Training & Education
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) certification training for veterinary and animal welfare professionals
Mental Health First Aid is taught by Kaitlyn O'Neel, LICSW, VSW-CP, a nationally certified MHFA trainer.
What is MHFA? Mental Health First Aid certification entails learning to recognize, reach out, and provide initial help to someone experiencing a mental health challenge or crisis.
National MHFA certification training entails 2 hours of asynchronous online content, a 6.5-hour remote virtual session and 1 hour of post-live training asynchronous content. Fee: $170 per attendee. Click here to learn more!
Individual Training (via our partnership with National Animal Care & Control Association (NACA) We provide monthly MHFA training for individuals in animal welfare and animal control. View upcoming sessions and register here.
Group & Organization Training we offer group training for those in veterinary medicine, animal welfare, and related fields. These sessions can be scheduled based on your organization's needs and are designed for groups of 10-15. Discounted group
Online Learning
Open Door Veterinary Collective is an ASWB ACE approved provider for Social Work CE. We offer multiple on-demand courses for social workers in veterinary medicine and animal welfare roles. These are continually being developed and include continuing education on Motivational Interviewing, Low Impact Debriefing, and Moral Distress in Veterinary Settings. Visit our Online Learning Library here.
Learn with Us!
Our Veterinary Social Work team may be able to customize content for organization, or have other opportunities and training support around specific topics, including Emotional Support Animals, The GRR Method Veterinary Social Work, Ask About Pets, the human-animal bond and more. For more information, email us at socialwork@opendoorconsults.org
Professional Development
- SWAW Guidelines Our team is proud to have led the development of the Social work in Animals Welfare Guidelines please visit https://www.iavsw.org/swaw-guidelines to access the guidelines. This is the first professional framework designed to integrate social work practice into animal welfare settings, funded by Maddie's Fund and the ASPCA.
- International Association of Veterinary Social Work (IAVSW)
IAVSW offers trainings, online meet-ups, and more. You may be able to find a veterinary social worker near you who has resource information!
iavsw.org - Veterinary Social Work certificate training program at the University of Tennessee
csw.utk.edu/veterinary-social-work-certificate-program - Social work colleges and universities with human-animal relationship content
A national listing of social work education programs that offer human–animal interaction content. If there is a social work program listed near you, contact the faculty member and ask if they have any knowledge or ideas regarding the resource you are seeking for your client/patient!
nationallinkcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Schools-of-Social-Work-with-HAI-10-2020.pdf - Doors Wide Open Explore our on-demand training series in partnership with Maddie’s Fund, Topics include discussion on veterinary social work guidelines and how to integrate human and animal services.