LGBTQIA+ Support | Online Training - Telehealth Certification Institute

LGBTQIA+ Support training (2.5 CE). Best practice tools, tips, and techniques to help clinicians be intentional in supporting families in caring for their youth

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Helping Families Support LGBTQIA+ Youth

Enroll in the Online Self-Study course and complete it at your own pace.
2.5 CE hours available for behavioral health clinicians upon completion.

What if your words could prevent a suicide? What if your guidance could mend a family on the brink of rupture? For LGBTQIA+ youth, acceptance is more than a moral imperative—it’s a lifeline. Clinicians who support both the young person and their family can profoundly alter the trajectory of a life.

Helping Families Support LGBTQIA+ Youth gives behavioral health professionals the tools to engage caregivers who are struggling, afraid, or misinformed—and to guide them toward understanding, empathy, and affirmation. It’s not easy work, but it is urgent. And the right knowledge can make all the difference.

Enroll in the 2.5 CE Online Self-Study for $75

Payment Options are listed at checkout

Christopher McLaughlin, MSW, LCSW (he/him), brings more than 20 years of leadership and clinical experience to this course. As Executive Director of NASW Maine and owner of Inspired Consulting Group, Chris has worked extensively with LGBTQIA+ youth and families across clinical settings. He’s also a nationally recognized educator and award-winning advocate for inclusive mental health care. His expertise offers both practical insight and heartfelt perspective for clinicians who want to improve outcomes for queer youth and their families.

Chris delivers this training through a trauma-informed, family-systems approach rooted in both clinical best practices and lived experience. Using case illustrations, inclusive language, and strategies that honor both youth identity and caregiver concerns, Chris helps providers hold space for complex family dynamics while advocating for affirming care.

Topics covered include LGBTQIA+ terminology and identity development, stages of coming out, family rejection versus acceptance behaviors, trauma-informed clinical practices, grief and loss models, suicide risk, TF-CBT applications, ethical considerations, and the clinician’s role as an ally. Special emphasis is placed on real-world strategies for engaging caregivers who are struggling to accept their child’s identity.

Instructor

Chris McLaughlin, MSW, LCSW,

Chris McLaughlin is the Executive Director of the Maine Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and owner of Inspired Consulting Group, LLC. He obtained his BA in Psychology and his MSW from the University of Maine. Chris has spent more than 20+ years as a provider and a leader in behavioral health services for youth and families across a variety of clinical settings. Chris is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Maine and Husson University in Bangor.

Additionally, Chris served for four years on the Maine Board of Social Work Licensing and is a member of both the NASW and the Society for Social Work Leadership in Health Care (SSWLHC), where he is the current Maine Chapter President, and he is a member of the National Board. Chris holds additional certifications from Cornell University. Nationally, he was SSWLHC’s 2019 recipient of the Eleanor Clark Award and was named Health Care Social Worker of the Year in 2019 by the Maine Hospital Association and the Maine Chapter of the SSWLHC. In 2020, Chris was awarded the Alumni of the Year distinction from the University of Maine School of Social Work.

For organizations seeking further guidance on LGBTQ+ issues, Chris offers a consultation service to walk organizations through essential competencies that move them closer toward being LGBTQ+ affirming providers. You can learn more about Chris’ professional background and interests here.

Key Takeaways:

Transform family dynamics: Gain skills to help families move from fear or rejection to understanding and affirmation.
Enhance clinical effectiveness: Learn evidence-based, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive strategies specific to LGBTQIA+ youth.
Respond ethically and confidently: Build clarity around ethical issues and communication practices when working with this population.

Why this course?

Clinician-centered education: Created by a nationally recognized expert with real-world experience in helping families and systems support LGBTQIA+ youth.
Comprehensive and accessible: Combines trauma-informed models, clinical techniques, and advocacy strategies in a digestible format.
Mission-driven learning: Offered by Telehealth Certification Institute, whose mission is to empower healthcare professionals with exceptional continuing education.

Learning Objectives:

Define terms associated with LGBTQIA+ youth
Review several key concepts related to LGBTQIA+ youth
Introduce a model of coming out for LGBTQIA+ youth
Bring awareness of the risk factors associated with LGBTQIA+ youth
Outline best practice clinical approaches for the behavior health treatment of LGBTQIA+ youth
Educate on concepts of Pronouns/Dead Names
Review concepts of Trauma-Informed Care and Grief and Loss theories
Provide overview of family rejection vs. family acceptance
Apply Trauma-Focused CBT principals in clinical work with families of LGBTQIA+ youth
Introduce strategies to enhance family acceptance
Describe ethical issues that might arise when working with LGBTQIA+ youth and families

Whether you’re a seasoned clinician or just beginning your work with LGBTQIA+ clients, this self-paced course offers tools that can help you make a lasting difference.

Enroll now and become the provider families can turn to when they need it most.

This is a non-interactive, self-study course that consists of 150+ minutes of video instruction, a post-test and a course evaluation.

Enroll in the Online Self-Study

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Availability:

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

Who Should Attend:

This course is intended for clinicians who provide behavioral health services.

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:

Directions for completing a course can be found by clicking here.

This program was recorded on September 1, 2023.

Credit Hours:

CEs provided with this course include 2.5 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 this course would be accepted by your licensing board.

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 2.5 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 2/20/2024. NAADAC Provider #193104, Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is responsible for all aspects of the programing.

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:

Other Professionals:

This activity qualifies for 150 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 is a non-interactive, self-study course.

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