About the Course
In the course of counselling, you may come across clients who foresee their impending loss of someone significant in their lives through different terminal illnesses and other life-threatening circumstances (e.g. comatose state resulted from a severe accident or a fast-progressing critical medical condition). This training will introduce meaning-oriented perspectives of anticipatory grief and separation anxiety as experienced by the family members and the surrounding significant others of those who are critically ill and given poor prognosis. It will also equip you with meaning-oriented intervention tools to support the affected family members and friends in the face of their looming separation from their dying loved one. Course Outline
Essential features of separation anxiety and anticipatory grief
Use of Analogical Listening to explore the pre-loss turmoil
Pre-loss risk assessment for possible complications in post-loss adjustments
Use of a conversation guide to examine communication concerns over bad news and possible secrets and taboos
Application of Composition Work to examine the landscape of self and family, and to explore possible post-loss reconstruction
Course Objectives
To examine the threat of separation and its implications from a tripartite meaning reconstruction framework
To address family’s distress resulting from caregiving burdens and communication issues
To implement meaning-oriented techniques to facilitate family’s preparation and coping with the impending loss and separation
Who Should Attend
All counsellors, healthcare workers, social workers, psychologists, art / music / expressive arts therapists, school personnel, pastoral staff, and people involved in the helping profession.
Award
Modular Certificate of Completion awarded by the Portland Institute for Loss and Transition (PI), Portland, OR, United States, and earn Credits for 2 Orientation Modules and 3 Techniques Modules toward Certification in Grief Therapy as Meaning Reconstruction or Certification in Family-Focused Grief Therapy.
Your Trainer
Dr Carolyn Ng
Dr Carolyn Ng, PsyD, FT, MMSAC, RegCLR maintains a private practice, Anchorage for Loss and Transition (for more information, please visit: www.anchorage-for-loss.org). She also serves as Associate Director and Faculty with the Portland Institute for Loss and Transition in Portland, OR, United States. Previously, she was a Principal Counsellor with the Children’s Cancer Foundation in Singapore, specialising in cancer-related palliative care and bereavement counselling support. She is a registered counsellor, master clinical member and approved clinical supervisor with the Singapore Association for Counselling (SAC). She is also a Fellow in Thanatology (FT) registered with the Association of Death Education and Counselling (ADEC), USA; as well as a consultant to a cancer support and bereavement ministry in Sydney, NSW, Australia.
She is certified in Solution-Focused Brief Therapy and Narrative Therapy as well.
Carolyn first graduated with Bachelor of Arts from the University of New South Wales, Australia, majoring in psychology, followed by Master of Social Science (Counselling) from the Edith Cowan University, Australia and a Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministry (Conflict Management) from the Trinity Theological Seminary, USA. She subsequently completed her doctoral training in psychology with the California Southern University, USA. She is also trained in the Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) by the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, USA, community crisis response by the National Organisation for Victim Assistance (NOVA), USA, as well as Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) by LivingWorks, Canada. She is a trained end-of-life doula and a certified Advanced Care Planning facilitator as well.
Her wide counselling experiences cover youth delinquency issues, marital issues, family violence issues, mental health issues, incarceration issues, grief and loss issues, and crisis interventions. She has varied supervisory experiences with such helping professionals as counsellors, social workers and therapists in diverse settings as well. She also conducts training workshops and presents on various topics in English, Mandarin and Cantonese, as invited by different organizations both in Singapore and other countries like Malaysia, Taiwan, Bhutan, Australia and United States over the years.
Testimonials
Anonymous Art Therapist, Institute of Mental Health
It was a great and intense course, pushed me to reflect and draw out insights within myself and through the group members' support on grief and loss matters. The flow of the course was excellent and seamless. Amazing is the diverse teaching materials and creative activities in such a short course - overall very enriching and growth-provoking!
Anonymous Therapist Emeritus, Catholic Family Life
Dr Carolyn’s passion and compassion are very evident in her speaking. It was the most positive and productive training that I had ever received. Thank you for stretching my thoughts and providing me tools to work more effectively with my clients.
Anonymous Master Medical Social Worker, Sengkang General Hospital
Very good and skillful demonstration of assessment and intervention.
