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Comorbid Alcohol Use & Anxiety Disorders: Assessment & Treatment
21 November, 2008 @ 10:00 am - 1:00 pm AEDT
Title: Comorbid Alcohol Use & Anxiety Disorders: Assessment & Treatment
Presenters: Dr Claudia Sannibale (Research Fellow, National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW & Senior Clinical Psychologist, Drug Health Services, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital) & Dr Andrew Baillie (Senior Lecturer & Director of Clinical Training, Centre for Emotional Health, Department of Psychology, Macquarie University)
About this seminar: Many people with anxiety disorders drink alcohol and many people with drinking problems are anxious. When alcohol use disorders and anxiety disorders occur at the same time the problems are more severe, treatment is less effective and quality of life is worse. It can also be hard to tell if the symptoms of anxiety are a disorder in their own right or are the direct effect of drinking. This seminar will review the extent and importance of comorbidity, discuss strategies for dealing with diagnostic dilemmas, provide training in brief interventions for alcohol use disorders and review recent research on the integration of alcohol and anxiety treatment. Attendees should leave feeling more confident in dealing with alcohol problems in their anxious clients.
About the presenters: Dr Claudia Sannibale is a Research Fellow at National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre and a Senior Clinical Psychologist at Drug Health Services, RPAH. She has extensive clinical and research experience in the area of alcohol use disorders and is currently a chief investigator on several randomised controlled trials of treatment for people with comorbid alcohol and mental health problems, in particular PTSD and social phobia. Dr Andrew Baillie is an academic Clinical Psychologist with a program of research in the understanding and treatment of comorbid anxiety and alcohol problems. He is an Honorary Clinical Psychologist with Drug Health Services and Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and directs the Clinical Psychology program at Macquarie University. Andrew, Claudia and colleagues have research grants to understand and treat comorbid anxiety and alcohol problems.