Behavioral Health Conference

Below is a schedule of events for the Behavioral Health Professional Development Day at Wayne State College, as well as presentation descriptions and presenter biographies.

Schedule of Events

Time and Location	Session and Details
8-10 a.m. Niobrara and Elkhorn rooms	Non-Conference Event: WSC Master’s Counseling Student Orientation, (Ali Boughn)
8:30-9:30 a.m. Room A	Non-Conference Event: BHECN Region 4 Consultation Session with Alexandra Hulst, Ph.D. (Tobin Streff, Brook Jech)
9-9:30 a.m. Frey Conference Suite	Conference Check-in
9:30-10 a.m. Frey Conference Suite	Welcoming Address Introductions by Jeff Peterson, Ph.D., Conference Co-Organizer Welcome by Nicholas Shudak, Ph.D., Dean of School of Education and Behavioral Science   Welcome by Alicia Dorcey-McIntosh, Associate Vice President of Student Affairs   Opening Remarks by Tina Chasek, Ph.D., BHECN Associate Director of Rural Development   Preview of Events by Jeff Peterson and Suzanne Scott, Ph.D., Conference Co-Organizers   The Importance of Integration by Alison Boughn, Ph.D., Chair of Counseling and Behavioral Sciences
10 a.m.-12 p.m.	Morning Breakout Sessions Room A - "Ethical Best-Practices for Rural Counseling Supervision*," presented by Katie Robbins Case, LICSW Room B - "Law Enforcement Response to Mental Health Calls," presented by Jon Downey (Madison County Sheriff’s Department) and Jeremy McClure (Sioux City Police Department) Room C - "Mindful Path to Self-Care for Helping Professionals," presented by Jeff Peterson, Ph.D., LIMHP Room D - "How to Support a Loved One After a Suicide Attempt," presented by Ciara Warden, MSW, LISW
12-1 p.m. Frey Conference Suite	On-site Noon Luncheon (free for pre-registered attendees)
1-2:30 p.m. Frey Conference Suite	Keynote Presentation "Towards Better Care for All: Integrating Physical and Behavioral Healthcare," presented by Alexandra Hulst, Ph.D., LMFT
2:30-4:30 p.m.	Afternoon Breakout Sessions Room A - "School Counseling: Foundations of Supervision*," presented by Suzanne Scott, Ph.D., NBCT, LPC Room B - "LGBTQ+ Best-Practices for Integrative Healthcare," presented by Jeff Peterson, Ph.D., LIMHP Room C - "Addiction Counseling: Supervision Competencies*," presented by Tobin Streff, LIMHP Room D - "Ethics of Working with Children Panel Presentation," hosted by Jayne Halsey, LCSW, LIMHP
4:30-5:30 p.m. Frey Conference Suite	Conference Poster Sessions
5-7 p.m. Frey Conference Suite	Conference Reception and Employer Job Fair, hosted by Brook Jech, Director of Education and Counseling Services

*These presentations are approved for WSC Site Supervisors CACREP supervision requirements.

 

Morning Breakout Sessions

 

"Ethical Best-Practices for Rural Counseling Supervision*"

Room A

Description: Providing ethical and effective supervision can be challenging especially in rural communities with limited resources and support. This training will provide tangible methods of supervision for having tough conversations, providing effective feedback, and practicing empathetic accountability, all while navigating the ethics of rural practice.

Presenter: Katie Robbins Case, LICSW. Robbins Case is a practicum specialist, supervisor, trainer, and instructor at the UNO Grace Abbott School of Social Work in Omaha. She also provides therapy at a small private practice in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Robbins Case has been providing supervision for social work students and provisionally licensed mental health practitioners for the last 10 years and is passionate about fostering the next generation of practitioners. She lives in rural eastern Nebraska with her husband and son (who, as a toddler, very pleasantly takes up the rest of her free time).

Learning objectives: Understand various ethical scenarios that can impact rural practitioners; learn about how different skill levels of supervisees and supervisors can impact effective and ethical supervision; gain knowledge of how to practice empathetic accountability in ethically questionable situations.

 

 

"Law Enforcement Response to Mental Health Calls"

Room B

Description: Officers from both rural and urban settings will address the challenges faced by law enforcement when responding to related calls related to mental health. We will discuss the ethics of responding to suicidal subjects, how this can potentially be a tipping point when individuals are confronted by law enforcement, and what has been done in response to addressing the risks of “suicide-by-cop.” Finally, we will open the conversation to discuss concerns specific to law enforcement’s response to mental health needs, discuss ideas on how to address those concerns, and review some of the hurdles facing the future of the profession.

Presenters: Jon Downey (Madison County Sheriff’s Department) and Sergeant Jeremy McClure (Sioux City Police Department). Downey is an investigator for the Madison County Sheriff's Office and a former Norfolk police officer. He has more than 30 years of law enforcement experience, is a long-time criminal investigator, and has a deep understanding of the unique dynamics between law enforcement and mental health issues. McClure is the Community Policing Sergeant for the Sioux City Police Department. His team helps coordinate the department’s community policing efforts by working with the community to address concerns and direct officers to respond to those concerns. He also works with various community groups to build partnerships and strengthen the bonds between the public and the police.

Learning objectives: Discuss some of the challenges facing law enforcement officers when responding to calls related to mental health; ethics of suicidal subjects and how law enforcement utilizes mobile crisis assessment teams; counseling-related skills used by law enforcement, such as verbal de-escalation, rapport building, and gentle confrontation.

 

 

"Mindful Path to Self-Care for Helping Professionals"

Room C

Description: Do you know the difference between traumatic countertransference, vicarious trauma, empathy fatigue, compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout? The helping professions are high-touch and high-exposure, which means we are plagued with the threat of early-career burnout, likely affecting well more than half of all helping professionals (AHRQ, 2017; Joint Commission, 2015). In this presentation, we will talk about these terms and others, while exploring the risks associated with empathy and countertransference. Participants will learn how to use mindfulness as a way to recognize unhelpful countertransference, as a reframing tool for building better boundaries, and as an alternative method to measure our own success as a clinician.

Presenter: Jeff Peterson, Ph.D., LIMHP, LPC, NCC, PCC. Peterson is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, counselor supervisor, and assistant professor in the School of Education and Behavioral Science at Wayne State College. Prior to this he taught at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs, Colo.; Avila University in Kansas City, Mo.; and Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. Peterson currently serves on the editorial review board for the American Counseling Association’s Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling. He is a Chi Sigma Iota counseling honor society faculty advisor, which focuses on promoting the development of future leaders in mental health care. He has also been heavily involved in promoting multicultural inclusivity and advocacy within the classroom and community.

Learning objectives: Develop an understanding of why self-care is important, the insidious cycle that can lead to burnout, and how to assess warning signs or causes; explore why mindfulness is a helpful framework for self-care, how it can build resilience, and inoculate against the risks associated with vicarious trauma; practice skills that develop stronger boundaries, enhance mindful boundaries, and promote client outcome detachment.

 

 

 

"How to Support a Loved One After a Suicide Attempt"

Room D

Description: This presentation will explore the myths and stigma surrounding the issue of suicide and suicide attempts. In this session, Warden will discuss the complexity of supporting a person and/or family after a suicide attempt and returning to a sense of normalcy. Attendees will develop effective support and suicide prevention skills from a compassionate and strengths-based perspective.

Presenter: Ciara G. Warden, MSW, LISW. Warden is a Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) in the State of Iowa and member of the American Association of Suicidology. She attained her B.A. psychology and women’s studies from Kansas State University and her Master of Social Work degree from the University of Kansas. Warden has professional experience in mental health crisis response, inpatient psychiatric care, clinical mental health therapy, and post-secondary instruction and management. Currently, Warden is employed at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in the Grace Abbott School of Social Work, co-owns a private practice, and is attaining her Ph.D. in gerontology. At UNO, Warden serves as a full-time faculty member and the school's admission chair. Warden specializes in crisis issues, primarily suicide research, education, risk assessment, outreach, and grief and loss.

Learning objectives: Differentiate between common myths and facts regarding the issue of suicide; identify and compassionately respond to common feelings and reactions after a suicide attempt from a family and attempt survivor perspective; develop effective support and prevention skills for those impacted by a suicide attempt; reduce stigma and bias during risk assessments to effectively plan for safety.

 

 

Keynote Presentation

"Towards Better Care for All: Integrating Physical and Behavioral Healthcare"

Frey Conference Suite

Description: Individuals and families who live in rural areas face unique challenges in getting their health care needs met. A fractured health care system that silos behavioral and physical health care into separate categories is more costly, frustrating for those receiving and delivering care, and ineffective. In this interactive session, we will explore how collaborative, team-based integration of physical and behavioral health care can help shift the conversation about what it means to help our communities be healthy. We will describe how multidisciplinary health care teams can help those most at-risk of poor health outcomes by partnering with school systems, law enforcement, human service agencies, community mental health centers, and more. Practitioners will learn key principles of integrating behavioral health into physical health care settings and practical tips for clinical, operational, and financial success.

Presenter: Alexandra Hulst, Ph.D., LMFT. Hulst is the author of Contextual Therapy for Family Health: Clinical Applications and has coached more than 40 practices across Western Colorado in best practices for supporting integrated care. She currently works for Rocky Mountain Health Plans' integrated behavioral health division with a focus on improving health care experiences and developing collaborative care teams in various primary and specialty care settings, including pediatric intensive care and adult neuromuscular treatment. She is also the co-chair of the 2019 Collaborative Family Healthcare Association conference.

Learning objectives: Describe the rationale for integrating rural physical and behavioral health care; identify key principles for making integrated care effective and sustainable; determine next steps in moving towards an integrated care model in rural communities.

 

 

Afternoon Breakout Sessions

 

"School Counseling: Foundations of Supervision*"

Room A

Description: Although many school counselors and counselor educators agree that clinical supervision is important to the professional growth and development of school counselors, research indicates there are limited training opportunities in supervision specific to school counselors. Research further indicates that when school counselor clinical supervision (SCCS) is lacking, school counselors may be hindered in their ability to identify more serious student mental health concerns and effectively carry out best practices in their school counseling programs. However, incorporating clinical supervision into the school counselor’s heavy schedule can seem daunting. This session allows participants the opportunity to examine various models of school counseling supervision, including a new model of SCCS (developed from a recent doctoral dissertation study) and the opportunity to begin to build a personal school counselor supervision framework that takes into consideration the needs of both supervisor and supervisee, the demanding roles of the school counselor, the developing professional identity of the school counselor, and the ASCA National Model. This session is appropriate for school counselors-in-training, professional school counselors, supervisors, and counselor educators seeking support with school counselor clinical supervision. Also note, this training is for all levels of school counselor supervision, not just for practicum and internship site supervisors.

Presenter: Suzanne Scott, Ph.D., NBCT, LPC. Scott is an assistant professor and teaches counseling courses and school counseling courses in the School of Education and Behavioral Sciences. Scott’s previous work experience includes counseling and therapeutic work with children and adolescents, and she has been a school counselor in both North Carolina and Wyoming for a total of 17 years. Scott has held numerous leadership positions on the Wyoming School Counselor Association board. Scott is also a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Wyoming and has more than 10 years of experience in supervising provisionally licensed counselors. She currently holds national board certification in school counseling (NBCT) from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

Learning objectives: Participants will explore the barriers and benefits of school counselor clinical supervision; participants will reflect on their personal supervision style and compare and contrast their style with research-based models of school counselor supervision; participants will build a foundational framework from which to engage in supervision specific to school counseling.

 

 

LGBTQ+ Best-Practices for Integrative Healthcare

Room B

Description: Attendees will learn how to better serve the needs of sexual and gender minorities in a clinical setting. Participants will learn how to reduce the risk of committing microaggresions, which can deter LGBTQ individuals from seeking mental health care; develop a deeper understanding of challenges surrounding intersecting identities, alternative families, and unique relationship constellations; and practice the skill of critically reflecting on one's own social ecology and layers of identity. Attendees will also learn about the significant shift over the past couple of years in language surrounding sexual and gender identities.

Presenter: Jeff Peterson, Ph.D., LIMHP. Peterson is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, counselor supervisor, and assistant professor in the School of Education and Behavioral Sciences at Wayne State College. Prior to this he taught at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs, Colo.; Avila University in Kansas City, Mo; and Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. Peterson currently serves on the editorial review board for the American Counseling Association’s Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling. He is a Chi Sigma Iota counseling honor society faculty advisor, which focuses on promoting the development of future leaders in mental health care. He has also been heavily involved in promoting multicultural inclusivity and advocacy within the classroom and community.

Learning objectives: Explore shifts in terminology and differentiation between sexual orientation and gender identity; critically reflect on one’s own social ecology; learn how to reduce potential microaggressions in a clinical setting; develop a deeper understanding of challenges faced by those in alternative families or with intersecting identities.

 

 

Addiction Counseling: Supervision Competencies*

Room C

Description: This session will work to educate about the 12 Core Functions and 48 Global Criteria related to the substance abuse field. The presentation will incorporate the concepts into how they apply to the counseling experience with substance abuse clients. The session will also explore those issues which are common to the substance abuse field.

Presenter: Tobin Streff, LIMHP. Streff has been providing counseling for the past 15 years. He has worked in residential and outpatient settings with both major mental health and substance abuse clients. He provided supervision for provisional counselors for seven years. He currently provides outpatient counseling services and is a lecturer at Wayne State College.

Learning objectives: Learn about the 12 Core Functions and 48 Global Criteria; identify the process of substance abuse counseling; detail those concepts specific to substance abuse counseling.

 

 

Ethics of Working with Children Panel Presentation

Room D

Description: Working with youth and adolescents poses many nuanced legal and ethical challenges due to their age and vulnerability. This panel discussion session will be hosted by several professionals from Northeast Nebraska. Participants will hear from a county judge, deputy county attorney, juvenile supervisor, and child and family services specialist supervisor as they each answer common questions regarding working with youth in the juvenile court system and how they collaborate with other agencies to meet the needs of youth in Nebraska. Panelists will describe how each of their roles is unique yet cooperative as youth progress through the juvenile justice system. Panelists will answer several frequently asked questions and take any additional questions participants may have.

Presenters: Judge Ross Stoffer, Eric Knutson, Crystal Hestekind, and Kim Seelmeyer. Stoffer has served as the judge of the County Court, 7th Judicial District since 2006. Prior to serving for the 7th judicial district, Stoffer served as the judge in Madison County’s Drug Court. Stoffer received his law degree, political science bachelor’s degree, and teaching certificate from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Knutson is the deputy county attorney for Wayne County. Knutson is an alum of both WSC and the University of Nebraska School of Law. Hestekind is the juvenile supervisor for District 7 Probation in Norfolk, Neb. She has worked for the State Probation Office for more than 14 years and received her degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Seelmeyer is a child and family services specialist supervisor for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

Panel moderator: Jayne Halsey, LCSW, LIMHP. Halsey is our panel moderator and is a Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioner and Licensed Student Counselor at Wayne State College’s Student Health and Counseling Office. Earlier in her career she was a regional director for child and adult protective services and worked in the juvenile justice system. Now she provides outpatient and group therapy and education regarding mental health and healthy living to individuals, and leads classes and student groups. She is also part of multiple outreach programs throughout the year, including suicide prevention, mental health first aid, healthy relationships programs, and alcohol awareness activities on campus.

Learning objectives: Participants will differentiate the roles of various child service agencies and how they collaborate with one another to support youth and adolescents; participants will gain answers to frequently asked questions regarding the juvenile justice and social services systems and process for youth and adolescents; participants will explore ways in which community resources and agencies support youth and adolescents through court proceedings.