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ForwardInnovation + Decentralizing Care for Dissociative Disorders
Abstract
Dissociative disorders are frequently misunderstood, underdiagnosed, and undertreated, while access to specialized care remains limited in many communities worldwide. As the demand for trauma-informed services continues to outpace the availability of highly specialized clinicians, there is an increasing need for scalable, ethically grounded approaches that expand access to stabilization-oriented support for individuals living with complex dissociative conditions. This training explores low-resource adaptations for dissociation treatment through the lens of accessibility, psychoeducation, task-sharing, and community-based support models.
Drawing from a companion-based learning framework and practical clinical applications, participants will examine how structured psychoeducational resources, skills-based interventions, peer and paraprofessional supports, and adjunctive therapeutic tools can enhance continuity of care while reducing barriers to specialized treatment. Emphasis will be placed on maintaining safety, pacing, and ethical boundaries when adapting interventions for settings with limited access to dissociation specialists.
Participants will explore strategies for supporting internal communication, emotional regulation, relational safety, and stabilization without relying exclusively on intensive specialist models. The training will also address common fears and misconceptions surrounding dissociative disorders and offer practical guidance for integrating scalable supports into clinical, community, and interdisciplinary care environments. Designed for therapists, coaches, peer support specialists, and helping professionals, this training aims to expand the conversation around equitable and sustainable approaches to dissociation-informed care.
Target Audience
Intermediate
Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to:
- Discuss how structured psychoeducational interventions can be adapted to support stabilization and skill-building for individuals living with dissociative disorders in low-resource or specialist-scarce settings
- Apply practical, ethically grounded strategies for integrating task-sharing, community-based supports, and companion learning models into dissociation treatment while maintaining client safety and appropriate clinical boundaries
- Evaluate methods for increasing accessibility to dissociation-informed care through scalable interventions including psychoeducation, skills-based group work, peer support models, and adjunctive therapeutic resources
- Identify common barriers to dissociation-informed care, including systemic, socioeconomic, geographic, and workforce limitations, and develop practical approaches for increasing accessibility and continuity of support across diverse care settings
- Demonstrate the ability to implement stabilization-focused interventions that promote client autonomy, collaboration, and relational safety while supporting dissociative clients in navigating daily functioning both within and outside of formal therapy settings
Athena Phillips, LCSW, PsyD
Dr. Phillips is a contributing author to the book "IFS-Informed EMDR: Creative and Collaborative Approaches" and the author of "Heart of the Lion: A Workbook for Moving Through Trauma." She also developed the Orenda Trauma Coach Certification Course, designed to expand access to specialized trauma support globally through a task-sharing model. Her doctoral research, “Trauma Coaching: An Innovation for Resource-Scarce Communities & Beyond” (2025), examined the safety and effectiveness of trauma coaching as well as its potential to strengthen the mental health workforce in underserved communities.
In 2023, Dr. Phillips and her team partnered with mHub Rwanda to provide trauma coach training to paraprofessionals working with post-traumatic stress in their region. She also created a coaching program intended to complement therapy for individuals living with dissociative disorders, helping support and accelerate treatment outcomes.
Additional international work includes the Multicultural Trauma Training (MTT) initiative in Kigali, which brought together mental health professionals to study trauma-informed care collaboratively. Her work both locally and internationally has highlighted the urgent need for accessible, high-quality mental health services worldwide.
Dr. Phillips is also the co-founder of KALOS Continuing Education, a platform created to encourage cultural exchange, improve access to trauma education, and reduce professional isolation among care providers. She continues to work with clients through the Integrative Trauma Treatment Center, which she founded in 2012.
Her professional accomplishments also include presenting at the Attachment & Trauma Congress, the Global Exchange Conference, and multiple trauma training programs in Rwanda between 2016 and 2020.
Available Credit
- 1.50 APAThe International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
- 1.50 ASWB ACEThe International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD), #1744, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 08/20/2024 – 08/20/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 1.50 continuing education credits.
- 1.50 ISSTD Certificate ProgramThis program is eligible for 1.50 credits in the ISSTD Certificate Program. No certificate of completion is generated for this type of credit.