Understanding Selective Mutism: Helpful Tips and Strategies

This presentation aims to provide an overview of selective mutism (SM). It will review considerations in the diagnosis of SM, including diagnostic criteria, differences in presentations, and myths about this disorder. The presentation will also delve into how to understand the anxiety/reinforcement cycle as it pertains to SM. An overarching treatment model will be discussed with an emphasis on reviewing helpful tips and strategies that can be generalized to working with children struggling with SM in various settings.

Speakers

Rebecca Laptook, PhD, is a licensed clinical child psychologist who specializes in the treatment of childhood anxiety. She received her doctorate in clinical psychology from the State University of NY at Stony Brook and completed her clinical internship at NY Presbyterian-Columbia University Medical School and subsequent child postdoctoral fellowship at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System. She is a clinical associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Human Behavior as well as the Department of Pediatrics at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Laptook works at the Hasbro Children’s Partial Hospital Program (HCPHP) at Rhode Island Hospital where she conducts clinical assessment and provides individual, group, and family therapy to children and adolescents presenting with combined medical and psychiatric illnesses. She serves as the co-director of training for psychology practicum, resident, and post-doctoral trainees who rotate through the HCPHP and is also the director of staff development and training at the HCPHP. Dr. Laptook has particular interests and expertise in childhood anxiety, selective mutism, cognitive behavioral therapy, and parent-child interactions. Additionally, Dr. Laptook has been a member of the board of directors for the Selective Mutism Association (SMA) since 2012, an international non-profit organization that aims to bring awareness and resources about Selective Mutism to the community. She has served as President in prior years and is currently the Clinical Co-Chair of the SMA.

Hannah Cohan, MD, is a fourth-year resident in the Brown Triple Board Program (pediatrics, child psychiatry, adult psychiatry). She received her MD from Penn State College of Medicine in Hershey, Pennsylvania and her BS in neuroscience from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. She first gained experience working with children with selective mutism (SM) in 2016 at the Child Mind Institute in New York City, where she was trained in the selective mutism adaptation of parent child interaction therapy. She has since served in various roles in the selective mutism program at the Child Mind Institute, including as a counselor for Brave Buddies (a summer group intensive treatment treatment modality for children with SM), a clinical team leader for Brave Buddies (trained and supervised counselors), a behavioral technician (with supervision provided individualized intensive treatment for SM) and as an in-school behavioral interventionist for a child with SM. As a Triple Board resident, Dr. Cohan continues to expand her skills and experience working with children with selective mutism and other anxiety conditions. 

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Describe different ways selective mutism may present.
• Identify two myths about selective mutism.
• Describe the anxiety cycle of selective mutism.
• Describe one approach to address selective mutism.

Details

The target audience for this presentation is psychologists, physicians, social workers and other interested health care professionals.

This presentation has been approved for 3.0 CE hours/credits (see below).

Registration

Program fee: $49

Online registration closes on Monday, May 19.

For refund/cancellation information, please email bradleyconferencesup@brownhealth.org or call Mayra Colon at 401-606-5753.

Register online

Credit Details

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of Rhode Island Hospital and Bradley Hospital. Rhode Island Hospital is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education.

Rhode Island Hospital designates this activity for a maximum of 3.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s). Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Rhode Island Hospital is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Rhode Island Hospital maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

CEUs for this event have been submitted, pending approval by the National Board for Social Work (NASW), designating this activity for a maximum of 3.0 continuing education credits for certified counselors, marriage, and family therapists.

Bradley Conference is designed to provide education for psychologists, social workers, physicians, nurses, certified counselors, speech/language and occupational therapists, teachers, milieu associates, and other professionals who work with children, adolescents, or adults.  Topics address different behavioral health populations and treatment modalities and are intended to provide practical, state-of-the-art information.

Bradley Hospital’s clinical expertise, internationally renowned research, and academic affiliation with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University make the hospital a unique resource in all areas of behavioral health care.  We have designed a wide range of learning experiences to provide the training that behavioral health care professionals need to stay at the forefront of their fields.

There is no known commercial support for this program.