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You are invited to attend the


Psychology Private Australia
9th National Congress

hosted by the

Association of Private Practising Psychologists Queensland Thursday 7th to Sunday 11th October 2010

at Rydges Southbank Hotel,
9 Glenelg Street, South Bank, Brisbane 4101
Ph (07) 3364 0800 Fax (07) 3364 080 Free Call 1800 063 983

Psychology Private national congresses, held every two years, are always good value for money, a varied source of professional development (always relevant to private practice) and an opportunity for valuable exchange of ideas and combined wisdom from experienced private practitioners throughout the country.

The three day programme is still being finalised. The preliminary programme is as follows:

Friday 8th October

Gene Whitford Memorial Lecture

Presenter: Radek Stratil - A member and past president if IPPP in South Australia Radek has worked for over 20 years in private practice. He has also been an advisor to Workcover South Australia since 1991, and was extensively involved in the development of treatment guidelines and studies within the compensation scheme on the role of secondary depression, suicide and early psychosocial risk indicators. Radek has also developed The Competency Standards for Psychologists.

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Forum on Private Practice Issues

Panel : Still to be finalised but will include a representative from Medicare. We have requested a member of the National Psychology Board and are awaiting a response.

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Psychopharmacology – Essentials for Effective Clinical Psychological Practice

(a) Combined medication/talk therapy for a psychopathology condition, can be successful only if a psychologist is not ‘in the dark’on medication. A psych. needs to beas much ‘in the light’ as, and even more so than, a referring GP. Readily available sources of information will be suggested. Guidance will be offered on the sorts of things to look for in the multiplicity of available medications for depression, panic, anxiety, etc. (b) There are medicines for non-psychopathological conditions which give rise to psychopathological symptoms – information will be given on checking these out. (c) Information will also be given on psychotropic medications effective for one set of symptoms that give rise to another and different set of symptoms.

Presenter: Edwin Percival (Ted) Milliken born 1918, still learning

Ted is in clinical private practice in Darwin. His latest venture in clinical psychology is finding his way in the pharmacogenomics maze i.e. in the psychopharmacology area that is seeking a best fit (efficacious and free from adverse side effects) of psychotropic medication, by ascertaining a patient’s genetic structure. He has pioneered work in Schema Therapy, in Self-relaxation Therapy training and in linking this with novel work in Pain Management. He taught psychology for 20 years and has been in clinical private practice for 26 years. He is a Fellow of the APS. He has been awarded an AM for services to psychology.

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Half Day workshop: Managing Support Groups with Cancer Patients .

  1. An overview of the central issues regarding Psychology and cancer patients.
  2. A brief review of research relating Psychological factors and health.
  3. Psychological strategies for behaviour change for cancer patients (and others with chronic life threatening illnesses.

Electronic material will be provided, including a manual for running cancer support groups, a published paper describing support group procedures in the context of theoretical approaches and a publication describing results of a study using the programme.

Presenter: Dr John Shea A University of Queensland PhD graduate, John lectured at the University of PNG and University of Newcastle while maintaining a part time private practice. He has been in full time practice since 2005. He is a Fellow of the ACPCP in NSW. Over a 25 year period he has given talks on stress and cancer, reducing the psychological side effects of chemotherapy, and stress management, to cancer support groups, including the cancer information and support society, Make Today Count.

He has also worked with the NSW Cancer Council and Catholic Church agencies, to provide voluntary support services in the Newcastle area to Groups of Cancer Patients, and led a pilot study of the psychological effects of such services. More than 400 patients participated in these groups.

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Evidenced Based treatment for Youth with Conduct Problems

An update on the latest knowledge in this field (abstract not yet available)

Presenter: Dr Rachael Murrihy A senior clinical psychologist and Research Associate at the Health Psychology Unit, an adolescent focused unit based at the University of Technology, Sydney, Rachael has a special interest in youth conduct problems and bullying. Her work settings include the university clinic, private practice, inpatient wards, and both mainstream and alternative schools. She also lectures, trains and supervises professionals in this field, including clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, family physicians, nurses, educators, and interns, She has recently edited Clinical Handbook of Assessing & Treating Conduct Problems in collaboration with Professor Thomas Ollendick & Dr Antony Kidman.

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COCKTAIL PARTY at Rydges Hotel
(included in three day registration cost)

Saturday 9th October

Jesus, Logic, and Cognitive Therapy

Jesus’ attitude to logic is examined by consideration of a selection of his sayings as recorded in the Gospels. Sayings will be selected either because they show some evidence of the use of logic, or because they are presented in the context of a dispute or argument. Attention will be paid to the form of the logic, the conclusion, and any principles that can be extracted from the exercise. These will be compared with the kinds of logic used in cognitive therapy. It will be shown that there are a number of parallels between Jesus’ use of logic and that advocated in cognitive therapy. Recommendations will be made as to how Jesus’ use of logic can be applied in cognitive therapy.

Presenter: Michael Free , Clinical Psychologist in Private Practice (see bio details below)

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Marital Counselling and Therapy a combined CBT/EFT approach

There is increasing evidence that CBT in marital counselling and therapy can be an effective diagnostic tool but does not guarantee a lasting treatment outcome. The challenge in dealing with marital problems and breakdown is the intensity of the negative emotions felt by one or both partners. Focus on emotions is both a Sine qua non for treatment and a reason that both the couple and the psychologist often remain stuck.

At the heart of marital dysfunction is negative thinking and unproductive behaviour by one or both partners. CBT can help partners replace negative automatic thinking with reasonable, useful and reality based thinking. It can also facilitate an early shift from unproductive behaviours to productive behaviours. Changing thinking and behaviour in isolation from the feeling dimension of life experiences does not guarantee the psychological growth of each partner, which is necessary for relating well.

EFT which was originally known as PEEFT, Process Experiential Emotion Focused Therapy, prevents CBT treatment from being an intellectual exercise and/or a Pavlovian behaviour technique. EFT integrates new patterns of thinking and behaviour with a person’s experiences, their changed emotions and sensations.

Presenter: Don Burnard is a counselling psychologist. He has been in private practice since 1977. He is Director of the Family Relationships Institute Inc. in Melbourne and President of the Australian College of Psychologists in Clinical Private Practice (ACPCPP Vic.) He is a regular subscriber to the RELATEWELL Quarterly.

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Working with Perinatal Families: A Systems Perspective

Post natal depression is often perceived in the wider community as an outcome of pregnancy usually experienced by the new mother. Primary health clinicians treat ante and post natal depression and anxiety with a combination of SSRI medication and CBT aimed at symptom management. Counselling interventions are also necessary for women experiencing puerperal psychosis, trauma due to birthing complications, and women who have failure to thrive or extremely low birth weight babies. There is also long standing awareness of the importance of secure attachment on child health and later personality development. Of less note is a systems perspective that addresses perinatal family functioning, and how this perspective can be a complementary theoretical framework for therapists who may be referred only the mother. The model draws on theoretical perspectives from family therapy theory (systemic and narrative) and cognitive behaviour therapy (acceptance and commitment therapy), as well as clinical experience of interventions which have been reported as helpful by families.

Presenter: Alison Fonseca

Alison, a member of ACPCPP (Vic), a member of the APS Counselling College and clinical member of VAFT, is a psychologist and family therapist working in regional Victoria, Her model is developed from clinical experience that encourages exploration of the perinatal family’s needs, and the influence of the wider system on the family.

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Half Day Workshop Assessment and Treatment of Chronic Pain Patients in Private Practice

This is an interactive training workshop covering psychological assessment tools and therapeutic intervention.

Presenter: Bill Radley

Bill Radley has had 20 years experience in private practice. He was previously a Rehabilitation Consultant and Employment Specialist. He has been providing assessments, counselling, rehabilitation services and career planning to injured workers (and other patients) for the past 30 years. For most of that time he has provided clinical services to a wide range of patients in private practice in a large provincial centre in Western Victoria. He has a special interest in pain management and injury adjustment, has provided clinical services to over 200 injured workers over the past 20 years, and to date has provided over 2000 specialised Vocational Assessment reports for personal injury (WorkCover and Transport Accident) solicitors and insurers in Victoria. He has recently retired from general practice, and now only provides specialist Vocational Assessments of injured workers in Melbourne and Western Victoria.

He has a Masters in Counselling, BA (Psychology and Sociology), Grad Dip Counselling.

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Half Day Workshop - Advanced Techniques in Challenging Negative Thinking

One of the most complex aspects of Cognitive Therapy is assisting the client to challenge negative thoughts and core beliefs. Dr Free has developed some new techniques for challenging negative thinking, partially derived from the Logical Analysis technique developed by Rian McMullen (McMullen, 2000) - simplifying and extending these techniques to include:

  • Adversarial Analysis applying principles of the adversarial approach used in legal contexts
  • Investigatory Analysis applying the principles of forensic investigation
  • Scientific Analysis applying the principles of scientific research

The techniques are applied using verbal introduction, written examples and structured worksheets that are completed in session and at home. Workshop participants will be assisted to practise the techniques using their own case material. The workshop is aimed at an intermediate level, but beginning and advanced practitioners may also benefit.

Presenter: Dr Michael Free

Dr Michael Free is an experienced Clinical Psychologist who has worked in adult Psychiatry, lectured in clinical psychology, and has a clinical private practice, specialising in complex anxiety and depression issues. His PhD (1997) researched the relationship between biological and psychological processes during recovery from depression. He has written Cognitive Therapy in Groups: Guidelines and resources for practice and is currently writing CBT with Christian Clients.

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CONGRESS DINNER at the Plough Inn (The oldest existing tavern in Brisbane, situated across the road from Rydges Hotel, in the South Bank precinct)

Sunday 10th October

“Alms for an ex-leper” - breaking down the barriers to the recovery of police with psychological injuries

This paper explores the impact compensation entitlements can have on the treatment and recovery of police suffering from duty related psychological injuries, including post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD, depression and occupational burnout. This paper is based on the author’s extensive clinical experience over four decades, treating in excess of 3000 police officers.

An environment of potential, or unresolved, compensation issues is generally seen as adversely impacting on the successful rehabilitation of psychologically injured officers. Our experiences suggest that despite this, a therapeutic approach based on cognitive behavioural therapy can assist police clients make significant clinical gains in terms of recovery and functioning. The key elements of clinical success depend on a sound therapist–client relationship, open and frank communication with police injury management, and a commitment by all stakeholders to the so-called “hierarchy of rehabilitation”, in terms of any achievable return to work program. This paper draws on a case study.

The determination of this case validates an opinion, argued by the presenter, that suggests that an officer having suffered PTSD should by virtue of that injury be medically retired and is certainly not fit for further operational duties. The judgement demonstrates that failing to recognise this principle is to fail in respect to their clear duty of care. The decision in this case again has some major ramifications in respect to the rehabilitation and management of psychologically damaged police.

Presenter: Dr Roger Peters

Roger Peters has been working in Psychology for over three decades. He has Psycho physical qualifications in Psychology as well as Sociology. His PhD examined the psychological cost of irregular working hours and shiftwork. Roger had a 30 year career in the Australian Army Reserve serving both as a field officer and a member of the Psychology Corps. He retired with the rank of Major and has been an advisor to the Australian Army, the NSW Police, the NSW Department of School Education and many others in the area of critical incident stress management. He has been in private practice since 1984 providing psychological treatment to police and others from emergency service professions

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Teaching the depth of hypnotic trance by utilizing bio- and neurofeedback in hypnotherapy

It is known that in order to achieve a light, medium or deep level of hypnosis, patients need to know what is expected of them. Patient knowledge and understanding facilitates the depth of hypnotic trance, and therefore the hypnotherapist needs to explain and even coach the patient to reach this desired depth of trance. Biofeedback and neurofeedback, in conjunction with each other or alone, can be utilized by the patient to obtain the desired depth of trance needed to obtain the best therapeutic results.

It is commonly accepted in the literature that all hypnotherapeutic work should be done in light to medium trance and that deep trance should be reserved mainly to recover deeply repressed material from the unconscious mind. In neurofeedback terms, light trance can be described as the dominance of sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) (13-15 Hz) across the sensor-motor strip.

Medium trance may be referred to as the dominance of high alpha (11-12 hertz) with its origin in the thalamus, and deep trance as the dominance of theta rhythm (3-7 Hz), with its origin in the septal area of the limbic system and in the thalamus. Medical Hypnoanalysis is a specific short term hypnotherapeutic modality in which regressions (preferably in deep trance) are done to the core origin of the problem mostly pre-, peri- or postnatal, which is named the initial sensitizing event. This initial traumatic event in association with the next two similar traumatic events functions as the traumatic “voltage” which causes the patient’s problem.

Presenter: Dr J.S. (Kobus) Scholtemeyer

Dr. Scholtemeyer is a psychologist from Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, South Africa and has maintained a full time private practice since 1995, mainly using clinical hypnotherapy, neurotherapy and neuro- and biofeedback. He obtained his Ph.D (Psychology – Clinical Hypnosis) from the University of Free State in 2002. He has completed advanced training in Ericksonian Hypnotherapy, Ego State Therapy, Medical Hypnoanalysis and Transpersonal Clinical Hypnosis. He is a diplomat member of SACH and is certified with the Biofeedback Certification Institute of America (BCIA) as a therapist in Neuro-and Biofeedback.

Dr. Scholtemeyer is a full member of the Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA), the Clinical Hypnosis Division (SASCH) of PsySSA and the chairperson of SAAMHA (South African Academy of Medical Hypnoanalysis), an interest group of SASCH from 2000-2008.

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"How easy is it to confuse patients who are highly suggestible?: false memories and other minefields."

One of the issues of working with clients individually or in groups, even conducting relaxation sessions with the general public is that of susceptibility to suggestibility. There is no doubt that some members of the population (about 10-15% off drugs) need to be carefully educated about how easily they might fall prey to suggestion, whether that be to buy a product, come under the spell of another, or move into the unconscious realms and find it hard to come back to clear and sharp reality. What are the circumstances under which a low-suggestible person might be more susceptible to being influenced, being fearful of losing their “boundaries”, or simply act as if they have no will power or are in a drug induced state? In this interactive talk, we will explore the questions about: How easy is it to confuse patients who are highly suggestible? Can therapists accidentally or deliberately induce false memories in susceptible clients in individual and group therapy? What factors need to be present for this to occur in each situation? And many other questions surrounding the topic of suggestibility.

Presenter: Dr Kathryn Gow

Kathryn Gow, life member of the APPP(Q), is a psychologist, teacher and researcher; she has been a member of the Australian Society of Hypnosis for about 30 years, and has been the editor of the AJCEH (Australian Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis) for the past 6 years. She has published widely on topics such as stress and coping, trauma, education and training and competencies and capability, and more recently on religion and spirituality, resilience and resourcefulness, and community issues relating to natural disasters and climate change.

Some of her research has taken her into the areas of suggestibility, fantasy proneness and dissociation in clients and the general public. Kathryn has had an avid interest in the false memory literature and events that transpired over 20 or more years here in Australia andoverseas. Her talk, however, is not just about suggestibility and false memories, but suggestibility and vulnerability across a much wider sphere.

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Half Day Workshop - Ego State Therapy

Ego State therapy directly addresses the different ego states, or parts, of the personality which each have their specific role, patterns of thought, emotion and behaviour, and function. Most of these have developed in response to a particular need or situation, often early in life, and are unconscious until they are evoked and become the conscious, executive part.  Ego State therapists assist the client to identify and work with the individual ego states to resolve their needs or trauma, to increase communication between them and increase the ability of the client to invoke specific parts when needed. It has been shown to be very effective in treating a wide range of psychological difficulties including trauma. Ego State Therapy can be enhanced using hypnosis. The presentation will include the background, rationale and concepts of Ego State Therapy, and report on case studies from clinical practice for difficult cases including OCD, childhood trauma, and DID.

Presenter: Eve Dyer

Eve Dyer, a member of APPP(Q), is a clinical psychologist in private practice, and has been using Ego State Therapy since her training in 2007. She recently attended the international Ego-state Conference in South Africa which presented the latest developments in Ego State Therapy. Her qualifications include B. Psych (Hons), M. Clin. Psych, Dip. of Clinical Hypnosis, Dip. Ego State Therapy, Cert IV In Workplace Training and Assessment, MAPS, MASH, Member of APS Coll. of Clinical Psychologists.

She has been co-facilitating a series of workshops on this topic this year with Dr Gordon Emmerson.

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One or two further presentations are still being organised. Details to come.

Please see attachments below for

PD Points – one PD point per hour. 2 PD points per hour for the Advanced Full Day Schema Therapy workshop. PD Certificates will be provided.