PE Therapist Certification Process

The following training procedures and their costs apply to licensed therapists who have completed a CTSA-sponsored 4-day Intensive Workshop in PE.  If the PE trainee is not a licensed therapist, the trainee must receive direct supervision from another licensed professional; PE consultation is considered additional, expert consultation.

Becoming a Certified PE Therapist

To achieve PE therapist certification, therapists must complete one-on-one expert consultation with a minimum of two (2) completed PE cases. The cases should be completed in a linear fashion (i.e. completing the first case before starting the second), although some overlap is acceptable if the PE consultant and therapist deem appropriate.

For each case, the therapist will participate in a pre-PE consultation call. The therapist should identify PTSD patients that are potential candidates for use in PE consultation prior to the pre-PE consultation call. Pre-PE consultations include discussing potential candidates for use in PE consultation (symptoms and appropriateness for PE and for being a training case), preparing for the first PE sessions, and discussing the procedures of video- and audiotaping. The PE consultant must approve the appropriateness of a patient for PE consultation before the therapist starts PE with a patient.

Therapists are required to videotape AND audiotape all PE sessions. Videotaped sessions are reviewed by the PE consultant and audio recordings of sessions must be given to patients as part of treatment. Therapist is responsible for the purchase of all video and audio recording equipment (e.g. video cameras, digital voice recorders) for use in treatment and consultation. The ability to upload videos to file-sharing sites such as Dropbox and to burn CDs for patients is also required.

The PE consultant will review recordings of sessions for each case prior to the next session. The therapist will participate in PE consultation sessions conducted by telephone for each case. PE consultation calls will occur after the PE consultant has reviewed the recorded PE session but before the next scheduled session with the patient. During the PE consultation call, the consultant’s review of the session is discussed, therapist questions are answered, and the therapist is prepared for the next session.

Upon successful completion of at least 2 full PE cases, the consultant will recommend the therapist for certification as a PE therapist. (Note that “successful completion” of a case is at the discretion of the consultant and requires a minimum of eight (8) sessions of PE. At times, a third PE case may be recommended in order to ensure mastery of skills.)

Cost

Cost of expert individual PE consultation leading to certification as a PE therapist is $6,000 and includes consultant review of up to 45 minutes of each PE session and 30 minutes of telephone consultation (total of 1 hour and 15 minutes per consultation). The cost includes consultation for up to 24 PE sessions.

Certification must be complete within 1 year of the date this contract is signed.

In rare cases, when more than 24 PE consultation sessions are required for certification as a PE therapist, these services will be rendered at $240 per hour.


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