CAT diagram showing reciprocal role and procedure around research, with exit of coning to this research conference

Building Our Research Community Together in Manchester

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Have you seen details of the research conference which we are running run jointly with ACAT?  This takes place on 13th April in Manchester. The title “Encouraging to Engaged” sets out what we intend it to do, through bringing together CAT peers to consider how we can all become more confident, skilled and active in relation to research. Manchester does of course have an international airport for easy connections with other countries where CAT has a presence.  Colleagues from beyond the UK are most welcome to attend too.

A range of research-active colleagues involved in psychotherapy and practice-based research, and already playing a part in building CAT’s evidence base, will present and share their experience as “more knowledgeable others”.  Small group work focussed around participants’ needs will provide thinking space, practical support and scaffolding to help us all feel more able to make use of CAT’s evidence base in our practice and to develop it further. It doesn’t matter what your starting point is in relation to research, there will be something for everyone on the day.  Further details of the programme will be available shortly. (Update February 2018 – full programme is now available as a download on the event page here.)

Of course it wouldn’t be a CAT event without a CAT angle on the process of engaging in research.  In addition to the playful map Alison Jenaway offered as an image to help promote the day, there’s a promise of more SDRs from presenters.  Perhaps Alison’s diagram has already prompted you to draft your own?

We very much hope you can join us in April to play a part in further building our research community and renewing ACAT’s research strategy together.

If you have any thoughts, questions, suggestions or discussion points in relation to the day, do please add them here, or on Twitter using the #CATres18 hashtag.  You can also use the members’ only Research Chatterbox on the ACAT site.  Perhaps we can get a conversation started in advance of the conference: we  certainly look forward to the conversations on the day.

You can find out more about the day and book a place by clicking on this link.  The early online booking rate of £95 applies until March 12th.  If you need anymore information or advice about accommodation options in Manchester, please contact us.

Space to Develop CAT Skills in 2018

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We’re delighted that a group of eighteen enthusiastic trainees from around the country are due to commence the CAT Skills Case Management Course in the new year.  The course, now in its fifth run,  is led by Marisol Cavieres and Karen Shannon. A diverse range of specialties are represented in our current cohort including adult mental health, child and family services, learning disabilities, eating disorders, and forensic services.  Workplaces encompass inpatient, residential and community settings.

The first two of six training days will take place in Liverpool on 25th and 26th January 2018.  A few spaces remain on the course and we’re still happy to consider further applications.

You can read full details, including eligibility and how to apply, by clicking here. To get a flavour of the course from the perspective of a past graduate, you can read David Harvey’s blog here. You can of course contact us here, or Marisol Cavieres directly, if you have any other queries about the course.

Image of Liverpool Docks by night

University of Liverpool DClinPsych Opportunity

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We welcome the news that the programme team at University of Liverpool’s Doctorate of Clinical Psychology are advertising for a 0.4 full time equivalent Senior University Clinical Teacher post.  The role is open to HCPC registered clinical psychologists who are also ACAT-accredited CAT practitioners.  The postholder will provide teaching on CAT in addition to a varied range of other duties.  They will liaise with ACAT and lead on strategically developing the CAT competencies framework and portfolio within the programme, linked to CAT Foundation training.

You can obtain full details of the post by clicking on this link.

Applications can be made online, quoting job reference 008599, via https://recruit.liverpool.ac.uk

Deadline: 9 January 2018

Photo by Peter Mason on Unsplash

 

Taking Another Step: Training on CAT Supervision

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Deborah Pickvance and Sarah Littlejohn are due to run an ACAT-accredited two day CAT Supervision Training in Manchester on 30th November and 1st December 2017. This is a repeat of a course they led in Liverpool in December 2016. CAT Practitioner Uma Patel reflects here on attending the last run of the course.

I recently attended a cognitive analytic therapy (CAT) two day training event on supervision to help me work towards becoming an accredited CAT supervisor. With life being so busy I was really grateful the course had been modified which meant I did not have to attend on a residential basis. Interestingly the ‘relational’ component the residential would have offered was not lost with the adaptation. There was lots of group work activity and being with other CAT practitioners and hearing their views and perspectives encouraged dialogue.  Consequently the dialogic component of CAT was very present and a great way to learn.

I enjoyed the training and it was good to have protected time to reflect and learn about supervision. Supervision is such an important activity and within my current role I offer others supervision however I have not had limited opportunity to attend training events that specifically focus on supervision. Once I had booked my place I was looking forward to it and was hoping to not be too disappointed.

I would say I have a fair amount of experience providing supervision however I still gained a lot from the training event. The two days were jam packed with theory and practical exercises. They involved participation and interaction and the trainers used creative teaching methods which kept me engaged. Learning occurred from the trainers but also from all the group members, promoting a dialogical approach. There was a wealth of experience and expertise in the room and the teaching methods encouraged participation and dialogue and the sharing of experience and knowledge. I thought the trainers were very knowledgeable but also respectful of the wealth of experience within the group.

If you provide clinical supervision then this event is worth attending. I do not think it really matters if you are new to supervision or very experienced. The training day has a lot to offer and it covered the multi-faceted components of individual and group supervision.

One of the most useful components for me was naming and addressing subtle impasses and ruptures that can occur in supervision but can feel difficult to address within a supervisory relationship. I found this invaluable. This can be very challenging however the training day helped me think about how to use CAT tools to address impasses and ruptures. It also supported me to reflect on my own interpersonal patterns and how they can at times be enacted when providing supervision. It was also really useful to hear others talk about challenges they have encountered in supervision; how these were resolved and in some cases unresolved.

I was not sure what to expect from the training however I am pleased to say it was valuable. I did acquire new knowledge and it has helped me to identify areas for further development. Importantly it also reaffirmed my existing supervisory skills and knowledge. If you are after some quality training on supervision I definitely recommend attending this training event.

Details of the forthcoming Catalyse CAT Supervision training workshop (hashtag #CATsup17) are available here.

Further details about eligibility, requirements and different routes to qualifying as an accredited CAT supervisor are available on ACAT’s web pages here.  Further dates for the taught component will be listed on those pages.

If you’d like to blog about what you took away from one of our training, CPD or networking events, then please get in touch.  You can subscribe to the Catalyse blog by providing your details below.  If you do, you’ll receive an automatic email notification of any new blog posts when they’re published.