural competence.

Qur-an Webb, MSW and colleagues from Welcome 2 Reality

Thursday, April 24, 2025
2:00 – 4:00 pm
2 CECs
Webinar

Registration Fee: $50
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and current SSW Field Instructors

The webinar link will be emailed when your registration is complete.

This webinar will examine implicit bias, the differences between equality and equity, and how to recognize equitable practices. Participants will learn to talk about race constructively within their workplace, with colleague organizations, and with their clients by having conversations about racial justice work to help foster authentic engagement. The training will enable participants to apply what they know about racial justice and equity to build a further understanding and agreement. Participants will learn which facilitation tools to use when faced with hot button issues and how to lead conversations about race with presence, grace, and authority.

Learning Objectives:

• Discuss how biases and discriminatory practices effects clients and their families
• Explore strategies to help improve our work with the children and families we serve
• Explore next steps for applying concepts and strategies to advance racial equity

Ruth Pearlman, LCSW, LICSW, M.ED
Wed, January 22, 2025
10 am – 12 pm
2 CECs

Registration Fee: $50
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and current SSW Field Instructors

Webinar link will be emailed when your registration is complete.

Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) is a condition where a person has difficulties regulating their senses within their environment. These are our clients who can experience the world as being “too loud” or “too intense”. They can experience the world as being so sensory over-whelming that their bodies go into a defensive “fight, flight or freeze” stance. For many people with SPD, their constant need to re-regulate their senses to adapt to the stimuli around them, creates symptoms of distractibility, irritability, anxiety, and depression.

So where is SPD in the DSM 5? It isn’t. Although more than half of all the diagnostic criteria of disorders in the DSM 5 describe symptoms of SPD, the APA refuses to acknowledge SPD as a disorder. Therefore, DSM 5 conditions such as ADHD, PTSD, Tourette’s, ASD, ODD, the Anxiety Disorders as well as Schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, are never understood or treated through the lens of sensory integration. Yet all of the above disorders are, in large part, sensory-based disorders. Imagine trying to treat a client with ASD or PTSD and not teaching the client about their sensory system reactions?

In this interactive webinar, participants will:

• Explore the long-delayed need to incorporate sensory integration issues into our working knowledge of the DSM 5
• Recognize that negative behaviors of are better de-escalated when sensory overload can be quieted (calmed down), similar to “sensory rooms” and “sensory placed” used in schools
• Consider the clinical cost of these misinterpretations for both children and adults

Donald deGraffenried, LCSW
Friday, July 19, 2024 – in-person
9 am – 4:30 pm
6 CECs

Registration Fee: $150
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and current SSW Field Instructors

Client Affect Management involves working with your client to learn and practice specific relaxation skills that help with stress management and contribute to an increase in resiliency and coping. The goal is to help the client with a reduction of anxiety, an increase in self-esteem and an increased ability to be proactive in the management of personal distress.

Using an Ericksonian perspective, this seminar will draw from his successful techniques of introducing “state change” into the client’s perspective. The program is designed to provide clinicians with training and practice with proven Affect Management tools. These tools are structured to reduce client distress, increase positive states and engage a solution building process. Techniques include One Stone, Diaphragmatic Breathing, Healing Light Visualization, An Enhanced Safe Place and Heart Math.

These tools are appropriate for all age levels and will have direct application for practitioners working in community mental health, nonprofit agencies and private practice settings.

At the conclusion of this seminar, participants will:

• learn a one-minute relaxation tool and be able to teach it to clients
• be able to describe the core elements of positive affirmations
• learn Seven Basic Principle’s for success with clients
• have an opportunity to practice Affect Management tools
• be able to identify which tool(s) to use and when to use them in their practice with clients