Real-Time Course

in November 2026

Consisting of four half-day (9 am - 1 pm) sessions, this workshop shows how to integrate family and important others across the spectrum of problem gambling treatment services, including initial engagement, assessment, treatment planning, service delivery, psychoeducation, and relapse prevention. Additionally, the workshop builds on previous learning via the Problem Gambling Counselor Precertification course and participants’ experience in providing problem gambling treatment. Learners will explore advanced skills in relationship to assessment, diagnosis, treatment planning, and treatment interventions based on a case example. Lastly, the course provides an opportunity for learners to seek general consultation on deidentified cases and to ask more in-depth questions. Sessions are held on Friday and Saturday mornings (9 am - 1 pm), on November 6, 7, 20, and 21.

Who This Course Is For

Behavioral health providers across the globe, including:

  • problem gambling treatment providers,

  • family therapists, art therapists, mental health counselors, social workers, psychologists, and other mental health clinicians, and

  • Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselors (CADCs).

Learning Objectives

After participating in this class, you will be better able to:

  • engage family and important others in treatment;

  • help families work together to identify how to support gambling recovery;

  • engage family in debt disclosure, budgeting, and establishing money barriers;

  • identify multiple domains that affect and are affected by gambling;

  • assess for co-existing addictions, co-occurring mental health disorders, and relational issues;

  • base treatment plans on stages of change related to gambling; and

  • engage clients and their families in relapse prevention.

Instructors

Senior Instructor Teresa McDowell

Teresa McDowell, EdD, LMFT is professor emerita at Lewis & Clark, where she served as department chair and co-founded the college’s Problem Gambling Services. With over 40 years of experience as a clinician, educator, administrator, and consultant, Teresa focuses on workforce development, equity-based clinical practice, integrated treatment for problem gambling, and clinical supervision. She is a social researcher, program evaluator, and consultant with Partners in Social Research and Senior Instructor for ACORN. Dr. McDowell has authored more than 50 scholarly publications and is lead author of Socioculturally Attuned Family Therapy: Applying Third Order Thinking to Theory and Practice.

Pricing

This workshop is subsidized by the Oregon Health Authority Problem Gambling Services (OHA PGS).

ACORN

is committed to excellence.

ACORN has been approved by the International Problem Gambling and Gaming Certification Organization (IPGGC) and the Mental Health & Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO) to provide continuing education courses. Additionally, ACORN has been approved by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7274. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. ACORN is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
Mental Health and Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO) logo
Oregon Council on Problem Gambling (OCPG) logo
Oregon Health Authority (OHA) logo
National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) logo