VIPCare's Global Reach via Remote Education

Dr. Donald D. Denton, Dr. Chan Young Park, and Dr. Douglas M. Thorpe are busy conducting courses at the undergraduate and graduate level at several institutions of higher education.

Dr. Donald D. Denton began teaching at the University of Maryland University College (now University of Maryland Global Campus) in 2008 while completing a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in Homeland Security and Emergency Management at the Douglas L. Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University. Academic degrees in ministry and psychotherapy plus his publication history and continuing interests in the fields of international relations, intelligence gathering, and the history of religion combined with a military background and teaching at Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care was a good fit for the university’s developing curriculum and program

Read More About Dr. Donald D. Denton's Educational Outreach (click here)

Dr. Chan Young Park teaches graduate students at three different schools: Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (MBTS, Kansas City, MO), Central Baptist Theological Seminary (CBTS, Shawnee, KS), and Virginia Christian University (VACU, Chantilly, VA).

Read More About Dr. Chan Young Park's Educational Outreach (click here)

Dr. Douglas M. Thorpe taught Pastoral Assessment, Diagnosis, and Psychopathology for Wesley Theological Seminary (located in Washington, D.C.) in May 2022. The course is integral to the “Soul Care” track of Wesley’s Doctor of Ministry program. Because the class was offered online, students were able to join from any location. A chaplain and therapist in the U.S. Army joined from a base in East Asia.

Read More About Dr. Douglas M. Thorpe's Educational Outreach (click here)

Melvin Dowdy, Ph.D. and Daniel Dougherty, LCSW : VIPCare Continuing Education on Ethical Issues in Clinical Practice

Focus: Involuntary Mental Health Hospital Admissions and End of Life

Former VIPCare counselor, Dr. Mel Dowdy, a practicing licensed clinical psychologist and bioethics consultant, along with Daniel Dougherty LCSW, a community mental health provider and emergency mental health consultant, presented a continuing education program this morning for VIPCare staff.

The first half of the three-hour course, led primarily by Dan Dougherty, outlined and then walked through the process of involuntary admissions to mental health facilities. With a focus on the client-patient relationship, both Dan Dougherty and Mel Dowdy shared their experiences related to both voluntary and involuntary mental health admissions after which VIPCare counselors shared specific mental health admissions cases for feedback.

For the second half of the course, Mel Dowdy discussed the ethics of end of life issues with a focus on informed consent and the importance of allowing patients to remain in control of their medical care and decision making (as they are able). As well, Dr. Dowdy highlighted the importance of medical directives, family and caregiver roles, and the cultural context of patients (their history, family, cultural and religious background).

VIPCare staff presented Dr. Dowdy with questions on how to work with families who choose to withhold medical information to protect their loved ones (Dr. Dowdy suggested talking to the caregiver about their own desires for the patient's wellbeing and gently to consider whether the protection was asked for/would be welcomed by the patient). The program concluded with ways to offer support after a loved ones' death (no platitudes but speak from your own experience and spirituality).

VIPCare hopes to welcome Dr. Dowdy back in 2023 for another program on ethics and thank both Mel Dowdy and Dan Dougherty for their presentations.

May is Stroke Awareness Month: Ischemic Stroke

Friend of VIPCare, Jeff Erickson

Jeff Erickson is a single father and marketing executive who suffered a mid-cerebral ischemic stroke on January 27, 2019, while alone with his then six-year-old son. An unlikely candidate for a life-threatening stroke considering his health profile and age, at just 48 navigating the shock and uncertainty caused by a stroke had deep implications.

Lucky beyond belief at the outcomes after the stroke he confronted the health risk head-on as best he could, studying causes of stroke in people with no previous indications or apparent risk factors. He scheduled extra follow-up appointments with doctors and did every possible test that was suggested no matter how inconvenient or uncomfortable. Not long after the stroke Jeff started a YouTube channel to share what he was learning and champion the message that stroke is not solely a condition suffered by the elderly. It can strike any person at any age so be aware of the signs.

Although cathartic the Youtube channel lost a little of its appeal to Jeff when the diagnosis of the stroke was determined to be a Cryptogenic Stroke or “Of unknown origin”. A diagnosis of “No Diagnosis” it turns out can be quite terrifying for an event that happens inside one’s body especially if there is no guarantee it won’t happen again. For the record, your doctor does not want you to know they don’t have all the answers and in this case, roughly 30% of stokes in the U.S. go undiagnosed annually.

For Jeff the implications of not knowing the cause of the stroke and the unpleasant fact that his son witnessed him falling several times and may have found him unconscious during his stroke began to seed symptoms of PTSD. Well on the road to recovery Jeff has explored many therapies to be discussed in his channel Holy smoke, I had a stroke.


Jeff Erickson, YouTube Creator, Holy Smoke, I Had A Stroke

Congratulations to VIPCare Counselor Darla Renshaw On Completing Licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)

VIPCare's counseling staff are celebrating with counselor Darla Renshaw, who recently completed her supervised hours and is officially a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT).

Ms. Renshaw holds a M.S. in Counseling Psychology from Prescott College and a M.P.H. in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health. She holds post-graduate certification in Equine-Assisted Mental Health (EAMH) from Prescott College and is an EAGALA Certified EAMH Practitioner and an EAGALA Certified Equine Specialist.

Ms. Renshaw is also a trauma-informed advanced level EMDRIA-trained therapist and a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT).


Congratulations Darla!


Darla S. Renshaw

St. Mary's Episcopal Church: VIPCare Counselor Peggy Newman Leads Program on Forgiveness

Lenten Supper and Speaker Series TONIGHT

March 30, 2022

5:30 p.m.- 7 p.m.

St. Mary’s Lenten theme is on "Do this in remembrance of me" with a focus on the redeeming work of Jesus. Tonight, VIPCare Counselor, The Rev. Deacon Peggy Newman, LCSW, discusses the redeeming work of forgiving.

If you missed her talk or would like to listen again, click the button below (St. Mary's website).

ACPE SPIRITUALLY INTEGRATED PSYCHOTHERAPY PROGRAM: Particpants from Virginia to New York

The ACPE Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy (SIP) training program will conclude with a final Zoom class on Friday, April 1 (participants will then reconvene to present case studies later in the month).

Co-led by VIPCare Executive Director, The Rev. Dr. Douglas M. Thorpe, and The Rev. Dr. Roosevelt Brown, Chief of Chaplain Services at the Hampton VAMC, the SIP program is a multi-disciplinary, inter-spiritual, multi-racial community of persons gathered for education, connection, and formation in the work of spiritually integrated psychotherapy.

It serves licensed and pre-licensed mental health professionals (i.e. counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, pastoral counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, addiction specialists, and more), as well as graduate students in any of those disciplines, who seek to explore the ways of spirituality, religion, and the search for meaning influence their own lives and the lives of their clients.

To receive information on future ACPE or SIP programs, please contact Executive Director Douglas M. Thorpe at dthorpe@vipcare.org

VIPCare Executive Director Douglas M. Thorpe, Co-Leading the SIP program March 25

Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy Training: Starts March 18 & 19

JOIN THE Rev. Roosevelt Brown, DMin, LMFT, Chief, Chaplain Service Hampton VAMC, and THE Rev. Douglas Thorpe, PhD, LPC , Executive Director, Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care for Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy Training.

Program Dates:

Friday and Saturday, March 18 & 19 from 9 am to 4 pm

Friday and Saturday, March 25 & 26 from 9 am to 4 pm

Friday, April 1 from 9 am to 12 pm

Cost is $750 per person and limited scholarships are available

For more information and to register contact: Roosevelt Brown at akchaps53@gmail.com or Douglas M. Thorpe at dthorpe@vipcare.org

  • For mental health professionals and graduate students

  • 24 hours of NBCC Continuing Education Credit

  • Optional consultation, certification, and ongoing support that continue beyond the training

The word psychotherapy means “care of the soul” (from the Greek psyche + therapeia). While the history of psychotherapy includes theorists and practitioners with a bias against spirituality and religion, there have always been practitioners who found effective ways to include spiritual wisdom in psychotherapeutic work and a large portion of psychotherapy clients who wanted to talk about the spiritual dimension of their lives.

The SIP Training draws upon diverse spiritual traditions and psychological research to provide practical, usable resources to help therapists integrate spirituality into their work. SIP teaches mental health therapists how to elicit and make therapeutic use of their clients’ spiritual perspectives make ethically appropriate use of their own spiritual perspectives.

The SIP Training is for licensed and pre-licensed mental health professionals: counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, pastoral counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, addictions specialists, and others.

Participants who complete the 30-hour curriculum are eligible to pursue certification in Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy by completing 20 hours of consultation with an ACPE SIP Trainer.

Who We [Pastoral Counselors] Are by The Rev. Dr. A. Patrick L. Prest, Jr.

IN 2005, THEN VIPCARE COLLEAGUE AND FRIEND JASON C. WHITEHEAD COMPILED A BOOKLET, A UNIQUE CALLING: PERSPECTIVES ON PASTORAL COUNSELING, WITH ESSAYS ON THE WORK OF PASTORAL COUNSELING.

VIPCARE COUNSELORS REVISITED THE BOOKLET RECENTLY AND THOUGHT IT WOULD BE GOOD TO SHARE THESE ESSAYS ANEW.

NOTE: Jason Whitehead’s piece was reposted in August 2021: below we share another essay from the book, Who We Are, by the Rev. Dr. A. Patrick L. Prest, Jr., a founding member of VIPCare and a long-time and beloved Board member, who passed away in March 2019 (see buttons below to read his obituary and his VIPCare Prayer).

Who We Are

Pat Prest

Pastoral Counselors are men and women from all walks of life, from vast and far-reaching cultures, from much religion to none at all, from very rich to very poor, from the suburbs to the slums, from families with severe pathology to inordinately healthy dynamics, from over function to dysfunction, from personal health to tragic illness, and from devout incarnational practice to free-spirited love.

The key to a successful pastoral counselor is the true acceptance of his or her personal pilgrimage to the point that he or she is free to hear another’s journey in life, and to not judge that individual.  Persons who are not able to accept themselves completely and who continually project their own unfinished pathology need to seek work elsewhere.  Along with this personal journey, the pastoral counselor must acquire basic skills of diagnosis, empathy, family systems, group dynamics, and a personal religious perspective.

The Practice of Pastoral Counseling

The individual pastoral counselor needs to have a faith perspective that is personally fulfilling and that tolerates a vast continuum of religious faiths in others.  This personal faith sustains the counselor in his or her practice.  Obviously, the practice of pastoral counseling assumes minimal standards of licensure by the state.  At no time can the counselor claim religious superiority over incompetence.  Each counselor is accountable not only professionally and denominationally, but also to the individuals who come to them from wisdom and friendship.  The Pastoral Counselor can do not more than walk in the presence of God with another in the midst of an anguished world.

 

The Rev. Dr. A. Patrick L. Prest, Jr.

VIPCare Founding Member and Longtime and Beloved Board Member

GIVING TUESDAY TODAY!

In this season of giving, please consider a donation to VIPCare to help others receive the gift of counseling. Your gift supports VIPCare's Counseling Aid Fund, which offers pro bono and sliding scale counseling for clients unable to afford the cost of their care.

For many clients in need of counseling, VIPCare is a critical support in anxious and isolated times. More than 1/3 of VIPCare's clients receive counseling financial aid to cover the cost of their sessions (average sliding scale session cost is $40 with many clients paying less and some receiving pro bono counseling).

Gifts can be made through GIVELIFY (click link below), by mail to VIPCare 2000 Bremo Road, Suite 105, Richmond, Va. 23226 or by calling us at (804) 282-8332.

Thank you for your support of VIPCare's mission of hope and healing for all.

GIVELIFY: https://www.givelify.com/.../virginia.../donation/amount...

#GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement that unleashes the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and their world.

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