2026 Psychosis Foundations Training and Consult Series

As part of the STEP Learning Collaborative’s commitment to improving access and care quality for individuals experiencing recent onset schizophrenia across Connecticut, we are pleased to offer this training in partnership with DMHAS and DCF to support clinician workforce development.

Who Should Participate

Licensed clinicians working with young people experiencing early psychosis and schizophrenia spectrum disorders
Each LMHA is encouraged to designate two clinicians for consistent participation
Clinicians at DCF affiliated OPCCs are also encouraged to participate
Note: If your agency would like to send more than two clinicians, please submit their names and contact information. After the registration deadline, we will follow up regarding whether additional spots can be accommodated. Requests from Connecticut agencies outside of LMHAs and DCF OPCCs will also be considered.

Training Program Overview

This workforce development program includes a half-day Early Psychosis Foundations Training followed by a monthly ECHO-style case consultation series. The program is designed to support clinicians working in Local Mental Health Authorities (LMHAs) and DCF-affiliated clinics who care for young people experiencing early psychosis, with a focus on schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

The overall training experience emphasizes practical, clinician-relevant learning, grounded in real-world practice and reinforced through ongoing, case-based consultation.

1.) Early Psychosis Foundations Training

(3 hours | Virtual – Zoom)

The Early Psychosis Foundations Training provides clinicians with a practical, evidence-based foundation for working with young individuals experiencing schizophrenia spectrum disorders. The training focuses on how early psychosis commonly presents in real-world clinical settings and how clinicians can orient their work, especially in early sessions, to support engagement, stabilization, and recovery.

Content integrates essential background knowledge with applied clinical decision-making. Participants will review core features of schizophrenia spectrum disorders, the importance of early detection and engagement, and the evidence base for coordinated specialty care (CSC). Using a phase-based framework and clinical vignette, the training highlights what clinicians can prioritize when individuals and families first present for care and how treatment goals evolve over time.

The Foundations Training also prepares participants for the ongoing STEP-LC Early Psychosis ECHO by introducing the consultation format, expectations for participation, and how foundational concepts will be revisited and deepened through monthly case discussions.

Early Psychosis Foundations Training

Date: Thursday, May 14
Time: 10:00-1:00pm EST
Format: Virtual (Zoom)
CME: Free Yale CME / equivalent available

Foundations Training: Content Overview

A. Foundations of Schizophrenia and Early Psychosis

B. STEP Learning Collaborative: Transforming Access and Care in Connecticut

C. Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC): Evidence and Framework

D. Phase-Based Early Psychosis Care: What to Do in Early Sessions

E. Orientation to the STEP-LC Early Psychosis ECHO

2) Monthly STEP-LC Early Psychosis ECHO

From Foundations to Practice: Ongoing Case-Based Learning

The Early Psychosis Foundations Training establishes shared foundations and a common clinical framework. Learning is then reinforced and deepened through the monthly STEP-LC Early Psychosis ECHO, where clinicians apply concepts to real cases from their own practice.

Through brief didactics and facilitated case discussion, the ECHO sessions support ongoing learning, peer connection, and practical problem-solving in early psychosis and schizophrenia spectrum care.

Monthly STEP-LC Early Psychosis ECHO

(Case Consultation Series | Virtual – Zoom)

When: 2nd Thursday of each month at 12:00 PM
Dates: June 11, July 9, August 13, September 10, October 8, November 12, December 10

Duration: 60 minutes per session
Format: Virtual (Zoom)
CME: 1.0 Yale CME / session

Session Structure

Brief didactic (10–15 minutes) on a key early psychosis topic
Facilitated discussion of 1–2 participant-presented cases
Practical, peer-based learning grounded in real-world practice

Participation Expectations

Participants are expected to:

Attend the Early Psychosis Foundations Training
Participate in the monthly STEP-LC Early Psychosis ECHO sessions
Periodically present clinical cases for discussion, with guidance and support from the STEP-LC team
Engage in facilitated, case-based discussion focused on applied clinical care for individuals experiencing early psychosis

This training program is a closed cohort, advance registration is required.

Facilitation

Training and monthly ECHO case consultation sessions are facilitated by:

Laura Yoviene Sykes, PhD
Director, STEP Learning Collaborative
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine
Licensed Clinical Psychologist

Vinod Srihari, MD
Director, Program for Specialized Treatment Early in Psychosis (STEP)
Professor of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine
Psychiatrist

Contact

Please submit your agency’s participants by Friday, April 10^th to: Nina.Levine@yale.edu

Please provide: clinician name, email address, role/team within the agency (e.g., YAS clinician, outpatient)

Continuing Education Information:

1.0 Yale CME / equivalent credit will be awarded for each hour of synchronous session attended. If you are requesting CMEs, please see the linked PDF to ensure that you have created a YaleCloud CME account and paired your mobile phone, prior to the first session. A text code will be made available at the end of each session for you to submit your attendance to the Yale CME texting attendance number: 203-442-9435.