Crisis Intervention and Verbal De-escalation: How Best to Support System-Involved Youth

Sonja Lenz-Rashid, PhD, LCSW

Training Description

This training is to help support those who support system-involved youth in various capacities. This training will include content on how to identify and handle crisis situations with system involved youth who are psycho-socially and cognitively escalated and agitated. It is essential that all those who support system-involved youth know and understand how to de-escalate them quickly and effectively. Powerpoints, videos, challenging case vignettes, and small group sharing of scenarios will be used.

Learning Objective

1. Identify at least 2 different levels of crises which can arise within efforts to support system-involved youth and families.

2. Acquire at least 2 strategies for responses within various crises situations with system-involved youth.

3. Explain how to process post-crisis with youth as well as with others involved.

Agenda

1:30-1:35pm  Check in and introductions

1:35-2:00pm  Types of crises brainstorm and small group discussion

2:00-2:30pm  Assessment techniques during crisis/What works, what doesn’t work

2:30-2:45pm  Break (CE hours will not be offered for this time)

2:45-3:30pm  Crisis intervention strategies and Verbal First Aid

3:30-4:15pm  Processing post-crisis: The importance of follow-up

4:15-4:30pm  Check out and Closing

Meet Our Trainer

Dr. Sonja Lenz-Rashid, LCSW, is a Professor of Social Work at San Francisco State University and a Co-founder and Faculty Research Evaluator of the SF State Guardian Scholars Program (GSP). Launched in 2005, the GSP serves over 90 current and former foster care youth on campus and has an annual budget of over $1 million (and is a non-profit on campus). Dr. Lenz-Rashid has studied the outcomes of, and best practice models for, former foster care youth at the national, state and Bay Area levels. Her research and publications have provided valuable feedback to child welfare administrators, legislators, and program developers in how best to serve these disenfranchised young people using evidence-based practice. She is also a consultant, trainer and clinical supervisor at a number of Bay Area non-profits serving children and youth being served by the foster care, juvenile justice, and behavioral health systems. She has over twenty-five years serving vulnerable youth in the San Francisco Bay Area.

This course meets the qualifications for (2.75) BBS CE hours for LCSWs, LMFTs, LPCCs, and LEPs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences & is provided by Fred Finch Youth Center, CAMFT Provider #045295.