Presentation Slides
First-episode psychosis can strip away one's identity, obscure one’s history, and shatter one’s vision for the future. And often, this process happens through contact with the mental health system, rather than the condition itself.
At just 17 years old, Leah Giorgini found herself navigating a descent to invisibility after a traumatic childhood marred with violence, neglect, and parental death led to a first episode of psychosis. Once a high achiever, Leah became a patient adrift from the world, paralyzed by antipsychotic medication and low expectations. However, when a progressive therapist lent Leah a book about Feminist Perspectives on Mental Health, Leah suddenly felt seen as a whole person in context and began to reemerge as a visible and capable individual.
Now an Occupational Therapist working in nonprofit leadership, Leah is working to change the societal inequities that lead to and perpetuate human suffering. She will present her story and outline how connecting the dots of trauma, intersectionality, and occupation can lead to rights-based care that helps people feel seen and empowered.
By the end of this training, participants will be able to:
Describe the importance of acknowledging intersectionality in mental health care, particularly in understanding how various aspects of identity, such as gender, race, and socioeconomic status, intersect with experiences of psychosis and recovery.
Describe the role of occupation in the recovery process for individuals with first-episode psychosis, and understand how occupational therapy principles can be integrated into rights-based care approaches to support individuals in regaining agency and meaning in their lives.
Identify the key factors contributing to the social invisibility experienced by individuals with first-episode psychosis, including the impact of interactions with the mental health system.
About the Presenter:
Leah is a British-Indonesian immigrant who moved from England to the United States in 2016. As a psychiatric survivor, domestic violence survivor, former foster youth, and a person who has previously experienced homelessness, Leah is working towards a world free of oppression and injustice. She believes that promoting psychological and social approaches to psychosis is equity in action towards this vision.
Trained as an Occupational Therapist, Leah primarily worked in clinical mental health settings until she came to the United States, where she found a home working in nonprofit leadership. Leah has worked in an array of settings with people diagnosed with psychosis, including working in early intervention in psychosis, assertive outreach, a mental health recovery café, a high-secure forensic hospital, and homeless emergency shelters. She currently serves as Executive Director of the US Chapter of the International Society for Psychological and Social Approaches to Psychosis (ISPS-US.)
Presentation Slides
In this 60-min session we will explore the common challenges providers face when supporting people who see, hear, and otherwise experience things that others around them do not. Tasked with time-sensitive concrete requirements, such as completing an eligibility assessment or person-centered recovery plan (PCRP), professionals may struggle to meet the needs of the behavioral health system while also prioritizing the more immediate and subjective needs of the human being in front of them. Join Amy and Amanda as they share from both their relevant personal and professional experience regarding this challenge and highlight ideas for staying connected with yourself and the people you support. Although the session is brief, attendees can expect story-telling, short examples, and a few take-home resources.
Learning Objectives:
Describe two actions that promote trust and partnership during a mental health distress,
Name two behaviors professionals should avoid that can damage the relationship with people who are hearing and seeing things that others do not, and
Identify an approach that simultaneously balances the needs of the person and the system.
About the Presenters:
Amanda Bowman, LCSW-S, PSS (she/her) is a clinical social worker, certified peer specialist supervisor, and WRAPⓇ facilitator, using her professional and lived experience with mental health challenges to promote person-centered practices in behavioral health care. Coming from direct social work practice and administrative leadership within the public mental health system, she joined Via Hope in 2013, where she served as Recovery Institute Director until 2023. In this role, she oversaw the development and delivery of organizational change programs, which included statewide initiatives to support the implementation of person-centered planning, peer support services, and trauma-responsive work environments. Now the owner of Sidecar Consulting, Amanda uses her passion for participatory learning methods to facilitate collaborative learning events and serves as a subject matter expert for programs designed to support change within and across agencies. She has called Austin home since 2000 when she moved from Louisiana to obtain a Master’s degree at UT. Outside of work, you may find Amanda with her family hiking the Barton Creek Greenbelt or enjoying live music.
Amy Pierce (she/her) has been working in the Peer Movement in the State of Texas for almost two decades. She currently serves as Recovery Institute Associate Manager at Via Hope by serving as a subject matter expert on the implementation of peer services and other recovery-oriented practices. She has extensive experience in the peer support sector, having started the first peer support program in the state hospitals in Texas, implementing peer support programs in the community as well as the Program Coordinator for a transitional peer residential housing project. Prior to Via Hope, she was the CEO of Resiliency Unleashed, an international training and consulting company. Amy is a peer, and family member, with both mental health and addictions experience. Amy was previously Chair of the PAIMI Council in Texas and currently serves on the Disability Rights Texas Board of Directors.
Multimedia, Presentation Slides
Members of the new SAMHSA funded National Training and Technical Assistance Center for Early Serious Mental Illness (ESMI TTA Center) will (1) present an overview of the ESMI TTA Center’s work and activities and (2) provide practical tools, tips, and resources on Shared Decision Making in the context of working with people with early serious mental illnesses.
Learning Objectives:
Identify the resources and capabilities available through the ESMI TTA Centers for providers, policy makers, individuals, and families.
Understand what shared decision making is and how to do it.
Appreciate developmental considerations related to shared decision making.
About the Presenters:
Preethy George, PhD. (she/her) is a Principal Research Associate at Westat with a doctoral degree in clinical psychology and more than 20 years of experience in mental health, early intervention, and public-sector behavioral health services for youth and young adults. Her work spans technical assistance, program evaluation, and the translation of clinical research to inform practice and behavioral health policy. Dr. George has played key roles on federally funded projects focused on early psychosis for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), which have involved working with early psychosis researchers, providers, advocacy groups, and service recipients and their families to advance early intervention services across the country. She currently serves as the Project Director for the National Training and Technical Assistance Center for Early Serious Mental Illness (ESMI TTA Center).
Apruva Bhatt, M.D. (she/her) is a child, adolescent and adult psychiatrist and Clinical Assistant Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine. Her role spans the General Adult Psychiatry Division, Child Psychiatry Division, and Center for Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing Division. Dr. Bhatt specializes in early psychosis evaluation and treatment. She currently provides clinical care in both the Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital Child INSPIRE early psychosis clinic and the Stanford Health Care INSPIRE clinic. She contributes to early psychosis program development in California (through EPI-CAL) and nationally (through PEPPNET/Westat). She is also co-chair of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Adolescent Psychiatry Committee and Early Psychosis work group.
Shannon Pagdon, BA (she/they), is a joint masters/doctoral student at the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Forensic Psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and is a former Research Coordinator for EPINET New York State Psychiatric Institute. Shannon also does ongoing work with the EPICAL network. She is someone with lived experience of psychosis and has a background in peer support. She is the co-creator of Psychosis Outside the Box and is currently serving as the Vice President of lived experience research within IEPA. Within her graduate program, she studies under Dr. Nev Jones and is currently focusing on a qualitative in-depth examination into peer support nationwide.