Past Catalyse Event
Power and Powerlessness: Exploring Issues of Race and Culture in Therapy
A half day (morning) online workshop Jessie Emilion, CAT psychotherapist, supervisor and trainer
Event Hashtag: #CATpower21
Date: Monday 27 September 2021 (am only)
Time: 9.30am to 12.30 pm
Venue: Online via Zoom
Fees: ACAT member :: £50.00
non-ACAT member :: £60.00
(Invoicing can be requested and incurs an additional £15.00 fee)
Overview of workshop
The morning provided a safe space to discuss and explore therapeutic issues linked to race and culture, using the relational CAT framework as scaffolding. It combined presentation, large and small group discussion, and clinical case scenarios.
Power and Powerlessness: Exploring Issues of Race and Culture in Therapy was the first in an Inclusive CAT series of full and half day CPD events focussing on CAT practice in the context of equality, diversity and intersectionality. These aim to support CAT therapists in working sensitively and effectively with individuals and client groups with protected characteristics.
The series included an afternoon session with Jessie on Working with Interpreters, Bilingualism and CAT.
Aims and learning outcomes
The day was designed to help participants:
- Explore issues around race and culture and the impact of these on self and others in clinical work and supervision.
- Particularly focus on power dynamics in considering race and culture in therapy.
- Recognise and reformulate our positions in relation to context and history.
- Understand systemic and structural discrimination and how this shapes identity and presentation.
This event aimed to support participants in developing skills for ethical and race cognizant practice. They also took away a reading list for further professional development.
Who was it for?
The event was relevant for qualified and trainee CAT therapists (practitioner & psychotherapist level), plus other qualified and trainee therapists and UKCP-registered psychotherapists. Some familiarity with the CAT model was useful but the main requirement was that participants were open to the use of self in their practice.
Facilitator
Jessie Emilion is a counsellor, cognitive analytic psychotherapist, supervisor, and trainer. She has worked in the NHS as a senior clinician for the last 20 years. Jessie has an interest in bi-lingualism, culture and race, and the impact of these constructs on mental health. She has extensive experience of working with refugee communities as a clinician and an interpreter. Jessie contributes to Catalyse Practitioner Training and has co-led CAT training programmes internationally in India and Malta.
Jessie is the CAT Psychotherapy Lead at the Munro Centre, for South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation. She leads ACAT’s Inequality and Diversity Special Interest Group. Additionally she co-chairs the Equality Diversity and Intersectionality Committee within UKCP’s Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy College, and is a member of the UKCP EDI Task Force. Additionally she is part of BACP’s EDI Task and Finish Group.
Jessie also provides psychological assessments for several media companies, including the BBC and ITV.
Group size
Places were limited to a maximum of 15 participants.
