About the course:

Experiential knowledge based on coping and recovery processes is personal and unique and is a valuable resource that begins first and foremost with the choice and desire to transform the personal, specific, and private story into a broader body of knowledge that can serve others. The transition from the personal story to working from experiential knowledge occurs through a process of professionalization that includes learning how to use experiential knowledge as a professional tool to support others. The practice of using experiential knowledge can be a central tool in the toolbox of a rehabilitation/treatment professional with experiential knowledge, and help to give a significant voice and strengthen the uniqueness of experiential knowledge within a multidisciplinary team.

The course was developed as part of the "Consumers as Service Providers" program, working in partnership with knowledge from experience and the knowledge of professionals.

Key topics in the course: Basic principles of peer support; Professional identity of rehabilitation/treatment professionals with experiential knowledge; Processing the personal story; Exposure management; Model for using experiential knowledge as a professional tool; Integrating experiential knowledge in multidisciplinary team work; Working in partnership; Boundaries and professional ethics;

Course objectives:

• The student will recognize and process the knowledge from experience that he brings from his personal story of coping and recovery.
• The student will be introduced to different approaches to peer support and the use of knowledge from work experience.
• The student will receive practical tools for the deliberate and conscious use of knowledge from experience with various audiences (service recipients, staff members, family members).
• The student will strengthen his professional identity and his role as a rehabilitation/treatment professional with knowledge from experience within a multidisciplinary team.

Course structure:

16 sessions, with each session including 4 academic hours of study, followed by two academic hours of a training workshop in two groups.

Participants:

The course is intended for approximately 20 rehabilitation/treatment professionals with knowledge from experience, expert colleagues and/or family members, who are ready and interested in specializing in using their personal experience in their work. 

Course requirements:

• Attendance is required for 90% of classes.
• Active participation in classroom discussions and exercises
• Presenting a dilemma in the training workshop and developing it in a written work
• Submitting exercises on demand and submitting a course summary paper

Admission requirements:

• A rehabilitation/treatment worker with knowledge from actual working experience in each of the areas of community mental health.
• At least one year of experience working in the mental health field
• Willing to be exposed and use knowledge from experience as part of the course training
• Willingness to undergo processes of self-reflection on a personal and group level
• Willing to use the course content in practice as part of the job (requires at least partial exposure)
• Have completed a previous course relevant to the position at the rehabilitation school and/or have a relevant degree or certificate.
• Admission to the course is conditional on a personal interview conducted by the course staff.
• The number of participants in the course is limited, so hurry up and register.

Course cost:

Cost per participant: 845 NIS. Ministry of Health participation: 4,645 NIS.

To register for the course in Kiryat Ono, click here.