Professional Training

Adding mindfulness skills to your professional practice can be an antidote to chronic stress as well as aid in the prevention of compassion fatigue. Research on the effects of mindfulness training for healthcare providers provides evidence for decreased burnout, improved mood, increased compassion, and better communication with patients. Whether you are a physician, nurse, psychotherapist or physical/occupational therapist, mindfulness can help you foster your own self-care and make better clinical decisions. Participants are asked to make a strong commitment to attend all sessions, and to practice mindfulness techniques on a daily basis throughout the six-session program.

Learning Objectives

• Directly experience key mindfulness practices to manage day to day challenges with more ease and balance
• Describe the attitudinal foundations of mindfulness
• Review the evidence for mindfulness-based interventions in medicine
• Apply techniques of mindful communication in professional and personal life
• Utilize mindfulness practices to increase therapeutic presence and counteract compassion fatigue
• Apply simple mindfulness practices for use with clients and patients

Course Fee

$375

Continuing Education Credit Hours

This program provides 9 credit hours for Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors through the National Association of Social Workers (PA Chapter).

Cost: $15 for NASW members and $25 for non-members, check made payable to NASW.

This program also provides 9 credit hours for Psychologists and Nurses through the International Seminars Group.

Cost: $36 payable to ISG.

This Practicum is for professionals who intend to teach Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) or who want to integrate mindfulness into their professional practice. It is modeled after the practicum offered at the Center for Mindfulness at University of Massachusetts Medical School. Practicum participants will take an 8-week foundational MBSR course as participant observers. In addition, participants will engage in 10 seminar sessions with Aleeze Moss, Ph.D., a certified MBSR teacher, and fellow participants to explore such questions as: “What draws me to teaching mindfulness or to integrating mindfulness into my work and what challenges do I face?” Participants will acquire a deep understanding of the transformative possibilities in teaching mindfulness. They will gain an overview of the streams of scientific and academic research surrounding mindfulness-based interventions. They will have the opportunity to practice guiding other practicum participants in sitting and moving meditation and in facilitating group discussion and individual inquiry. Participants will develop the personal capacity to speak the truth from/of silence. There will be opportunities to explore ways to remain connected to the community of mindfulness professionals and to obtain further training.

The Practicum begins with a 4.5-hour seminar held before the MBSR class begins. The 8-weeks of the MBSR course begin with the 2.5-hour MBSR classes in the mornings, followed by 3-hour seminars in the afternoon of the same day. A full day of mindfulness practice is held during the week of the 5th or 6th MBSR class. Final meeting is a 4.5-hour seminar held after the MBSR course ends.

Prerequisites

• A commitment to daily mindfulness practice is required.
• Participation in at least one 5-day or longer silent, teacher-led, mindfulness meditation retreat.
• Participation in an 8 week MBSR foundation course.

Continuing Education Credit Hours

This program provides 60 CE credits for Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors through NASW.

Internships are available for professionals who intend to teach MBSR or other mindfulness-based interventions. Internships involve working one-on-one with a senior MBSR teacher within the structure of an existing MBSR Foundation Course. 

Interns will guide meditations and lead presentation dialogues in the MBSR Course and have the opportunity to obtain feedback on their facilitation skills. The senior teacher will work with the intern to develop an in-depth understanding of the MBSR curriculum and how to skillfully work in the group process to effectively deliver the curriculum.

A prerequisite for the internship is having completed the Practicum in MBSR or equivalent training.

Internship Fee

The fee for an internship is $1,800.

Registration Instructions

To register for an internship, please send your application (see below) to:

Stress Reduction Program
Attn: Diane Reibel, PhD
Marcus Institute of Integrative Health
1015 Chestnut Street
Suite 1212
Philadelphia, PA 19107

Or e-mail: Diane.Reibel@jefferson.edu

Please include:

• Your current CV or resume, which includes information about your professional training and work.
• A letter which includes:
  • What draws you to participate in an internship in MBSR
  • What your vision or intentions are for integrating mindfulness into your work
  • A description of your meditation training and your regularity of practice
  • A description of the silent, teacher-led, meditation retreats that you have attended
  • What experience you have with Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBSR or MBCT trainings, participation in an MBSR course)

For more information about professional training, send an e-mail to Diane.Reibel@jefferson.edu.

This is a two-day intensive for mindfulness teachers and mindfulness-based psychotherapists.

The inquiry process is a core element of all Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs). Through instruction, demonstration and direct practice, this training intensive will provide participants the opportunity to develop an understanding of the theories, intentions and specific elements of mindful inquiry, as well to develop skill and confidence in facilitating the inquiry process.

We will explore the foundational qualities that are important to embody when doing mindful inquiry (curiosity, not knowing, trust, etc.), learn skillful ways of questioning /dialoging (what opens the space for inquiry, what closes the space) and address challenges that arise when facilitating inquiry. Drs. Reibel and Moss will demonstrate mindful inquiry in various contexts, including small and large group settings as well as with individuals.

Participants will practice self-inquiry and inquiry in dyads and small groups. They will receive constructive feedback from their peers and instructors to help them refine their skills.

There will be periods of guided meditations and silence for deepening personal mindfulness practice. This will support embodied presence which is at the core of all mindful inquiry.

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

• Describe the function of inquiry in mindfulness-based interventions
• Define the components and characteristics of mindfulness-based inquiry
• Review the three layers of the inquiry process
• Directly experience mindful self-inquiry and assess the effects on mind and body
• Employ skillful methods to create safety to support the inquiry process
• Demonstrate proficiency in using mindful inquiry to encourage clients/patients to explore their present moment experience

Continuing Education Credit Hours

This program provides 12 continuing education (CE) credits for Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors through National Association of Social Workers (PA Chapter).

An introduction to the theory, practice and application of mindfulness.

This workshop offers a balance of didactic content and experiential learning. The didactic material emphasizes the current research on the benefits of mindfulness-based interventions used with a wide range of diagnoses and populations. The experiential modules offer an introduction to key mindfulness practices for reducing stress and enhancing therapeutic presence, and gives clinicians and educators a chance to learn how to guide several simple practices that can be immediately used with clients and patients. 6 CEs/Contact hours are available.

Workshop Objectives

Participants will be able to:

• Define mindfulness and describe the attitudinal foundations of mindfulness
• Review the evidence for mindfulness-based interventions in medicine and psychotherapy
• Directly experience key mindfulness practices and assess the effects on mind and body
• Apply techniques of mindful communication
• Utilize mindfulness practices to increase therapeutic presence and counteract compassion fatigue
• Apply simple mindfulness practices for use with clients and patients

Who Should Attend

This workshop is intended for clinical professionals in mental health and medicine, including psychologists, clinical social workers, nurses, physicians, professional counselors and marriage and family therapists, and physical and occupational therapists.

Workshop Fees

The basic fee for this workshop is $119. A special rate of $99 is available for Abington, Jefferson and Jeff Health affiliate employees. An academic courtesy rate of $79 is available for full-time students, interns and residents with ID. The cost for CEs is additional.

Both group and individual supervision sessions are available for professionals who are teaching mindfulness-based interventions or incorporating mindfulness into their professional practice. For more information, e-mail Diane.Reibel@jefferson.edu.