Live Webinar February 7 - Bridging Distance: Clinical Opportunities and Challenges with Telehealth Delivery of Exposure Therapy for PTSD with Dr. Leslie Morland and Dr. Stephanie Wells

Friday, February 7, 2025

11:00 AM- 12:30 PM Eastern/ 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM Central/ 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM Mountain/ 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM Pacific/ 7:00 AM - 8:30 AM Alaska/6:00 AM - 7:30 AM Hawaii

1.5 CE Credits Awarded

$15 Student ABCT Members / $25 ABCT Members / $35 Non-Members

Intermediate Level

All prices listed in US currency

Abstract:

Telehealth delivery of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatments, such as exposure-based therapies, has significantly increased since the COVID-19 pandemic (Morland et al., in press).  Exposure based therapies are one of the most effective forms of therapy for treating PTSD (VA & DOD, 2023) and telehealth allows more individuals to access and engage in these treatments. This webinar will review the state of the science of evidence for exposure-based PTSD therapies, such as prolonged exposure and written exposure therapy, delivered via telehealth. Steps to set the stage for the successful delivery of remote exposure-based care for PTSD will be discussed. Clinical case examples will be discussed to illustrate the unique benefits, as well as some common pitfalls and challenges, with using telehealth to deliver exposure therapies for PTSD. This webinar will help clinicians better understand how to successfully engage clients in exposure-based PTSD therapies delivered remotely. 

Presenter Biography:

Stephanie Wells, PhD: Dr. Wells is a Clinical Research Psychologist at the Durham VA Care System, a Core Investigator at the Durham Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation (ADAPT), Affiliate Faculty at the VA VISN 6 MIRECC, and a staff psychologist in the Durham VA Trauma Recovery Program. She also has a small private practice and delivers evidence-based treatments (EBPs) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and commonly co-occurring conditions (e.g., anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, depression) in her practice. Her research broadly focuses on improving the effectiveness of and engagement in evidence-based psychotherapies (EBPs) for Veterans with PTSD. Additionally, her research examines how PTSD EBPs can be delivered through various modalities and formats, including telehealth, to increase engagement and improve clinical outcomes. She also has led or worked on numerous PTSD treatment randomized controlled trials funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and National Institute of Health.

Leslie A Morland, PsyD: As a researcher at NCPTSD over the past 25 years, Dr. Morland has focused on enhancing our knowledge of how to best deliver PTSD care for veterans and informing policy on a national level on improving access, quality, and efficacy of PTSD care. Specifically, Dr Morland has executed multiple large federal funded trials focused on evaluating and disseminating the innovative use of telehealth technology to increase access and the uptake of evidence-based psychotherapies for PTSD. Dr. Morland’s more recent research focuses on examining efficacy with the use medications such as Oxytocin and MDMA to potentiate evidence-based PTSD treatments (e.g., Cognitive Behavioral Conjoint Therapy for PTSD [CBCT], Prolonged Exposure [PE]). Dr. Morland provides research collaboration, consultation and mentorship on multiple research projects and national initiatives and strategy planning. She is known as a leader and innovator in the field of PTSD treatment, prioritizing equity in access to evidence-based care across diverse populations. Dr. Morland’s research has resulted in over 100 peer-reviewed publications, chapters and invited presentations.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this workshop, the learner will be able to:

1. Be able to compare the effectiveness of exposure therapies for PTSD delivered via telehealth to in-person delivery

2. Describe at least 1 challenge of delivering PTSD exposure therapies via telehealth

3. Describe at least 1 benefit of delivering PTSD exposure therapies via telehealth

4. Identify how to improve the therapeutic environment for exposure therapies delivered remotely 

Recommended Readings:

1. Morland, L. A., Masino, T., Myers, U. & Glassman, L. (in press). Telehealth and the delivery of Prolonged Exposure Therapy. In C. Mclean & E. Goetter (Eds.), Prolonged Exposure for PTSD. Springer.

2. Morland, Wells, S. Y., Morland, L. A., Wilhite, E. R., Grubbs, K. M., Rauch, S. A., Acierno, R., & McLean, C. P. (2020). Delivering prolonged exposure therapy via videoconferencing during the COVID‐19 pandemic: An overview of the research and special considerations for providers. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 33(4), 380-390.

3. Morland, L. A., Wells, S. Y., Glassman, L. H., Greene, C. J., Hoffman, J. E., & Rosen, C. S. (2020). Advances in PTSD treatment delivery: Review of findings and clinical considerations for the use of telehealth interventions for PTSD. Current Treatment Options in Psychiatry, 7, 221-241.

4. Moldestad, M., Petrova, V. V., Tirtanadi, K., Mishra, S. R., Rajan, S., Sayre, G., ... & Reisinger, H. S. (2023). Improving the usability of written exposure therapy for therapists in the department of veterans affairs telemental health: formative study using qualitative and user-centered design methods. JMIR Formative Research, 7(1), e47189.

About The Moderator: Courtney DeAngelis, Psy.D. is an Assistant Professor within the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Columbia University. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and clinical supervisor at the Columbia University Clinic for Anxiety and Related Disorders (CUCARD-Westchester). She also dedicates her time to the development of continuing education programming, with a mission to disseminate research and clinical knowledge to improve clinical competencies and patient outcomes. Dr. DeAngelis received her doctoral degree in clinical psychology from La Salle University. She completed her predoctoral internship at the Kennedy Krieger Institute at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and her postdoctoral fellowship at CUCARD-Westchester.

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All attendees will receive a certificate of completion when the course requirements are satisfied. Certificate of completion is included in the cost of the webinar

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For more information, contact:

Rachel Lamb, ABCT Membership and Marketing Manager
212-647-1890 ext. 209
rlamb@abct.org

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