Practical Applications: Training for the Inpatient Psychiatric Unit Specialist

Description

Working in an inpatient psychiatric unit can be unpredictable, intense, and emotionally charged, and it demands more than just clinical knowledge. It requires fast-thinking, trauma-informed care, and confident crisis intervention to ensure the safety and dignity of both patients and staff.

Whether you're new to the unit or a seasoned professional looking to sharpen your skills, this course offers the real-world training and support you need to meet those demands with skill, compassion, and resilience.

Dr. Rosalind Polk-Hall, EdD, LPC, CMFT, CPCS, brings decades of hands-on experience as a therapist, clinical supervisor, and educator. With a deep commitment to supporting clinicians working in high-pressure settings, Dr. Rosalind will translate theory into practical, actionable skills that truly impact patient care and staff confidence.

Her teaching approach is experiential and interactive, ensuring that participants don’t just understand the material—they can apply it effectively. Through case studies and more, Dr. Rosalind equips professionals with tools they can use on the floor, the same day.

This course covers trauma-informed care in acute psychiatric settings, how to recognize and respond to patient distress, strategies to de-escalate behavioral health crises, effective team-based intervention protocols, HIPAA compliance, and best practices in maintaining boundaries and confidentiality. Participants will also learn from exercises to enhance documentation skills and therapeutic communication.

Key Takeaways:

• De-escalation and crisis response tools: Apply effective, trauma-informed strategies to calm patients and manage behavioral escalations.
• Stronger team integration: Enhance your ability to function confidently in multidisciplinary teams during high-stakes interventions.
• Confidence in documentation and compliance: Maintain patient safety and legal standards with accurate, ethical communication and professional boundaries.

Why this course?

• Real-world application, not just theory: This training prepares you to manage the daily challenges of inpatient psychiatric work, not just understand them.
• Led by an experienced clinical supervisor: Dr. Rosalind combines decades of inpatient, outpatient, academic, and supervisory experience to support your learning and growth.
• Offered by a trusted CE provider: Telehealth Certification Institute is known for quality, evidence-based training that empowers clinicians with the skills they actually use.

Learning Objectives:

• Analyze trauma-informed care and its relevance in psychiatric settings.
• Examine mental health diagnosis through the demonstrations provided.
• Identify signs of trauma and patient distress and describe strategies to support emotional safety.
• Recognize early indicators of escalating behavior and apply de-escalation techniques to prevent crises.
• Integrate effectively in team-based crisis intervention, while ensuring patient dignity and staff safety.
• Demonstrate understanding of HIPAA, confidentiality, and the importance of maintaining professional boundaries.

This is more than a CE course—it’s a hands-on training that prepares you to show up for your patients, your team, and yourself with clarity and confidence. You’re invited to participate in this course, which transforms challenges into competencies and helps you thrive in the dynamic environment of inpatient psychiatric care.

Add this course to your cart to begin learning instantly.

Format and Access

This is a non-interactive, self-study program and consists of over 4 hours of video instruction and a post-test.

Course Details

Availability: 

From the time of registration, you have six months to access the coursework.

Who Should Attend: 

This course is intended for behavioral health professionals who are new to inpatient psychiatric care or who want to strengthen their foundations with expert-led strategies.

Teaching Methods: 

This is a non-interactive, self-study course. Teaching methods for this course include recorded lectures, videos, a post-test, and a course evaluation.

How to Attend: 

Course access and completion instructions.

Instructor and Disclosures

Instructor

About Dr. Rosalind Polk-Hall, EdD, LPC, MA, CMFT, CPCS

Dr. Roz is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Certified Professional Counselor Supervisor practicing in the state of Georgia. She currently works as a Clinical Director in a community mental health counseling setting, provides clinical supervision to clinicians in various settings, and is a mental health counselor/clinical supervisor in private practice. She earned her doctoral degree from Argosy University (Nashville) in Counselor Education and Supervision. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Psychology with a specialty in Counseling at the Georgia School of Professional Psychology (Argosy University).
With over 27 years of clinical experience, Dr. Roz is a licensed professional counselor dedicated to transforming lives and shaping the next generation of therapists. Throughout her career, Dr. Roz has worked across a broad range of settings, including community mental health centers, private practice, jails, in-patient psychiatric hospitals, and educational institutions—bringing compassionate, evidence-based care to individuals from all walks of life. Her clinical expertise spans mood and thought disorders, addictions, trauma-informed care, and life transitions, always with a focus on empowering clients to reclaim their well-being and purpose. Passionate about professional development, Dr. Roz now devotes much of her time to mentoring emerging therapists, helping them build confidence, integrity, and clinical excellence in their practice. Whether guiding clients through healing or supporting new clinicians on their professional path, Dr. Roz remains deeply committed to making a meaningful impact—one life, and one therapist, at a time.

Disclosure Statement: 

The instructor(s) for this course receive compensation for their services. There are no reported conflicts of interest to disclose.

CE Hours

Credit Hours:

This course consists of 4 continuing education hours of credit.

Counselors:

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No, 6693.  Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified.  Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Mental Health Counselors. #MHC-0048.

Marriage and Family Therapists:

Many MFT licensing boards accept our courses or one of the approvals which we have from professional associations.  You can check with your board to determine if your licensing board would accept this course.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists #MFT-0135, effective May 8, 2025.

Social Workers:

Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, #1609, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 05/02/2024 – 05/02/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 4 clinical continuing education credits.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Social Workers #SW-0435.

Addiction Professionals:

This course has been approved by Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits, effective 10/15/2025. NAADAC Provider #193104, Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is responsible for all aspects of the programming.

Psychologists:

Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Telehealth Certification Institute LLC maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Psychologists #PSY-0128.

Art Therapists:

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Creative Arts Therapists #CAT-0093.

Other Professionals:

This course qualifies for 240 minutes of instructional content as required by many national, state and local licensing boards and professional organizations.  Retain your certificate of completion and contact your board or organization for specific filing requirements.

This course is a non-interactive, online self-study.

Participants may request a printed version of their certificate of completion to be delivered by mail. A shipping/handling fee of $6.95 will be charged per request. Shipping internationally may require an additional charge.

Accommodations and Policies

Close Captioning is available for live webinars and recorded video presentations.

You can click on the following links to view our policies:

• Accommodations for Individuals with Disabilities.
• Cancellation Policy
• Grievance Policy
• Support Options
• Disclosure Statement