Finding Help for Struggling Teens:
Best Practices and Ethical Challenges

Location:  Foxborough, MA - Holiday Inn, Mansfield-Foxborough

Child welfare professionals and educators frequently encounter adolescents who struggle with significant challenges, such as school failure and truancy, defiance towards parents, running away from home, choosing the "wrong" friends, impulsive behavior, getting in trouble with the law, depression, substance abuse, social isolation, eating disorders, and self-injury.

In recent years, many interventions, including specialty programs and schools, have emerged to meet the needs of struggling teens and their families. Many of these interventions, programs, and schools are reputable and ethical, but not all of them follow current "best practice" guidelines, employ skilled professionals or follow evidence-based intervention protocols. Many programs and schools are licensed and accredited, but some are not, and some use techniques that are highly controversial, even abusive.

This workshop will provide a comprehensive overview of current "best practice" guidelines for intervening with struggling teens, including an overview of current program and school options. Dr. Reamer will discuss the remarkable growth of the contemporary "struggling teens industry"; programmatic options and controversies; evidence concerning the effectiveness of diverse interventions; and key ethical issues, challenges, and risks. Workshop participants will:

• Describe interventions and programmatic options for struggling teens and their families
• Apply knowledge of evidence-based "best practices" to identify appropriate interventions and programmatic options
• Analyze the effectiveness of diverse intervention and programmatic options for struggling teens and their families
• Distinguish between ethical and unethical interventions and programs
• Comply with prevailing ethical standards in the delivery of services to struggling teens and their families

This workshop will benefit social service/child welfare professionals, educators, guidance counselors, therapists and anyone working with teens who struggle with significant behavioral, mental health and substance abuse issues. Workshop format includes lecture, case examples, discussion and audio clips and carries 6 credits in ethics for mental health professionals in RI and NH.

Instructor:

Frederic Reamer, Ph.D., is a professor in the School of Social Work, Rhode Island College. He co-authored two recent books on struggling teens: Finding Help for Struggling Teens: A Guide for Parents and the Professionals Who Work with Them and Teens in Crisis: How the Industry Serving Struggling Teens Helps and Hurts our Kids. Dr. Reamer is the author of many publications on professional ethics and chaired the national task force that wrote the Code of Ethics adopted by the National Association of Social Workers and presents nationally and internationally with an engaging style that includes extensive dialogue with participants.