Tag: College of Psychology

Two graduate students from NSU College of Psychology M.S. in Counseling program recently wrote articles that were published in the Winter 2020 newsletter of the Florida Association for Multi-Cultural Counseling and Development (FAMCD) a division of the Florida Counseling Association.

An article by Bruce Steinberg titled “A Patchwork of Protections” covered the patchwork of civil rights that members of the LGBTQ+ community face in Florida due to a lack of protections at the state or federal level. An article by Alessandro Antonucci titled “Immigrants in Therapy: Unique Challenges, Extraordinary Resilience” discussed the challenges that immigrants and refugees face when settling and adjusting to life in a new country. Both articles emphasized the need for counselors to understand these issues while providing therapy to clients from diverse backgrounds.

Assistant Professor Justin Maki, Ph.D., LPC, NCC, encouraged his students to submit articles to the FAMCD newsletter.

“I’m very proud of both of these students and their contributions to the newsletter, as well as for representing NSU and the Department of Counseling,” Maki said.

To read the newsletter articles, visit https://bit.ly/2z1SM9Z.

 

Offers tips for dealing with COVID-19 pandemic

What started out as a directed study project for School Psychology doctoral students Catalina Uribe and Catherine Ivey turned into an effort to spread awareness of self-care techniques during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ivey said the spread of COVID-19 made them reconsider what direction their work could go in instead of a directed study. Ivey said they decided to adapt a five factor self-care wellness model into flyers to share on social media. The flyers outline self-care activities that can be performed from home as people engage in self-isolation to help curb the spread of the virus.

Uribe said the goal with the flyers was to collect information backed by research and present it in a way that wasn’t daunting to the audience. As the project develops, Uribe and Ivey said they might create videos and use other social media channels.

“Some people don’t have strong support systems, especially students at the graduate level,” Ivey said. “That loneliness and isolation can be mentally crippling.”

 

The flyers are available on tumblr: https://feelgoodflyer.tumblr.com/.

Full story: https://psychology.nova.edu/news-events/2020/cop-feelgood.html.

 

Catherine Grus, Ph.D., started her journey into the psychology world in high school, followed it into academia, and now is the newly appointed Chief Education Officer of the American Psychological Association.

Grus credited a high school psychology course and topics like perception for igniting her interest in the field. That led her to earning a B.A. in Psychology from Western New England College and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from NSU’s College of Psychology. Grus was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Miami’s School of Medicine for a decade and joined APA in 2005.

Grus said NSU faculty helped her direct her passion and prepared her to work in the field.

“I was fortunate to have so many professors who were experts in their areas, both in the courses they taught and in supervision,” Grus said. “I have really positive memories of the faculty, and I’m still in touch with many of them.”

Grus is no stranger to what the position entails, having assumed it on an interim basis in 2018. She said the position broadly covers all aspects of education, including increasing the quality of psychology education programs, accreditation, continuing education, and applying psychology to K-12 education.

Full story: https://psychology.nova.edu/news-events/2020/cop-grusapa.html

When Samantha Rodriguez and Bailee Schuhmann each donned 90 pounds of firefighting protection equipment, they did so not as firefighter trainees, but as NSU Clinical Psychology doctoral students.

Schuhmann and Rodriguez participated in a two-day Clinicians Awareness Course hosted by the Florida Firefighters Safety and Health Collaborative in Bonita Hills, FL. The students were part of a group of 30 clinicians who wore the same gear and participated in a simulated exercise involving rescuing victims from a burning building (which was not actually on fire). The exercise give clinicians insight into the challenges and stresses experienced by people who work in the fire service.

Although the participants were never in danger and did not experience the stress and peril that firefighters do, Schuhmann said wearing the gear gave her a new perspective on their jobs.

“Your senses get messed with, and you can’t feel anything through the gloves,” she said.

The two-day course was also intended to raise awareness about cancer prevention, mental wellness, health and fitness, and firefighter safety across the state. The participants also toured a fire station and heard stories from firefighters about their experiences with mental health.

“There is a big stigma surrounding mental health and seeking services within the first responder population,” Rodriguez said. “This training has inspired me to continue to work towards changing the culture and removing that stigma so that these individuals can receive the services that they need.”

Professor Vincent Van Hasselt, Ph.D., an expert in police psychology who works frequently with first responders, encourages his students to participate in first responder training to gain knowledge that will help them as clinicians.

“Some knowledge of the nature of the job goes a long way in engaging a firefighter or police officer in the therapy or counseling process,” said Van Hasselt, of the Department of Clinical and School Psychology. “In particular, the likelihood of establishing a positive therapeutic relationship is enhanced when the first responder – client sees that the mental health provider has, at least, a basic understanding and awareness of the challenges they face.”

Full story: https://psychology.nova.edu/news-events/2019/cop-fire-awareness.html