Course Fee: $875 (Canadian currency) includes ebook
Grief and loss is something that we all experience. It is painful and life-altering, and hard to face alone. We can feel as if we’re reeling and have lost our grip on life – as reality is different, and everything has changed. But if another walks beside us and lends us their support it can help to ease the burden, and make us strong again.
Specifically, this course will explore the following: an introduction to grief and loss counselling; grief and mourning models and rituals; mourning in children and adolescents; accompanying the dying, anticipatory grief and complicated mourning; traumatic death, death by suicide and the loss associated with dementia; the loss of an intimate relationship; the loss of employment and the loss of health.
In addition to looking at grief and loss (Part 1 of the diploma course), you will also have the chance to study one of the following related courses (Part 2 of the diploma course): essential counselling qualities and skills; or spirituality and spiritual care.
SYLLABUS
Part 1
Module 1: An Introduction to Grief and Loss Counselling
Topics Studied
• What is counselling?
• Confronting death/ death anxiety
• Distinguishing between grief and mourning
• Grief: An individual experience
• The Five Stages of Grief Model (Elizabeth Kubler-Ross)
• The Cyclical Model (Colin Murray-Parkes)
• General guidelines for supporting the bereaved
• How to tell if grief has become depression
• The need for, and value of, self-care.
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Describe the essential qualities in a therapeutic relationship.
• Restate the different stages in the models of grief.
• Summarise general guidelines for supporting the bereaved.
Module 2: Grief and Mourning Models and Rituals
Topics Studied
• A Task-Oriented Model (William J. Worden)
• Grief and mourning under the lens (What to expect when counselling the bereaved)
• The value of customs and rituals
• The role of the funeral director
• Some ideas for personalising a loved one’s funeral
• Honouring a miscarriage through ritual
• The importance of self-awareness in the counsellor
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Apply William J. Worden’s Task-Oriented Model
• Restate the eight ethical questions for mourners.
• Debate the value of customs and rituals.
Module 3: Mourning in Children and Adolescents
Topics Studied
• Children and death: A historical perspective
• How children and adolescents process grief and loss
• Common symptoms of grief and loss in children and adolescents
• Some suggestions for adults who’re supporting grieving children and adolescents
• Children and funerals
• How to establishing a therapeutic relationship with young clients
• Popular counselling techniques when working with children and adolescents
• Therapeutic activities for children and adolescents
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Describe how children and adolescents process grief and loss.
• Discuss the value of funerals for children and adolescents.
• Recommend counselling activities that are appropriate for using with children and adolescents.
Module 4: Accompanying the Dying, Anticipatory Grief and Complicated Mourning
Topics Studied
• Understanding complicated mourning/ abnormal grieving
• Counselling the dying
• Seven fears of dying
• Some guidelines for counselling the dying
• Understanding anticipatory grief
• Death in a cultural context
• Exploring the counsellor’s own emotional world
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• List factors which contribute to complicated mourning.
• Summarise the seven fears of the dying.
• Appraise your own emotional world.
Module 5: Traumatic Death, Death by Suicide and the Loss Associated with Dementia
Topics Studied
• Traumatic death
• Factors affecting reactions to a death
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Complicating factors that may compromise the client’s recovery
• Counselling tips for supporting survivors
• Exploring survivor guilt
• Death by suicide
• The grief of the suicide survivor
• Telephone counselling skills
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Describe survivor guilt.
• Discuss the grief of the suicide survivor.
• Analyze the needs and losses when a loved one has dementia.
Module 6: The Loss of an Intimate Relationship, the Loss of Employment and the Loss of Health
Topics Studied
• Life as a series of losses
• The loss of a marriage (or an intimate relationship)
• Kubler-Ross’ model and relationship loss
• Murray-Parkes’ model and relationship loss
• Typical emotional response to a lost relationship
• The impact on the children
• The loss of employment (including retirement)
• Loss associated with chronic illness or disability
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Apply Kubler-Ross’ and Murray-Parkes’ models to the loss of an intimate relationship, the loss of employment and the loss of health.
• Describe the needs of children whose parents separate.
• Appraise the needs of people who lose their health.
Part 2 (Counselling Skills option)
Module 1: Introduction to Counselling Skills
Topics Studied
• What is counselling?
• The therapeutic relationship
• The therapeutic communication process
• The shadow side of counselling
• The counsellor’s emotional world
• The Johari Window
• Using non-verbal skills to manage aggression
• Counselling skills practice
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Describe the essential qualities in a therapeutic relationship.
• Communicate effective understanding.
• Appraise their emotional world.
Module 2: Exploring Effective Listening Skills
Topics Studied
• Effective Listening Skills
• Active Listening
• Questions to Consider
• Poor Listening
• Faulty Listening
• Responding Skills
• Reflective Skills Practice
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Describe what is meant by active listening.
• Illustrate what is meant by poor and faulty listening.
• Analyse effective responding skills.
Module 3: Acquiring and Using Microskills
Topics Studied
• Reflection
• Paraphrasing
• Summarising
• Challenging
• Confronting
• Immediacy
• Counsellor Self-Disclosure
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Employ reflecting, paraphrasing and summarising.
• Justify the use of challenging and confronting.
• Assess the use of immediacy and appropriate counsellor self-disclosure.
Module 4: Introducing Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model
Topics Studied
• Introducing Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model
• Stage 1: The Present Scenario
• Stage 2: The Preferred Scenario
• Stage 3: Strategies
• The Shadow Side of the Skilled Helper Model
• Focus on the Counsellor
• Brushing up on Communication Skills: Effective Listening
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Connect Stages 1,2 & 3 of Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model.
• Predict the influence of the shadow side of Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model.
• Examine the skill of tuning into, or attending to, the client.
Module 5: Applying Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model
Topics Studied
• Reviewing the Counselling Relationship
• Solution-Focused Helping
• Facilitating Perseverance
• Reviewing Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model
• Applying Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model
• Some Final Thoughts on Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Relate Egan’s the Skilled Helper Model to a Solution-Focused Approach.
• Produce guidelines to facilitate perseverance in the client.
• Illustrate how to effectively use Egan’s The Skilled Helper Model.
Module 6: Ethics in Counselling
Topics Studied
• Ethical Framework for Good Practice in Counselling
• Ethical Principles for Good Practice in Counselling
• Counsellor Personal Moral Qualities
• Providing a Good Standard of Practice and Care
• Counselling Supervision
• Brushing up on Key Counselling Skills: Confronting Prejudice
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Defend the ethical principles associated with good practice.
• Describe the personal moral qualities associated with good practice.
• Critique what is meant by a good standard of practice and care in counselling.
Part 2 (Spiritual Care option)
Module 1: Spirituality and Spiritual Care
Topics Studied
• What is spirituality?
• What are the key components of spirituality?
• The role of religion
• The origins of religion
• Religion versus spirituality
• What is spiritual distress?
• Spiritual care
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• List the key components of spirituality
• Suggest some similarities and differences between spirituality and religion
• Identify some causes of spiritual distress
Module 2: Measures and Models of Spirituality
Topics Studied
• Logotherapy
• The Hierarchical Model of Meaning and Satisfaction in Life
• Exploring wellness
• Stallwood and Stoll’s Conceptual Model of the Nature of Humans
• The BMSEST and the 3 H Models of Spirituality
• Spiritual intelligence
• Spiritual questionnaire
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Explain the foundational principles of logotherapy
• Summarise The BMSEST and the 3 H Models of Spirituality
• Discuss spiritual intelligence
Module 3: Spiritual Care across the Life Cycle
Topics Studied
• Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development
• Understanding life chapters
• Understanding and negotiating life transitions
• How to find meaning through rituals
• Cultural and religious rituals
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Summarise Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development
• Outline how a person can find meaning through rituals
• Paraphrase Hudson’s thoughts on phases, chapters and transitions
Module 4: Counselling Skills and Spiritual Care
Topics Studied
• The therapeutic relationship
• Communicating understanding
• The role of active listening
• Effective questioning
• Faulty listening
• Guidelines for effective listening
• Listening skills practice
• The use of minimal encouragers
• The use of silence
• Counselling skills practice
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Describe the essential qualities in a therapeutic relationship
• Communicate effective understanding
• Demonstrate effective listening skills
Module 5: Resources for Spiritual Care, and the Power of Story
Topics Studied
• Reviewing spiritual needs
• Resources for spiritual care
• The power of story
• Telling our own story
• Man as a living human document
• The Life of the Soul Model
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Suggest some resources for spiritual care
• Describe the Life of the Soul Model
• Outline the therapeutic use of story
Module 6: Ethics in Spiritual Care
Topics Studied
• Distinguishing between morals and ethics
• The role of values in spiritual care
• A code of ethics for spiritual care providers
• The relationship between spiritual care providers and the people they are working with
• The fundamental importance of maintaining trust
• The centrality of confidentiality
• Potential forms of abuse
• Professional boundaries with respect to touch
• Relationships with colleagues and other professionals
• Dealing with conflicts and complaints
• The need for self care
Learning Outcomes and Summary of Objectives
Upon successful completion of this learning module, the student should be able to:
• Outline issues related to the area of confidentiality
• Summarise the issues related to abuse
• List the symptoms associated with burnout
Suggested textbooks for the course (to be purchased by the student)
Part 1: Worden, J.W. (2018). Grief counselling and grief therapy: A handbook for the mental health practitioner. (5th). New York, NY: Springer Publishing.
Part 2 (Counselling Skills): Egan, G. (2018). The skilled helper: A problem management and opportunity development approach to helping (11th Ed.). Brooks Cole/ Thomson: London.
Part 2 (Spiritual Care): Wattis, J., Curran, S., & Rogers, M. (2017). Spiritually competent practice in health care. Boca Raton, FL: Taylor & Francis.