Talking to Voices: AVATAR Therapy for Auditory Verbal Hallucinations

Auditory verbal hallucinations (‘voices’) are a common and often persistent distressing symptom of psychosis, being experienced by more than 70% of people suffering from these conditions. They are also often resistant to treatment with only a quarter of patients having a good response to antipsychotics even when given in combination with psychotherapy. AVATAR therapy is new and strikingly beneficial treatment for these voices. The basic approach was invented by Professor Julian Leff some 10 years ago with subsequent research and development led by Professor Thomas Craig and Professor Philippa...Read more Garety at King’s College London.

The approach enables the patient to create a digital representation of their most dominant voice (the ‘avatar’) and to conduct a dialogue with this avatar, assisted and supported by the therapist. The experience is akin to a virtual conversation not unlike what we will be engaged in during this webinar. The researchers have shown, though two robust clinical trials that the approach is highly effective in reducing the frequency and distress associated with voices, even stopping the distressing voices altogether in a small number of patients. It is hoped that this treatment can be rolled out in routine mental health services in the UK.

Can't attend live? Don't worry! The webinar will be recorded and sent to all registrants.
However, please note that live attendance is required for CE credits.

Unable to contribute? We encourage everyone to contribute towards our webinars where possible to ensure we can compensate our speakers and continue our vital mission. However, a limited number of free spots limited to people who are unwaged or on benefits can be accessed using the scholarship code SCHOLAR25 Less...

Learning Objectives

Explain the basic principles of AVATAR therapy and how it is used to support individuals experiencing auditory verbal hallucinations.
Summarize key findings from clinical trials on AVATAR therapy, including its effectiveness in reducing the distress and frequency of voices.
Identify potential applications and challenges of AVATAR therapy in clinical practice and future directions for its implementation.

Target Audience

This educational activity is intended for behavioral health professionals, including Psychologists, Social Workers, Counselors, and MFT's.

Learning Levels

All levels

Wednesday, March 05, 2025

Live Interactive Webinar

01:00 PM EST - 02:30 PM EST

EARN 1.5 CE Credit Hours

About the speaker

Thomas Kern Jamieson-Craig, MD, PhD, FRCPscyh

Emeritus Professor of Social Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College, London, Hon Consultant psychiatrist, South London and Maudsley Hospital

Tom qualified in medicine at the University of the West Indies and trained in psychiatry in Nottingham UK. He was appointed to Kings College London as the first UK Professor of Community Psychiatry in 1990. He worked clinically in South London where he led the closure and re-provision of a hospital asylum and the development of community mental health services. His clinical research focuses on developing and evaluating community- based psychiatric services including residential alternatives to the hospital asylum, studies of homeless mental health, specialised services for first episode psychosis and most recently, studies of AVATAR therapy for the treatment of auditory verbal hallucinations in psychosis.

Agenda

5 minute introduction

60 minute presentation

25 minute question and answer between the audience and presenter

CE Information - Earn 1.5 CE Credit Hours

CE Approvals

New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work

CE Learning Systems SW CPE is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers #0060.

New York Education Department for Licensed Mental Health Counselors

CE Learning Systems, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #MHC-0072.

New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychology

CE Learning Systems dba CE-Credit.com & AddictionCounselorCE.com is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed psychologists #PSY-0016.

New York State Education Department's State Board for Marriage and Family Therapy

CE Learning Systems dba CE-Credit.com & AddictionCounselorCE.com is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Marriage and Family Therapy as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists #MFT-0045.

Joint Accreditation

In support of improving patient care, CE Learning Systems is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

American Psychological Association

Continuing Education (CE) credits for psychologists are provided through the co-sponsorship of the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of Continuing Education in Psychology (CEP). The APA CEP office maintains responsibility for the content of the programs.

CE Process Info

Before the event, you will receive an email from CE-Go with access to the virtual event. After the event, you will receive access to your evaluation and continuing education certificate via a personalized "attendee dashboard" link, hosted on the CE-Go website. This link and access to the virtual event will be sent to the email account you used to register for the event.

Upon accessing the CE-Go "attendee dashboard", you will be able to:

Complete evaluation forms for the event
Download your continuing education certificate in a PDF format

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the CE-Go platform, please contact CE-Go at 888-498-5578 or by email at support@ce-go.com Please Note: Emails for this event will come from "support@ce-go.com".

If you have any continuing education related questions, please contact your event organizer.

Please make sure to check your spam/junk folder in case those emails get "stuck". We'd also suggest "Allowlisting" support@ce-go.com. This tells your email client that you know this sender and trust them, which will keep emails from this contact at the top of your inbox and out of the junk folder.