Johns Hopkins University Offers graduate degrees in Education:

Contemporary Trauma Response

This certificate is intended for experienced professional counselors and therapists who want to add to their expertise intervention skills in extreme stress reactions and the psychological traumatic effects of disaster, terrorism, war, and torture. It includes a capstone practicum experience working with survivors of trauma and disaster and their families under the supervision of experts.

Admissions requirements

Applicants must have a minimum of a master's degree in counseling or a closely related field, three relevant letters of recommendation, and an appropriate statement of aims and objectives.

Required Courses (12 credits)

Elective Courses (6 credits)

With the approval of their adviser, students choose 6 credits of electives suitable to their specific interests from the following list or with the approval of their adviser:

One-credit courses:

Three-credit courses:

 

  • 863.665 Contemporary Issues in Extreme Stress and Trauma Reactions I

    This course is designed as an introduction to issues of extreme stress reactions and the short- and long-term psychological traumatic effects of disaster, war, terrorism, and torture. It includes an historical overview of trauma responses and interventions within the helping professions, theoretical foundations, as well as individual and community mental health intervention strategies. Students will examine their own responses to clients who present with issues of traumatic and extreme stress reactions, and the emotional consequences to their family members. Open only to advanced master’s or post-master’s students. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 863.666 Contemporary Issues in Extreme Stress and Trauma Reactions II

    This course expands on topics of psychological trauma and reactions of substance abuse; risk-taking behaviors; anger; violence; grief and loss; physical, sexual, and psychological abuse of family members; relationship and work problems; and more. Students will study current research in contemporary trauma issues and intervention strategies for the effects of disaster, war, terrorism, and torture on survivors and their families. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.863.665

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  • 860.591 Critical Incident Debriefing

    Trauma and the need to process the impact that critical events have on victims, survivors, witnesses, first responders, and help-givers is a recurrent theme in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. This course presents mental health practitioners with several models for conducting critical incident debriefing - the classic Mitchel Model of debriefing, grief-related debriefing approaches, and a resolution-focused debriefing model. Course participants develop counseling intervention strategies to recognize and respond to the effects of trauma in individual clients. Case studies and intervention designs applicable to a variety of settings (e.g., fire departments, police, EMT, schools, hospitals, airplane crews, and agencies) are presented. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.502

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  • 860.695 Secondary Trauma and Compassion Fatigue

    This course examines the phenomenon of vicarious traumatization, or secondary trauma and compassion fatigue, which can result in a range of reactions in mental health professionals, medical personnel, police, firemen, victim advocates, and family members who care for traumatized people. Intervention techniques for such individuals and strategies for counselor self-care are presented. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.860.530 AND ED.861.502 AND ED.861.609

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  • 863.810 Clinical Community Trauma Intervention Practicum

    Students will have the opportunity to refine and advance their skills in field settings that offer trauma therapy with diverse populations. Through a combination of didactic and supervised clinical activities, students will explore and apply appropriate therapeutic strategies under the supervision of experienced practitioners. The Department must approve internship sites. Note: Must have approval of academic adviser to register for this course. (3 credits)

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  • 860.528 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

    This course provides an overview of the etiology of and issues critical to the diagnosis and treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). An emphasis is placed on the understanding of historical trends and contemporary theoretical and clinical models. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.609

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  • 860.501 Crisis Intervention

    Participants explore counseling strategies and techniques for working with individuals in crises. Students consider specific short-term strategies for diffusing emergency situations and review follow-up activities. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 860.547 Brief Counseling: A Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Intensive

    The goal of this course is rapid development of skill and competence when applying Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) in a brief format. Students review the salient principles and techniques of REBT, and apply it to a wide range of clients and disorders. Emphasis is placed on accurate detection of irrational (evaluative and demanding) beliefs, and rapid intervention using a range of disputations and behavioral interventions. Participants actively practice REBT interventions in a live format--receiving immediate and intensive feedback and supervision. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.502

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  • 860.577 Bereavement Counseling Theory and Practice

    Participants explore individual and group counseling strategies to support individuals experiencing the death of family members or close friends. Students focus on understanding death at different developmental levels and assisting clients to adjust to personal loss, emotional stress, and cognitive confusion. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 860.595 Coping with Stress in the Post 9/11 World

    This course will approach issues of stress management from four perspectives that include stressors, how they lead to stress reactions in people, and how people operate from a stressful perspective on themselves and life's challenges. The theoretical portion of the course includes personal stress management for the counseling professional and the role of the professional counselors as models for their counselees; stress management for the post 9/11 era and the need to gain a perspective on the pace and demands of an ever-changing world for which clients’ current coping strategies seem to be lacking; stress management applied to professional practice; and practical counseling intervention strategies and the incorporation of stress management awareness within one's overall practice with counselees. (1 credit) (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 860.606 Suicide Across the Life Span

    This course addresses the significant concerns of suicide and suicide prevention and provides training needed by counselors to effectively assist those at risk for attempting suicide. It includes the history of suicide in various cultures; risk factors for suicide; suicidal assessment; ethical and legal issues surrounding suicide; and counseling techniques with children, adolescents, adults, and survivors and their families. A varied format including experiential exercises will be used to introduce concepts and illustrate assessment and counseling techniques. (1 credit) (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507 AND ED.861.605

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  • 860.614 Counseling Individuals with Anxiety Disorders

    Students in this course review the nature of anxiety and how it affects human functioning, performance, and interaction. Topics such as phobias, panic attacks, stress management, and general anxiety are discussed. The emphasis of the course is on effective treatment using a wide range of approaches. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.609

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  • 860.621 Violence Prevention in The School Setting

    This course will provide an overview of school-based prevention and intervention strategies designed for students who are at-risk of participating in or becoming victims of violent behaviors. In addition, we will explore treatment options for youth who have actually participated in violent behaviors with applications of mental health interventions in schools and communities. Crisis management strategies for dealing with critical incidents will also be explored. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 860.515 Counseling Military Families

    Students explore aspects and issues affecting contemporary military families. Students consider the military as a unique culture within American society; the cultural context of the transmission of values, beliefs, and customs; and the needs of children and spouses of those serving in the military. Counseling for issues of isolation, frequent moves, deployment and reintegration into family life, anticipatory loss and grief, anxiety, uncertainty, and the effects of war are presented. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 860.571 Family Group Therapy

    This course provides training in leadership and facilitation skills for group work with multiple families. Students become familiar with creating and leading family groups based upon the identified needs of families with common concerns, such as those dealing with similar issues of grief and loss, loved ones with traumatic injuries, or those who are affected by violence, disaster, terrorism, or war. The course includes both didactic and experiential learning. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.503 AND ED.863.603

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  • 860.530 Multicultural Issues in Trauma Reactions

    This course examines various aspects of working with those affected by trauma who are members of diverse ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic groups, including immigrant populations. Intervention strategies effective with various kinds of trauma and a wide range of traumatic reactions are explored. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.502 AND ED.861.507

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  • 860.615 Domestic Violence: Its Impact on Spouses and Children and Remediation Strategies for Mental Health Professionals

    Despite the fact that more and more members of society have developed heightened awareness of the incidence and impact of domestic violence in the United States, many men, women, and children are still affected by violence in their families. The emotional, social, and physical impacts are far-reaching and usually have serious long-term effects. This seminar addresses the dynamics that occur in violent families, with particular emphasis on counseling strategies that can be used by mental health professionals when working with spouses, children, and other family members. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 860.620 Couples Therapy

    This course provides an overview of contemporary approaches for couples therapy. The emphasis is placed on understanding the dynamics of couple relationships, communication patterns, and the developmental challenges inherent to couple relationships. Models for effectively working with couples are considered through both didactic and experiential learning. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.502

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  • 860.657 Children and Resiliency: Helping Children Cope With Trauma and Violence

    Students develop an understanding of the effect of trauma and violence on children and learn practical concepts and tools to use with young children to adolescents. The course focuses on children and traumatic grief, techniques for traumatic grief work with special considerations for terrorism, war, school violence, and bullying and victimization issues. The course also provides information on children and resiliency, and ways counselors can encourage caring adults to support attributes of resiliency in children and adolescents. (1 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.502 AND ED.861.507 AND ED.861.609

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  • 863.631 Addictions Counseling II: Techniques and Strategies

    This course includes a wide variety of techniques and strategies for effective counseling with clients with addictive behaviors. A practice oriented approach is taken involving in-class demonstrations, simulations, and role-plays, utilizing techniques taken from various theories and applied in individual, group, and family contexts. The emphasis of the course is on intervention skills and working with resistance. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.863.630

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  • 861.713 Advanced Treatment Approaches

    This course explores a wide range of effective techniques and strategies in counseling and therapy, in the context of successfully treating various mental and emotional disorders. Approaches and procedures from such diverse models as psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioral, experiential, and systemic are explored, along with theories of change and research findings on effective counseling and therapy. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.863.809

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  • 863.630 Addictions Counseling I: Theory and Approaches

    Students explore the fundamental principles of addictions counseling from a wide range of perspectives. These include the psychopharmacological aspects of alcohol and abusable drugs, along with theories and assessments of addictive disorders. Many treatment models are considered, and are examined in the context of individual, group, and family therapy perspectives. The course also addresses the research literature on codependence, COA's, AA and other 12-step programs, dual diagnosis, relapse, prevention, and multicultural and gender issues. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.502 AND ED.861.609

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  • 863.650 Working with Children's Contemporary Issues of Grief and Trauma

    This course recognizes a multitude of loss and grief issues faced by children in a contemporary world. Students gain an understanding of children's complicated grief issues including suicide, homicide, AIDS, violence, abuse, bullying, terrorism, and trauma. Through the use of case studies, students learn how to utilize specific clinical techniques when working with children experiencing traumatic loss. Participants gain an awareness of normal grief responses in children, tasks of grief, myths of grief, and techniques useful in helping children grieve. Students learn practical ways to respond to children's grief reactions and questions and learn grief resolution techniques to work with children in educational and counseling situations. They also learn how to recognize behaviors that signal loss and how to identify at-risk and traumatized children. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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  • 863.654 Special Topics in Play Therapy

    The major goal of this course is to facilitate students' knowledge, skills and dispositions to effectively and ethically conduct filial (parent/family) therapy, and different applications of play therapy with diverse populations. Some of the special populations that might be included in this course are children and adolescents (a) affected by a natural or man-made disaster, (b) affected by physical and/or sexual abuse, (c) affected by death/dying, (d) affected by parental divorce, and (e) diagnosed with a DSM-IV disorder(s). Teaching strategies will include interactive lectures, classroom discussions, role-plays, video presentations, and experiential assignments. Specific discussions will focus on how counseling and play therapy influences\the practice of counseling with children and adolescents, and how current research and ethical clinical practice influence the development of play therapy and counseling theories. Prerequisite(s): A minimum of 15 credits of required coursework in this d (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.863.526 AND ED.863.652

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  • 863.656 Narrative Therapy

    This course will explore the social construction of lived experience and the use of narratives in counseling. Demonstrating the vitality of the client's interior monologue, students will focus on how the theory and philosophical roots of Narrative Therapy support an array of approaches applicable to diverse populations, including children, adolescents, and adults. This course will balance theory, counseling methods, and clinician skills for students to learn the knowledge, skills, and dispositions associated with Narrative Therapy. (3 credits)

    Prerequisite(s): ED.861.507

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