In response to the feeling that resources are limited for analytically oriented therapists south of San Francisco, a group of us have been working for the past year to develop a formal program along such lines. Now, for the first time there will be a multi-year training program in psychoanalytic psychotherapy for licensed mental health professionals in the Peninsula/South Bay region. 

Applications are already coming in, and the first class of the Palo Alto Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training Program (PAPPTP) will begin courses in September, 2007. The program will include a three-track course curriculum and individual psychotherapy case supervision. This program, under the auspices of the SFPI&S, is a collaboration of South Bay analysts from SFPI, PINC, and IPC, along with local psychoanalytically oriented therapists. In addition to its educational goals, PAPPTP seeks to create more sense of community among professionals who share an interest in psychoanalytic ideas.

The didactic program will be Friday mornings, at the Department of Psychiatry, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford. The specific courses and instructors can be viewed at theSFPI&S website. Teaching will be aimed at the experienced therapist, although basic topics will be covered. The curriculum's three tracks are: Theory, Clinical Technique, and Case Conferences. Theory will encompass both models of mind and developmental phases. The Clinical track will address how analytic therapists conceptualize the therapy situation, and then use psychoanalytic orientation to work with specific kinds of patients. Case Conferences will include faculty case presentations and student presentations, and both child and adult cases. Special programs will supplement the basic curriculum. Supervisors will be assigned from a pool of experienced clinicians for two intensive therapy cases.

More information and applications are available through the SFPI&S site, or from Cheryl Goodrich, Ph.D. (650) 321-05330 or Richard Almond, M.D. (650) 321-6637.

Richard Almond, M.D.
Program Chair
Palo Alto Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training Program