Dr. Childress Second Opinion ConsultationThis handout describes various options for incorporating the second-opinionconsultation of Dr. Childress on an assessment, diagnosis, and treatment plan for court-involved family conflict. I am able to provide second opinion consultation to the involvedmental health professionals if they or the court believe this would be helpful in theresolution of the family conflict through my HIPAA compliant online telehealth office atdoxy.me/drchildress.

Deutsch, R., Drozd, L., & Saini, M. (2021). Trauma as a Potential Distractor or Illuminatorin Exploring Resist/Refuse Dynamics, Association of Family and ConciliationCourts, annual convention, Boston, June 7, 2021.Deutsch, R., Drozd, L., & Ajoku, C. (2020). Trauma-informed interventions in parent-childcontact cases. In B. Fidler & N. Bala (Eds), Parent-child contact problems:Concepts, controversies & conundrums. Family Court Review, 58(2), 470-487.Drozd, L., Saini, M., & Deutsch, R. M. (2018). Assessment and intervention in resist/refusecases: A trauma-informed approach. [Presentation] Presentation at AFCC 55thAnnual Conference, Washington, DC

Beware Communities worldwide all need more therapists who can knowledgeably assess and treat alienation. At the same time, therapists need serious study and specific training to work effectively with these poignant, challenging, yet highly rewarding cases.

Practice outside of or beyond professional training, experience, or competence. Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, no licensee, registrant, certificate holder, or unlicensed psychotherapist is authorized to practice outside of or beyond his or her area of training, experience, or competenc

Colorado Mental Health Practice Act Colorado Revised Statutes Title 12 Professions and Occupations Article 43 Mental Health Effective July 1, 200

26The Counseling PsychologistTable 1.Criteria and Related Measures for Assessing ExpertiseCriteriaPossible ways of assessing criteria1.PerformanceA.Client-rated working allianceB.Client-rated real relationshipC.Observer-rated responsivenessD.Use of observer-rated theoretically appropriate interventionsE.Observer-rated competenceF.Client-rated multicultural competenceG.Observer-rated responsivenessH.Supervisor-rated competence or responsiveness2.Cognitive functioningA.Observer-rated assessment of cognitive processingB.Observer-rated assessment of case conceptualization ability3.Client outcomesA.Engagement in therapy (percentage of clients who return after intake)/dropout ratesB.Clinically significant change on reports by clients, therapists, significant others, or observers using measures of symptomatology, interpersonal functioning, quality of life/well-being, self-awareness/understanding/acceptance, satisfaction with workC.Behavioral assessments (e.g., fewer missed days of work, fewer doctor visits)4.ExperienceA.Years of experienceB.Number of client hoursC.Variety of clientsD.Amount of trainingE.Amount of supervisionF.Amount of reading5.Personal and relational qualities of the therapistA.Self-rated self-actualization, well-being, quality of life, lack of symptomatology, reflectivity, mindfulness, flexibilityB.Empathy ability (self-rated, nonverbal assessments, observer ratings)C.Nonverbal assessments of empathy6.CredentialsA.Graduation from an accredited training programB.Board certification7.ReputationA.Professional interactionsB.Advancement to positions of honor within organizations based on recognition of clinical expertiseC.Positive feedback and referrals from clientsD.Reports from colleagues/friendsE.Invitations to demonstrate methods in videos, workshops, or booksF.Lack of ethical complaints8.Therapist self-assessmentA.Evaluation of own skillsNote. The criteria are listed in the order of perceived relevance to assessing expertise, from 1 (most relevant) to 8 (least relevan

This difficulty in judging therapist competence may account for research findings that show that judges have a hard time distin-guishing between adherence and competence (e.g., Weck etal., 2013

Research outside of psychotherapy shows that incompetent performers cannot accurately recognize their own or others’ competence or incompe-tence (Dunning, Johnson, Ehrlinger, & Kruger, 2003

Tracey etal. (2015) offered the following four criteria for defining individual expertise in psychotherapy: (a) reputation, degree attainment, professional distinction, and experience; (b) skill, competence, or adherence to a prescribed standard of performance; (c) clinical accuracy; and (d) outcomes, or success with clients

We adopt the performance-based approach and suggest that therapist expertise exists on a continuum, ranging from highly inexpert to highly expert. To be considered an expert or judged as possessing high levels of expertise, one would need to function at a high point on this continuum across sessions and clients.

Although we argue in a subsequent section that experience is not equiva-lent to expertise, we acknowledge here that we cite literature that assesses experience (e.g., years of clinical experience, professional level) rather than expertise. Given the paucity of literature directly related to expertise, we incorporated literature on experience as a proxy for expertise but urge readers to remember that experience is not the same as expertise

Tracey etal. (2014) maintained that there is no evidence that experienced therapists achieve better client outcomes than do inexperienced therapists. They further proposed that therapists overestimate their clinical and diagnostic abili-ties, and an important reason that therapists do not improve in their clinical work is that they do not seek or receive adequate feedback about client outcome

Competence is required of psychotherapists by their profession’s ethics code and it is essential for the provision of effective treatment services to clients

Standard 3.04 (Avoiding Harm), as well as Principle B (Fidelity and Responsibility) of the APA Code of Ethics (2017) discusses avoiding harm and being aware of the “professional and scientific responsibilities to society and to the specific communities in which they work” (p. 3). Cederberg (2017) notes it is impossible for a psychologist to be an expert in all facets of the profession

Standard 2.01 (Boundaries of Competence) of the APA Code of Ethics (2017) states, Psychologists provide services, teach, and conduct research with populations and in areas only within the boundaries of their competence, based on their education, training, supervised experience, consultation, study, or professional experience. (p. 4)

All this hoopla seems out of character for the sedate man who likes to say of his work: ''Whatever I did, there was always someone around who was better qualified. They just didn't bother to do it.''

Passion, character, and initiative are a requirement. A long resumé is not — as long as you care about the right things, we can help build your skillset. This is true for those we hire, and it is equally true for our apprentices.