Dear ESTD members,
Spring has been fairly busy for the Board, so this is intended to give you an overview of the recent events. In March 2019, our colleague Renee Potgieter Marks (PhD) represented ESTD at the annual ISSTD conference in NYC. In exchange, Christine Forner, the current President of ISSTD, will present on dissociation and mindfulness at our biennial conference in Rome in October. The workshop presented by Renee focused on the theory and implementation of ESTD guidelines for the assessment and treatment of children and adolescents with dissociative symptoms and dissociative disorders, which was well received by the audience. Together, our ESTD representatives and the ISSTD President discussed the importance of an ongoing collaboration between the two societies and preventing fragmentation on an organisational level.
One of the main goals during my presidency, with the help from our board, is to build an online education section accessible to all ESTD members. So far, the chair of the education committee, Anabel Gonzalez (PhD) completed the first module of four hours of video material on trauma and dissociation in Spanish. Hopefully, in a couple of months, it will have English subtitles and be available on the ESTD website. Currently, thanks to the strong and hardworking network of ESTD UK, the only online training available on trauma, dissociation and attachment are from the UK.
Most of you have probably noticed that we finally have a robust and functioning website with clear sections and lots of online material. I’d like to thank our colleague Raphael Gazon and his assistant Katia. In the future, Raphael would like to develop a Facebook page that will offer updated articles source with easy access to members.
Another important development that will come into fruition soon, is the development of a mentorship programme within the ESTD. Our colleague Igor Pietkiewicz (PhD) from SWPS University in Poland, has started the groundwork for this important task. ESTD mentors are academics, researchers, trainers, and supervisors who have made it their mission to develop and disseminate knowledge about trauma and dissociation regionally and internationally. Detailed information about how to apply as an ESTD mentor will be soon be released.
Last but not least, I would like to thank our colleagues from the scientific and organisational committee for the Rome conference for all their hard work. The high-quality programme is now available on the website. It has challenging themes together with well-known keynote speakers, young scientists and clinicians from Europe, the US and Australia, who will be sharing their treatment methods and research. There will also be a child and adolescent track, making it possible for clinicians and researches to update their knowledge and share new approaches.
Hoping that our roads paths will meet cross at this exciting event!
Kindly,
Anca Vilma Sabau
ESTD President