About the Course
Advocacy is essential for driving the systemic changes needed to protect mental health providers and ensure equitable care for clients. This two-part virtual workshop is designed specifically for NAMHP members—clinicians, practice owners, and behavioral health leaders—who want to build their advocacy skills and become effective voices for change at the local, state, and federal levels. Led by Jack Register, a nationally recognized expert in behavioral health advocacy, this hands-on bootcamp will guide participants through the core skills and ethical considerations necessary for impactful advocacy. Participants will explore how to ethically collect and present data, build collaborative coalitions, and engage policymakers with evidence-based proposals rooted in real-world clinical practice.
Jack Register, LCSW, LISAC, CCS, ICAADC, ICCS, BC-TMH, CCTP
Jack has been a social worker for over 20 years with experience as a dually licensed addiction/clinical social worker. Jack has a private practice; been a professor; and has been an accomplished policy advocate at state and federal levels. Jack lives in Arizona and is licensed in multiple states. Jack is a PhD student at the Wurzweiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva University. Jack is the podcast host for "The Organizing Therapist." This podcast focuses on the ways in which clinicians can learn about and become involved in advocacy efforts. Jack was named "One of Today’s Most Influential Social Workers – Social Work Today 2007" and received the Change Agent award in 2019 from the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce Other Voices
Learning Objectives
Participants will identify and describe three best practices for communicating aggregate-level practice data to policymakers.
Participants will name and explain three ethical considerations for clinicians to consider when engaging in advocacy practice.
(Optional enhancement: This makes sure participants aren't just listing items but also understand the rationale.)Participants will describe three ways the policy change process works in behavioral health settings.
Course Agenda
Sample Day 1 Agenda
Session Title: Foundations of Advocacy & Ethical Practice in Behavioral Health
9:00 AM - 9:15 AM - Welcome, Introductions, and Overview of Learning Objectives
9:15 AM - 10:15 AM - Introduction to Advocacy in Social Work & Behavioral Health
10:15 AM - 10:30 AM - Break
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM - Best Practices for Communicating Aggregate-Level Practice Data to Policymakers
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM - Ethical Considerations for Clinicians Engaging in Advocacy Practice
1:00 PM - Adjourn Day 1
Audience
This course is designed for social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists, psychologists, nurse practitioners, addiction and substance abuse counselors, and other mental health and human services professionals, depending on their respective licensing or credentialing board requirements.
CE Details
TelebehavioralHealth.US, #2020, 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: 6/20/2024 – 6/19/2025. Social workers completing this course receive 8 continuing education credits.
ASWB-approved CE credits for this workshop are provided by TelebehavioralHealth.US, an ASWB Approved Continuing Education (ACE) provider. NAMHP expects to obtain its own provider approval by 2026.
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