CHDI Hosts 16th Annual Evidence-Based Practice Conference

June 10, 2024

The 16th Annual Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Conference was held on June 4th at the Connecticut Convention Center. This year's conference, themed "Cultivating Connections and Equity in Connecticut’s Behavioral Health System," brought together over 460 behavioral health providers, school professionals, state agency staff, and others working with CHDI and the State of Connecticut to strengthen children's behavioral health EBPs.

Attendees were welcomed by Jodi Hill-Lilly, MSW, Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF), Cathy Foley Geib, MPA, Director at the Connecticut Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division (CSSD), and Jason Lang, PhD, Chief Program Officer at CHDI.

Following welcoming remarks, attendees heard from Wizdom Powell, PhD, MPH, a national authority on racial trauma and health equity and a CHDI board member. Dr. Powell delivered the keynote address, entitled "When We See Them Whole: Creating Healing-Centered School, Community, and Social Environments for Trauma-Exposed Youth." 

"This work works when we do it well," Dr. Powell told the audience, but acknowledged that healing work also takes a toll on the healers. "Fill your own cup so you can give from the overflow," she urged. (Learn more about Dr. Powell and her perspectives on youth mental health and racial trauma in our recent Q&A). 

Each year, CHDI also recognizes agencies that demonstrated outstanding performance in implementing an EBP model over the previous year (based on program data). This year's honorees for each EBP included:

TF-CBT
LifeBridge Community Services
Child & Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut
Charlotte Hungerford Hospital 

MATCH-ADTC
Adelbrook
Bridges Healthcare
Community Health Resources

ARC
The Village for Families & Children
Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut
Community Child Guidance Clinic

CBITS
Clifford Beers Community Care Center
Newtown Public Schools

Bounce Back
Mid-Fairfield Community Care Center
Southwest Community Health Center
Child & Family Agency of Southeastern CT

CHDI applauds all EBP partners across Connecticut for their ongoing work to improve the quality of children's behavioral health care (click here to learn more about how we support EBP providers statewide). 

After the morning speakers and awards, participants enjoyed 36 breakout sessions where providers and child-serving professionals enhanced their professional development and earned continuing education credits in a wide variety of topics, including:

• Measurement-based care
• Cultural sensitivity and humility
• Trauma screening
• Managing language differences in the therapy process
• Clinical supervision and leadership
• Screening and care for substance use and co-occurring disorders
• Increasing family/caregiver collaboration and engagement
• Managing and preventing clinician burnout and vicarious trauma
• Creating a welcoming environment for transgender and non-binary clients
• Therapy with young children
• Many other EBP- and condition-specific workshops

The EBP Conference is made possible with funding from DCF and CSSD. For more than seventeen years, CHDI has collaborated with state and federal partners, providers, and families to improve access to effective services for children and youth. As part of this effort, we have hosted the EBP Conference annually since 2008 to provide training, support, and networking opportunities for mental health clinicians disseminating evidence-based practices across the state. Together, we have developed a workforce in Connecticut that now delivers multiple evidence-based treatments and practices to thousands of children and families each year.

Watch a brief video recap of this year's conference, including brief clips from our speakers and photos from just a few of the 36 breakout sessions:

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Infographic: Trauma-Focused, Evidence-Based Behavioral Health Treatments for Children in CT

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