Health

Past Trainings

In general, these are some of the trainings we offer:



Cancer Care is for EVERYbody: Cancer Care Basics for Lesbians, Bisexual Women and Transgender People

Healthcare and social providers working in cancer services as well as in
screening and prevention can more effectively engage lesbians, bisexual
women and transgender people in receiving critically needed care
by developing new intervention skills, strategies and understanding of
the LBT cancer experience. The LBT population has a greater concentration
of risk factors for cancer. On the whole, this group is more likely
to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, be overweight, have children at an
older age or not at all and not breast-feed or use oral contraceptives.
Additionally, due to fears of discrimination, past discriminatory experiences
and lack of health insurance, LBT people are less likely to have
routine medical screenings that would pick up cancer at an early stage.
Cancers identified at later stages are often more life threatening and
difficult to treat. An LBT person’s unique psychosocial needs may also
not be adequately addressed due to inhibitions about “coming out” to
practitioners. This workshop will address the importance of knowing
your LBT patients/clients, risk factors and barriers to healthcare utilizations,
the LBT cancer experience, and how you can make simple
changes on a personal and institutional level to effectively accommodate
the needs and experiences of lesbians, bisexual women & transgender
people and to help eliminate health disparities for this population.

Trainer: Cristina Moldow, LMSW, Lesbian Cancer Initiative Coordinator


Crystal Meth in the LGBT Communities – more than a
gay issue
Crystal methamphetamine use has become visibly entrenched within
the gay community over the past several years, generating a call to
action among service providers not seen since the early days of the
AIDS epidemic. While this drug has been most visible here in NYC
amongst gay white men, there is increasing evidence of its use by other
members of the LGBT communities. This workshop will explore population-
specific differences including context of use and ways to tailor
interventions to the differences among between lesbian, gay bisexual
and transgender community, as well as special populations such as
immigrants, people of color and people living with HIV. Evidence-based
treatment modalities, including primary prevention and relapse prevention
will be discussed using case studies. In addition, referrals for services
will be reviewed. The goal of this training will be to increase the
knowledge base of service providers and members of the general
public on crystal meth and the growth in its use throughout the entire
population of LGBT individuals.

Trainers: Andres Hoyos, LMSW, Director of Center CARE Recovery
and Antonio Ruberto Jr., LMSW, Center CARE Prevention Counselor
Center CARE is now a New York Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS)


Tools for Effective Group Leadership

Group work is an increasingly integral component of services provided
by many agencies and practitioners. Groups are recommended interventions
for many client concern including substance use, trauma,
depression, medical illness, as well as issues such as isolation, selfesteem,
and interpersonal relationships. Group work also enables providers
to offer services to more clients in an increasingly tight funding
environment. Despite this, many providers do not have adequate training
in group work methods. This workshop will address issues pertaining
to the importance of group planning; understanding stages of group
development; identifying group purpose; and working with issues of
role, authority and power. We will also address concerns specific to
group work with the LGBT population.

Trainer: Ady Ben-Israel, LMSW, Center CARE Group Services
Coordinator


Trans Care: Basics - An overview of transgender identity
and community, terminology and engagement concerns
This is a core Trans-Care training certificate module.
Providers working with transgender and gender non-conforming people
often lack engagement and intervention skills, and outreach materials.
Even when available, many services are challenged by social concerns
and institutional barriers, as well as a lack of information about specific
transgender HIV risks. Despite this, transgender-identified people have
a demonstrated and urgent need for culturally competent services. In
this context, facilitating access to culturally appropriate, accessible, and
nurturing services is a significant challenge. This workshop will stress
trans-cultural competency and sensitivity concerns including transvocabulary,
barriers to care, and ethnic, cultural and class differences
within the trans-communities, trans-space, legislative developments and
resources. In addition to didactic material, group exercises and the
viewing of a brief video may be used help to develop the participant’s
awareness of the breadth of identities within the trans-communities.

Trainers: Ray Carannante, LMSW, Associate Director of Adult Services
and Cristina Herrera, BA, Gender Identity Project Counselor


Trans Care: Partners and Families

 No prerequisite required.
The partners, children, parents, siblings and other family members of transgender and gender non-conforming people are an often neglected, though integral part of working with the trans communities. This workshop will address issues around partnering, sexuality, intimacy and potential risk-taking as well as the relational trauma created by trans-phobia and gender-bias in the culture and family of origin, and introduce strategies to work with transgender-headed families and transgender individuals, their families of origin and their communities. In addition to didactic material, group exercises and the viewing of a brief video may be used help to develop the participants’ skills.

Trainer: Ray Carannante, LCSW, Associate Director of Adult Services and Gender Identity Project Coordinator


Trans Care: Practice (Mental Health) - An overview of transgender identity-development and clinical concerns

Prerequisite: Trans-Care: Basics or similar transgender cultural competency
training. This is a core Trans-Care training certificate module.
Transgender development and mental health concerns are frequently
neglected or presented as subset of lesbian and gay needs. This training
will specifically address trans-practice and clinical concerns using a
model that emphasizes identity and community development over
pathology and diagnosis, shifts the practice emphasis to the management
of stigma associated with trans-identities, reduces barriers, and
advocates for the establishment of sufficient and freely accessed services.
Areas covered include: intake and assessment, gender identity
development and transition support including the trans-adolescence
model, developmental concerns and HIV risk, healing of losses experienced
as a result of transgender identity and transition, and mental
health care with a focus on trauma-related practice and resources.

Trainers: Ray Carannante, LMSW, Associate Director of Adult Services
and Cristina Herrera, BA, Gender Identity Project Counselor


Working with Groups for LGBTQ People in a Substance-Abuse Treatment Setting

Group-level interventions are a central modality in working with substance using clients to address the impact of use, explore reasons for self-medication and develop social support structures to change problematic behaviors, from both a harm-reduction and abstinence-based perspective. This three-hour training will review basics of group stages, describe and offer opportunities to practice cognitive-behavioral techniques appropriate to groups addressing substance use concerns, and will provide insight into the history, culture and effectiveness of 12-step programs, particularly for clients who identify as members of the LGBTQ community.

Trainer: Christopher Murray, LCSW is a psychotherapist in private practice, an adjunct lecturer at the Hunter College School of Social Work, an instructor at The Alcoholism Council of New York, and a consultant to Center CARE Recovery at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center.
 

contact us

To learn more or register for an upcoming training, call 646-556-9300
 
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