Evidenced based Treatment-Training Staff, Increasing Family Involvement to Improve Treatment Outcomes

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), a treatment developed for individuals with disorders of emotion regulation, suicidality, and self-harming behavior (Linehan, 1993), includes four components-phone coaching, skills training, individual therapy and a consultation team. DBT has been adapted across multiple settings and has been adapted for specific populations. This interactive presentation will discuss how DBT was implemented within an adolescent secure residential nonprofit treatment center during a pandemic and racial justice movement. Participants will learn about the pros and cons of implementing DBT within a nonprofit residential secure facility, how DBT was implemented including training of staff, and the progress and future goals will be explored with participants. Progress was measured by looking at length of treatment and restraints, both of which decreased getting clients back to their life worth living faster. Given that most individuals that work in this residential treatment setting are people of color and clinical staff are primarily white, how issues of diversity and racial tension impacted implementation will also be discussed.