About this Event
ATTENTION: Front Line Emergency Workers – Police, Fire, EMS, Dispatch, Health, and Local Authority Care Workers experiencing psychological health and well-being challenges in the course of your work.
You are invited to a pro-bono opportunity be part of a study exploring the impact of a four-day intensive psychological treatment program targeting PTSD and Moral Injury using group interventions. The treatment program will consist of an EMDR (Acute Stress Adaptive Protocol) and Compassion-Focused Psychoeducation (EMDR & CBT).
This intense treatment and research intervention is an international collaboration between the Vermont Center for Responder Wellness (VT), University of Worcester (UK), Northumbria University (UK), Ulster University (Northern Ireland), and the Trauma Response Network Ireland.
November 4-7, 2025
Tuesday thru Friday
09:00-5:00 PM EST
Location: Vermont Center for Responder Wellness, Colchester, VT
Course Description:
The current academic literature considers that moral injury represents a different psychological profile to that of post-traumatic stress disorder. Trauma is also well known for creating deep-rooted shame which fosters over time and potentially inhibits people from talking about their trauma experiences. Developing a stronger understanding as to a more effective treatment intervention to help with this is an important research question.
This research is what we call a ‘proof of concept’ study to test two approaches which have a good evidence base, to see if they were more effective when combined.
The research focus is that of psychological trauma and moral injury experienced by the research participant group (Front Line Emergency Workers – Police, Fire Officers, Paramedics, Health, and Local Authority Care Workers), to then explore the impact of a four-day intensive treatment intervention.
The primary focus of this research relates to the psychological health and well-being of our target population.
The research is interested in exploring the effectiveness of the following:
1. An internationally recognized trauma treatment - EMDR therapy endorsed by the World Health Organization (2013) and the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (2019)
2. Delivered in a group format.
3. Delivered intensively, over a 4-day period.
This EMDR Group intervention is known as the Acute Stress Adaptive Protocol (ASAP). Compassion-Focused Psychoeducation (EMDR & CBT) is an emerging fusion approach treatment for individuals experiencing moral injury. The approach integrates EMDR/CBT with compassion-focused techniques to target the shame, guilt, and self-criticism often associated with moral injury/trauma.
Although the study is mainly looking at trauma symptoms, we are also looking at the following aspects:
Anxiety - Depression - Adverse Childhood Experiences - Benevolent Childhood Experiences - Moral Injury - External & Internal Shame - Post-Traumatic Embitterment Disorder - Quality of Life Measure
What will the training entail?
If you are interested in participating in the study, please contact Bob Lucas, Training Coordinator, Vermont Center for Responder Wellness at (802) 585-0284 or [email protected]
From there, a member of the Vermont Center for Responder Wellness will contact you to arrange for an initial telephone consultation. This meeting will provide you with an opportunity to discuss any questions or queries you may have regarding the research project.
If you choose to participate in the study, you will be asked to complete a trauma assessment tool, known as the Impact of Events Scale – Revised (IES-R). This assessment tool uses a cut off score of (24 and above) to participate in the study. This score is a helpful indicator as to some of potential psychological difficulties you may be encountering presently.
If you qualify and choose to participate in the Research Study, you will be directed to a registration portal to complete your registration process.
The Study Itself:
While the Study is touted as a 4-Day program, we wish to be clear that your commitment would need to be for more than the initial 4-Days. The following will explain the complete 4 Phase program.
Phase One (In Person) Nov. 4 – 7, 2025 from 09:00AM to 5:00PM EST Colchester, VT
This phase starts with a 4-Day IN PERSON pro bono intensive trauma treatment program. During this phase, (16-20) participants will complete a series of psychometric measures to develop a baseline before moving into an introduction into Psychoeducation, Moral Injury and relevant treatment modalities. Participants will experience 4 days of classroom group based sessions centered around stress and trauma and be introduced to EMDR theratics such as the Acute Stress Adaptive Protocol (ASAP). During this phase, participants will periodically split into two groups (Alpha and Beta) and will be led through multiple ASAP's per day for the remainder of the week. At the end of the week, particicpants will be asked to complete the same set of psychometric measures to compare against the baseline.
- Preliminary CLASS SCHEDULE will be forwarded upon registration
Phase Two (Virtual) 3 - VIRTUAL interventions using the ASAP (EMDR Group Intervention) Dec. 9, 2025, Jan. 8, 2026, and Feb. 10, 2026
During this phase, participants will gather (virtually) and ask to debrief on their experiences since leaving the training. Upon debriefing, participants will be run through an ASAP before adjourning.
Phase Three (In Person) Colchester, VT Mar. 10, 2026, 09:00AM to 5:00PM EST
During Phase 3, participants will reconvene in Vermont for a one day session and recap experiences since leaving Phase One. During this time, participants will be provided a complete day of additional classroom training and participate in other therapeutics such as ASAP before departing.
Phase Four (Virtual) 3- VIRTUAL Group Interviews May 7, 2026, Aug. 6, 2026, and Nov. 5, 2025
During this phase, our esteemed colleague, Dr. Tracy Lavis, will lead a virtual group discussion around your experiences both during and after the Wellness Study. Information collected is anonymous and is recorded in a specific manner to be used later in the case study review. Prior to meeting, participants will be provided with psychometric measures and asked to have them completed prior to the virtual call.
Instructor:
The Lead Researcher for the Project is Professor Derek Farrell MBE, who is based at the Northumbria University in the UK. Derek is an international expert in EMDR Therapy and CBT and is known for his world-wide humanitarian work.
Also assisting is Prof. Paul Miller, MD of the Mirabilis Health Institute of Belfast, Ireland. In additions to having been a Psychiatrist with the Police Services of Northern Ireland (PSNI), Paul is highly respected for his work in Europe as well as the US as an International EMDR trainer and Consultant.
Sonny Provetto, LICSW, is the founder and Lead Clinician for the Vermont Center for Responder Wellness and ASAP Training Institute located in Colchester, VT. Sonny is an EMDR Consultant in the US and a 2018 EMDRIA Advocacy Award recipient.
There are several other partners taking part in this research assisting the Vermont Center for Responder Wellness, Northumbria University, Ulster University, and the Trauma Response Network Ireland. As academic and research partners over several years we have successfully collaborated on numerous research projects.
Additional Information:
Please contact Bob Lucas at [email protected] or (802) 585-0284 for more information.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Vermont Center for Responder Wellness, 354 Mountain View Drive, Colchester, United States
USD 0.00
