MED-DBT: Assumptions About MED-DBT Clients & Building Your MED-DBT Team

1 CE hour; $45

Overview.

MED-DBT Modules 5 and 6 are combined for an hour-long workshop.

Module 5 is an overview of the core assumptions about clients that underpin Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) in general and MED DBT in specific. These assumptions guide the clinical practice.

Participants will review the foundational DBT assumptions (e.g., clients are doing the best they can, want to improve, and must learn new behaviors in all relevant contexts) and explore how these principles shape therapist stance, case conceptualization, and intervention strategies in MED DBT.

Emphasis will be placed on understanding the dialectical balance between acceptance and change, particularly when working with high-risk, complex, or treatment-interfering behaviors when an eating disorder is present. The workshop will also address common challenges clinicians face in maintaining adherence to these assumptions, and will offer practical strategies for applying them consistently across clinical situations to enhance engagement, validation, and treatment effectiveness.

Module 06 introduces clinicians to the team-based structure required for effective MED-DBT implementation in the treatment of multidiagnostic eating disorders.

Unlike solo practice models, MED-DBT requires coordinated, multidisciplinary care across therapy, nutrition, medical, and psychiatric domains, with the client and therapist functioning as the central hub of treatment. Participants will learn how to build and sustain a functional treatment team, including how to collaborate with external providers when in-house resources are limited.

Emphasis is placed on navigating common challenges such as conflicting treatment philosophies, medical minimization, and system-level invalidation. The module also introduces the MED-DBT Team Agreements, which provide a shared philosophical and behavioral framework for maintaining consistency, reducing clinician burnout, and preventing treatment drift.

Clinicians will learn how to apply these agreements in real-world scenarios, including managing team polarization, supporting client advocacy, and maintaining adherence in complex systems. Attention is given to how structural inequities, access barriers, and cultural differences influence team composition, collaboration, and the interpretation of eating disorder behaviors across diverse populations.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this module, participants will be able to:

Identify the core assumptions about clients in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
Explain how DBT assumptions inform therapist stance, including the balance of acceptance and change.
Apply DBT assumptions to clinical situations to enhance validation, engagement, and management of treatment-interfering behaviors.
Describe the core components of a MED-DBT treatment team, including the roles of multidisciplinary providers and the central function of the therapist–client dyad.
Identify common challenges that arise when working with external providers (e.g., conflicting philosophies, limited ED training, medical minimization) and their impact on treatment.
Apply MED-DBT Team Agreements (e.g., dialectical agreement, consultation-to-the-client, consistency agreement) to clinical scenarios in order to reduce polarization and improve coordination of care.
Demonstrate strategies for supporting client advocacy and navigating system-level barriers while maintaining adherence to MED-DBT principles.

APA approved for CE hours — CEBT is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. CEBT maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

Instructor Credentials

Anita Federici, PhD, CPsych, FAED, is a Clinical Psychologist and the Owner of The Centre for Psychology and Emotion Regulation. She serves an Adjunct Faculty position at York University and is a distinguished Fellow of the Academy for Eating Disorders (AED).

Wisniewski and Federici have co-authored a book on MED-DBT that is scheduled for 2025 release by Guilford Press.

Center for Evidence Based Treatment, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7697. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Center for Evidence Based Treatment, LLC, is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

Lucene Wisniewski, Ph.D., FAED, is a recognized clinician, trainer, researcher, and an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences at Case Western Reserve University, who has taught over 150 workshops on Cognitive Behavioral and Dialectical Behavior Therapies internationally and has over 40 publications in peer reviewed journals and invited book chapters. She specializes in complex, co-morbid eating disorders, and is the Owner and Chief Clinical Officer of the Center for Evidence Based Treatment serving clients across the United States and Wisniewski Psychology Services, PLLC in New York.

Courageous Conversations in Evidence Based Treatment