| Important Bulletins: |
 |  |  |  |  |
The NAMI Provider Education Program is a 10-week course (10 session, 30 hours)
that presents a penetrating, subjective view of family and consumer experiences
with serious mental illness to line staff at public agencies who work directly with
people with severe and persistent mental illnesses.
The course helps providers realize the hardships that families and consumers face
and appreciate the courage and persistence it takes to live with and recover from
mental illness.
As our Family-to-Familiy Course made its way across the country, mental health
professionals requested similar training for professional provider staff. This course,
which contains five sessions adapted from the family course and five new sessions
written specifically for provider staff, is our answer to those requests. As with all
NAMI Courses, the course is evergreen, that is, updated regularly to contain the
latest medical/scientitif information.
that presents a penetrating, subjective view of family and consumer experiences
with serious mental illness to line staff at public agencies who work directly with
people with severe and persistent mental illnesses.
The course helps providers realize the hardships that families and consumers face
and appreciate the courage and persistence it takes to live with and recover from
mental illness.
As our Family-to-Familiy Course made its way across the country, mental health
professionals requested similar training for professional provider staff. This course,
which contains five sessions adapted from the family course and five new sessions
written specifically for provider staff, is our answer to those requests. As with all
NAMI Courses, the course is evergreen, that is, updated regularly to contain the
latest medical/scientitif information.
What is NAMI Provider Education?
| If this page interests you, you may also be interested in: |
A ten-week course in mental illness education and Consumer/Provider/Family collaboration skills for line staff at public
mental health agencies.
mental health agencies.
NAMI Provider Education Course
The Provider Course emphasizes the involvement of consumers and family members as faculty in provider-staff training. The teaching team consists of five
people:
week course.
The course reflects a new knowledge base -- the “lived experiences” of people coping with a mental illness or caring for someone who lives with a mental
illness. Including this deeply personal perspective creates an appreciable difference in the program’s content. It adds a means of teaching the emotional aspects
and practical consequences of these illnesses to the academic medical information in the course.
people:
- Two family members trained as Family-to-Family Education Program teachers;
- Two consumers who are knowledgeable about their own mental illness, have a supportive relationship with their families, and are dedicated to the
process of recovery; and - A mental health professional who is also a family member or consumer.
week course.
The course reflects a new knowledge base -- the “lived experiences” of people coping with a mental illness or caring for someone who lives with a mental
illness. Including this deeply personal perspective creates an appreciable difference in the program’s content. It adds a means of teaching the emotional aspects
and practical consequences of these illnesses to the academic medical information in the course.
How is NAMI Provider Education course unique?
- Session 1: Orientation: Two principles guiding the course: Medical Family Therpay/ Family
Consultation and the biopsychological: model of treatment; Radical issues of status realignment in
the collaborative mode; Group Exercise in building mutual protection.
- Session 2: Clinical Bases: Principles of secondary precention/intervention in Community
Psychiatry: Second intervention clinical strategies to families; Secondary prevention stage models
of family and consumer emotional adaptation to mental illness Group exercise: Experiencing a
through disorder.
- Session 3: The major mental illnesses: Clinical usefulness of diagnoses; Diagnostic checklists for
schizophrenia, major depression and mania; Symptoms of psychosis; Our recollections of the
trauma of serious mental illness; Group Exercise in determining familuy/consumer needs in
"critical periods" of mental illness.
- Session 4: Types and subtypes of mood disorders/diagnosis of panic disorder and OCD/Co-
ocuccing brain and addictive disorders: Sharing our stories of the illness experience; Review of
specific secondary prevention clinical interventions which are effective for families in Stage 1:
Crisis.
- Session 5: Research into the biological bases of mental illness: Review of research indicating
structural and functional brain abnormalities in mental illness; Genetic Research: Understanding
the "Biology of Recovery" in mental illness; The normative clash of family/consumer emotions in
Consumer Stage 1: Recuperation.
- Session 6: Medication review: Basic psychopharmacology of Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders
and Schizophrenia; Medication side effects; Stages of consumer adaptation to taking psychiatric
medications; early warning signs of relapse.
- Session 7: Inside Mental Illness: Gaining empathy and understanding of what it is like to live with a
brain disorder; Understanding "defensive coping strategies" which protect against social stigma
and loss of self esteem; Group Exercise: What's wrong with this case conference? What's right
with this one?
- Session 8: Responding effectively to families in Stage II: The cascade of secondary traumas
when families cope alone; Handling issues of confidentiality with families and consumers; Case
Study: How to frame our work with families and clients.
- Session 9: Meeting the whole family: Hearing testimony about the lived experience of a sibling,
spouse and adult child; working together on strategies to assist these members of the family.
- Session 10: Why advocacy? Helping families and consumers in Stage III: The power of stigma;
Recoery as conscious choice and action; Restoring family interconnectedness; CEU Certification.
What is included in the course?
What people are saying about the NAMI Provider Education Course: “I can’t say enough about the Provider Education Program. When I went through the course, I kept thinking ‘what a wonderful learning experience that all our staff need to have.’ The five members of the teaching team were great. I have been working at the hospital for 20 years, and this is one of the best programs I have been through for staff. We have worked hard over the years to create a more humanistic and compassionate culture. This program will definitely help us in that direction.”– Assistant Clinical Director, Utah State Hospital “This course is great! Seldom do I got to a class, training or seminar where I get information that I can use immediately which creates such a positive impact on families. It has inspired me to create a ‘family’ orientation and support packet at our agency. This course has create in me a new knowledge of, and great empathy for, the needs of family members” – Class participant “I found the family members and consumers personal stories, perspective and insights especially enlightening. I also fund the information in the handouts thorough, well- organized and up-to-date. They will provide me with a valuable reference resource. In addition, the exercises, particularly the ‘hearing voices’ exercise, and ‘the worst family treatment meeting’ to be really ‘eye opening’. Good discussions” – Class participant “I would recommend the course to any human service professional. I would tell them it was informational, fun and profoundly moving.” – Class participant “This course should run routinely at the agency and be part of every new hire’s orientation. I would say that we are working under stereotypes that we are not even aware of and that this course will help and make our staff more effective.” – Class participant “In all honesty, I wondered what I could possibly learn from ‘another’ course on mental illness. The approach of having providers learn from consumers is wonderful, the information up-to-date, field tested, and realistic.” – Class participant “The information that I received in this course will absolutely influence my work! Even though I’ve always felt that family involvement was important, I have not been proactive. Now, I realize how important this piece is and I will advocate for family involvement within my agency.” – Class participant “I really enjoyed the class and will miss coming. I have worked in mental health for over 15 years and continue to learn new things every day. There was a lt of good basic information and the personal sharing was very helpful. I think the class helped me re-evaluate my attitudes and I hope it does this for other providers as well.” – Class participant “I will tell my colleagues that until they attend this course, they really don’t have a clear and true picture of what it is an individual, their families and their friends endure while they are battling their illness. But after the course, they will.” – Class participant |
More information regarding the NAMI Provider education program is available at NAMI national's (our
national affiliate) website: http://www.nami.org/template.cfm?section=Provider_Education
You can also contact your local affiliate, or contact NAMI Arizona and ask to speak with the Program
Director about NAMI Provider Education.
national affiliate) website: http://www.nami.org/template.cfm?section=Provider_Education
You can also contact your local affiliate, or contact NAMI Arizona and ask to speak with the Program
Director about NAMI Provider Education.
For more information...
To learn about upcoming classes, please contact us. Attendees must be a professional in the
behavorial/mental health field to take this class.
This course are scheduled with organizations involved in the behavorial/mental health field. If you are an
organization that would like more information or would like to schedule a course for your employees, please
contact us.
If you are a professional in the behavorial/mental health field that would like to attend this course, we
suggest asking the behavorial/mental health field organization that you are involved with to schedule one
for that organization. You can also contact us to see if there are open seats in classes that other
organizations are joining with us to host.
behavorial/mental health field to take this class.
This course are scheduled with organizations involved in the behavorial/mental health field. If you are an
organization that would like more information or would like to schedule a course for your employees, please
contact us.
If you are a professional in the behavorial/mental health field that would like to attend this course, we
suggest asking the behavorial/mental health field organization that you are involved with to schedule one
for that organization. You can also contact us to see if there are open seats in classes that other
organizations are joining with us to host.
How can I attend a class / schedule a course for my organization?
Yes. If you are interested in teaching NAMI Provider Education, please (like with all other NAMI
Arizona programs) contact your local affiliate to indicate your interest in being trained as a NAMI
Provider Education teacher. If your local affiliates is involved in this program (not all affiliates are
currently hosting this program), they will record your interest and contact you when the next
training is being scheduled.
Arizona programs) contact your local affiliate to indicate your interest in being trained as a NAMI
Provider Education teacher. If your local affiliates is involved in this program (not all affiliates are
currently hosting this program), they will record your interest and contact you when the next
training is being scheduled.
Can I be involved in teaching this class?