2017 IMHCA Conference: Call for Programs

2017 Call for Programs

Iowa Mental Health Counselors Association (IMHCA)

11^th Annual Conference

Thursday, May 4^th & Friday, May 5^th 2017

Airport Holiday Inn Hotel & Conference Center

6111 Fleur Drive, Des Moines, Iowa 50321

(515) 287-2400

Submission Deadline: Presentations must be received by December 5, 2016

Share Your Knowledge

IMHCA members & mental health professionals are invited to submit a proposal to present either a 90-minute or 3-hour breakout session on a mental health counseling topic at the 11th Annual IMHCA Conference.

Act now! Submissions must be received by December 5, 2016! Submission guidelines listed on page two.

About the Conference

The IMHCA Conference is the only state-wide professional conference for licensed mental health counselors. IMHCA members, mental health counseling students, and other mental health professionals gather to share their expertise at this conference. Take this opportunity to get involved and share your work with your colleagues. IMHCA is an approved continuing education provider (ACEP) for NBCC. As an NBCC ACEP provider, IMHCA is responsible for ensuring that all aspects of our CEU offerings are in compliance with the NBCC Continuing Education Provider Policy. The IMHCA conference also provides CEUs for alcohol and drug counseling professionals certified through Iowa Board of Certification. Tentative schedule indicates approximately 13 CEs for LMHCs and approximately 12 CEUs for CADCs/IADCs. Additionally, a 3-hour ethics session for satisfying ethics licensure requirements will be on May 4th.

New for 2017! As requested by past attendees, breakout sessions will be on BOTH days of the conference.

Presentation Topic Suggestions

• Addiction – Youth, Heroin Epidemic, Trends in Treatment
• Assessment and Diagnosis
• Children/Adolescents/Family
• Clinical Supervision and Ethics
• Dialectal Behavior Therapy
• Dual-Diagnosis Disorders – Assessment and Treatment
• Eating Disorders
• Evidence Based & Emerging Practices – Innovative Treatments, Expressive Creative Therapies, Skill Building
• Expressive Art Therapy and Approaches – Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Narrative Therapy, etc.
• Integrated Care, Practice Issues, and Healthcare Reform
• LGBTQ – Issues, Cultural Competence for Counselors
• Mid-Life and Ageing Issues
• Mindfulness
• Transitioning from grad school to licensure
• Trauma – Assessment and Treatment
• Traumatic Brain Injury, Brain Function and Neuroscience
• Telehealth and Web-based Counseling

Submission Guidelines

• Deadline: Presentations must be received by December 5, 2016
• Incomplete information may result in presentations being excluded from the conference committee review process.

Presentation Format:

1. Oral Presentations

Presentations can be either 90 minutes, or 3 hours (including Q/A) and are designed to be interactive and produce identifiable outcomes. Presentations may be made by single or multiple presenters, or in panel formats. See Oral Presentation Submission Requirements Document which is included below for oral presentation required content.

2. Poster Presentations

Posters are displays of innovative practices and award?winning programs, documents and ideas/questions. Posters will be placed throughout the conference and presenters will be available at select times to answer questions about the materials displayed. Posters should not exceed the standard poster board size of 36” x 48”. See Poster Presentation Submission Requirements Document which is included below for poster presentation required content.

Next Steps

1. Send your completed submission including A/V and Conference Room needs to the following two contacts by December 5, 2016:

Susan Heitshusen [email protected] and Jill Clyce [email protected]

2. IMHCA will acknowledge receipt of proposal applications via email within 10 days.
3. If you do not receive an email acknowledgment within 10 days of submission of your program, please contact IMHCA’s Conference Committee Chair, Susan Heitshusen, at [email protected]

Abstract Review Process: The IMHCA Conference Planning Committee will review all presentations that have been submitted with complete information. Presentations will be selected based on topic, speakers’ qualifications on the topic, and intended audience. The Committee will send notification by email to the main presenter of acceptance or rejection. The main presenter will be responsible for notifying others participating in the program of the outcome. All applicants will be notified of the status of their submissions by January 17, 2017.

Presenters will receive a complimentary conference registration: Complimentary registrations are limited to two for team presentations. All accepted presenters will need to register for the conference.

Download the Oral Presentation Submission Requirements Document here: 2017_call_for_programs