Extended Training in DBT.
'Extended Training in DBT' provides 60 hours of training and includes an online exam and Masterclass, leading to Level 4 APT-Accreditation in DBT if completed successfully. This 10-day course is from the Association for Psychological Therapies (APT), a leading provider of accredited Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) training courses.
It is the only DBT training that is APT-accredited and also gives you access to APT’s relevant downloadable resources for use post-course. The course is available for teams and individuals and can be attended face-to-face or online.
Executive Summary:
APT has been providing training in DBT since 2003, during which time we have seen the popularity, areas of use, and influence of the approach grow steadily to point it is at today. This extended training in DBT is the most comprehensive training in DBT we provide, and has inbuilt APT accreditation to Level 5 for those who complete the relevant exams and projects successfully.
People who attend this course normally fall into one of two categories:
1. Groups of professionals who see patients in 1:1 treatment settings, have a significant degree of clinical skill, and wish to become proficient in DBT applied to a range of conditions such as personality disorders, depression, anxieties, etc.
2. 'Whole teams' (either in primary or secondary care settings) seeking to develop a unified level of proficiency in DBT and possibly establish a full DBT service comprising (a) professionals delivering 1:1 sessions, (b) professionals delivering skills training groups, and (c) a Consult service to ensure adherence to the model, address specific difficulties, maintain professionals' enthusiasm etc.
The professional affiliations of people attending this course include: mental health/psychiatric nurses, social workers, occupational therapists, clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and others working in a variety of settings including: Adult Mental Health, Children and Adolescents, personality disorder and challenging behavior facilities, and Substance Misuse.
The Rationale:
The development of our Extended Training in DBT provides you with 60 hours training spread over a maximum of 12 months.
The way the system works is this: the first course covers 'key skills'; course two teaches how to run DBT Skills Training Groups, and course three (which can be taken in two parts if required) is the Masterclass, where projects are set and discussed, cases are presented and discussed, videos are studied, and the application of DBT to different presentations is examined.
Module 1: DBT Essentials (3 days):
The first section covers Validation, Metaphors, Problem Solving, and Contingency management…
Validation.
- Linehan's Biopsychosocial model of Borderline Personality Disorder, and how validation fits in with it.
- The implication of invalidating environments for a child, and for the adult.
- What constitutes an invalidating environment, including 'ideal' environments … and a validating one, including how to create it.
- Using validation in your own situation.
Metaphors.
- How metaphors work and why we should use them.
- 6 Examples of metaphors.
- 4 Metaphors you can use repeatedly, for common problem situations.
- General principles of metaphors, including visual metaphors.
Relentless problem solving.
- The five stage problem solving strategy.
- Forms for clients to use with problem solving.
- Personal experience of problem solving: exercise.
Contingency management.
- Video of Marsha Linehan.
- The nature of contingency management and how it interacts with the conscious or unconscious motivations of the client.
- Behavioral analysis, especially as a response to severe behavior such as parasuicidal behaviour.
The second section overviews Skills training, in Mindfulness. Interpersonal Effectiveness, Emotion Regulation, Distress Tolerance, and Walking the Middle Path.
Mindfulness.
- Kabat-Zinn's descriptions of mindfulness.
- Mindfulness and its role in balancing 'the emotional mind' with 'the reasonable mind' to achieve 'the wise mind'.
- Presentation around Linehan's handouts on Mindfulness.
Interpersonal Effectiveness.
- Overview, and presentation around Linehan's handouts on Interpersonal Effectiveness.
Emotion-regulation.
- Overview, and presentation around Linehan's handouts on Emotion Regulation.
Distress tolerance.
- Overview, and presentation around Linehan's handouts on Distress Tolerance.
Walking the Middle Path.
- Overview, and presentation around Linehan's handouts on Walking the Middle Path.
Other skills of DBT.
- How to order competing priorities: deciding which of several severe problems to tackle first.
- Life-threatening behaviours, therapy-threatening behaviours, and behaviours that interfere with the quality of life.
Accreditation: This module gives you Level 1 APT accreditation and qualifies you to sit the online exam to acquire Level 2 APT accreditation.
Module 2: Running DBT Skills-Development Groups (3 days):
Module two lasts 3 days and is all about teaching delegates how to run skills development groups. These are an important part of becoming proficient in DBT, the rationale being that patients need not only to be motivated, gain insights and knowledge etc, but usually also need to acquire skills in:
- Mindfulness
- Interpersonal Effectiveness
- Emotion Regulation
- Distress tolerance.
- Walking the Middle Path.
This module is therefore all about coaching and practice. Every delegate will be expected to run such a group at least once (possibly jointly with another delegate), and will receive constructive feedback on their performance, and time to re-practice. The aim is to return every delegate to their workplace proficient in running DBT Skills Training Groups.
Linehan has some excellent patient-handouts for all these topics, photocopiable from the Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality Disorder. Every delegate is therefore given a copy of this manual or the similar manual by Rathus and Miller, as part of the course, so they can legitimately copy those handouts.
Accreditation: This module uprates your APT Level 2 accreditation to APT Level 3.
Course 3: The Masterclass (4 days):
The major teaching techniques on this course are case presentation and discussion, video-presentations, and reflective exercises, so delegates are expected to substantially develop both their knowledge and their skills during the four days.
Delegates have the opportunity to do several things:
- Enjoy discussion and assimilation of the application of DBT to the delegates' specific workplace. Opportunities to discuss (a) problems, and (b) circumstances where DBT has been especially effective are created.
- Deliver case presentations and discuss those presented by the tutor and other delegates.
- To study relevant video material demonstrating DBT in practise.
- To learn about and practice relatively more advanced DBT approaches such as irreverence and dialectical strategies.
- Insofar as they enter into case discussions and case presentations, to examine the application of DBT to specific presentations in addition to personality disorder, e.g. PTSD, eating disorders, suicidality, addictions etc.
What this course will do for you:
- You will review your DBT practice so far and plan future work and developments.
- You will consider challenges towards implementing a successful DBT service within your place of work.
- You will review strategies that are working well and look to build a template of success.
- You will discuss complex cases and problem solve with an experienced DBT clinician.
- You will prepare and present your own case presentation, choosing issues you would like to consider.
- You will build your own feelings of self-efficacy and confidence using the DBT model.
- You may consider how to apply DBT to help clients with specific difficulties in your areas of work (such as with people with PTSD, eating disorders, substance misuse).
- You will add to your repertoire of DBT skills and practice new and familiar techniques in a supportive learning environment.
- You will take part in a DBT consult group and look at the roles required within these.
- You will participate in group supervision to consider the structure of DBT services within your organization as well as clinical aspects.
- You will review your own practice and ensure you are sticking to the ‘DBT model’ as far as you are aiming to do.
- You will have the chance to discuss best practice and innovative methods of using DBT within the confines of the resources you have available.
- You will gain APT’s DBT level 4 accreditation (assuming you have the level 3 accreditation and 6 months’ experience working with DBT necessary to attend this masterclass).
- You will become eligible to work to submit a project for level 5 accreditation if it meets the requirements.
Note:
Each course may be studied separately if required. For example, a group may start by just attending Course One (DBT Essentials). Then a little later, they may decide to sit the online exam. Then to attend Module Two (Running DBT Skills-Development Groups). Later again they may decide to attend course 3 (The DBT Masterclass) and then work on a project. This way a group can gradually enhance its level of APT-Accreditation.
Note: Because of the case material likely to be discussed, you must have a professional qualification which insists upon patient confidentiality, to attend this course.
Assessment and Accreditation:
DBT Accreditation: Level 5
To obtain APT's DBT Accreditation Level 5, delegates must attend all the taught days, pass the associated online exam, and also obtain at least a pass mark (50%) in a set written project.
View more details about APT's DBT Accreditation
The overall design is meant to be demanding, but it is also designed to be interesting, relevant, and enjoyable. It is intended that delegates feel that the course is demanding, but also rewardingAPT's Accreditation in DBT.
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DBT Courses and Resources
Running DBT Skills-Development Groups ❯
APT's Accreditation of DBT Practitioners ❯
Feedback Ratings.
We continuously monitor the quality of our training by obtaining feedback on the two key scales of relevance and presentation from every course delegate. Below are the average ratings for the last ten runnings of this course, which are updated periodically.
Face-to-Face
Presentation: 96%
Relevance: 96%
Online Live
Presentation: 95%
Relevance: 96%
Reviews.
APT prides itself on the feedback we receive about our courses. Below are just some of the great comments the Extended Training in DBT course has received.
“Oh my goodness... where to start... Hard work, thought provoking but ultimately very inspiring. The tutor's style of delivery brought to life the previous 6 days of training and enabled me to visualize how a DBT service might work with our partners in NPS. She also gave me confidence in myself to take these skills forward into my everyday practice. Thanks!"
“Once again, thank you for really fantastic training. The examples you provide are always so thought provoking and relevant. Invaluable experience of actually running a group. Thanks very much"
