One-on-one mentorship (which can include web-based video conferencing for those not located near an approved mentor) is seen as a key component of development for new, as well as experienced, teachers of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, providing the intimacy of a close connection with a seasoned teacher as well as the venue for open and honest exploration of challenges, breakthroughs, insights and possibilities that inevitably arise in teaching the program. The MBPTI has defined mentorship as: “A contractual arrangement between a mentor and mentee which focuses on a mentee’s mindfulness-based teaching in secular settings and supports the ongoing development of personal practice. The purpose of this arrangement is to promote competency and best practice skills for teaching mindfulness in secular settings and to encourage the relevance of applying the principles of mindfulness in everyday life”.
We have assembled the MBCT Mentorship Program to assure that each trainee has an educational and inspiring experience of the mentorship process, and have carefully chosen each of our approved mentors based on their years of experience, training and wisdom.
The Process
Upon enrollment in the MBCT Certification Pathway of the Institute, your next step will be to identify and engage a UCSD-approved mentor from the list below by contacting them directly. It is important that before contacting one of the mentors via email, that you carefully review the MBCT Mentorship Document Packet. In addition to descriptions of the mentorship process and best practice descriptions for mentors and teachers, the packet includes the contract that you will ultimately complete with your mentor.
Next, take the time to read each bio and consider contacting the mentor to arrange a brief phone interview to get a sense of whether you feel comfortable with this mentor. The arrangement is between you (as the mentee) and the mentor, so once you have determined that it is a good fit for both of you, you can jointly complete the contract and make arrangements for your regular mentorship sessions. Note: Your mentor will notify the MBPTI when you enter into a mentorship agreement with them, and will track the dates and times of sessions for reporting to the Institute for Certification purposes. However, it is highly recommended that you also maintain your own record of sessions.
The Finances
While your financial arrangement is between you and your mentor, we have asked the UCSD-approved mentors to agree to a standard hourly rate of $155-$180. We understand that people have varying financial circumstances and may need some consideration for these circumstances. If the fee is a financial hardship, then you are encouraged to discuss this with potential mentors and see if you can mutually agree upon a fee that is acceptable to both parties. Keep in mind that these are highly experienced and very busy teachers and trainers, and their time is valuable and these rates are fairly consistent with others in our field.
Policy on Trainees Co-Teaching
Mentees may co-teach while being mentored in the MBPTI in Phase One under certain conditions that must be clarified upon registration and before teaching. Those conditions include:
- If both co-teachers are MBPTI mentees, it is highly advisable that both work with the same mentor throughout Phase One.
- Mentees (whether or not they are working with the same mentor) who are co-teaching must teach an additional (third) 8-week course for Qualification, ideally taught independently of a co-teacher.
- Since the teaching duties are shared and this reduces the number of times that a mentee has the opportunity to teach or guide each component of the program, certain adjustments to the mentoring arrangement will be made to compensate:
Two MBPTI mentees who are co-teaching and are working with the same mentor will have an additional four sessions of mentorship (a total of 24) in Phase One
Mentorship sessions may be comprised of both individual (60 minute) and joint (90 minute) sessions, to be determined in discussion between the mentor and the mentees.
In Phase Two, the mentees are strongly encouraged to teach at least two courses solo and all mentorship will be individual, regardless of co-teaching arrangements.
The recommended fee for the 90-minute sessions will be $260, which brings the total cost in line with the total cost of the standard number of individual sessions.
Wherever possible, it is our recommendation that mentees teach a significant number of courses (MBSR or MBCT) solo.
The Documentation
Download and review the Mentorship Document Packet that further describes the mentorship process and includes an agreement that you and your mentor will complete.
The Mentors
Take the time to consider each of the mentors listed below and reach out to any that seem like a good fit. You will be spending a significant amount of time in contact with your mentor (over the phone, online or in person) and you should choose carefully before proceeding.
Evan Collins, MD FRCPC, is a psychiatrist with the Immunodeficiency Clinic, Toronto General Hospital – University Health Network and Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto. He also serves on faculty at the Centre for Mindfulness Studies, Toronto, Canada. He has completed advanced teacher training and certification in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), and foundational teacher training in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). He has run MBCT groups for depression & anxiety, HIV and cancer specific groups, and for healthcare worker stress and burnout prevention. He also trains healthcare professionals in MBCT as a therapeutic modality through the Centre for Mindfulness Studies. His current clinical and research interests include HIV health, and therapeutic mindfulness.
Dr. David Denis is a Naturopathic Doctor and a Psychotherapist. He is a faculty member at the Centre for Mindfulness Studies (CMS) where he teaches Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for Depression and Anxiety. Dr. Denis is highly regarded for his professional teaching and mentoring at CMS where he trains health care providers in the delivery of MBCT. Dr. Denis has significant experience running MBCT groups having delivered over 50 groups to hundreds of patients. In addition he also teaches in the Applied Mindfulness Certificate program at the University of Toronto and is a faculty member at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine where he coordinates the psychology stream of curriculum for naturopathic students.
Contact David Denis
Website: https://www.daviddenis.ca/
Rachel Donaldson, MSW, LCSW RYT-500 is currently the Director of Community Mental Health and Supportive Services at NCJW/LA where she brings mindfulness and compassion based practices to therapists, interns, non-profit administrators and clients. She is a long time meditator and psychotherapist, MBSR and MBCT teacher and is certified in MBSR through the Center for Mindfulness at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. For over 10 years, Rachel worked at Kaiser Permanente as a Senior Behavioral Health Educator where she taught over 30 MBCT and MBSR programs, developed and facilitated professional mindfulness trainings for new physicians and physician leaders and received and led an innovations grant to research the effects of MBCT on patient utilization. Rachel has extensive experience training and supervising therapists and educators who are bringing mindfulness into private practice, non-profits and hospitals. She also teaches Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) and The Daring Way™ privately.
Contact Rachel Donaldson
Phone: (310) 968 7438
Donald Fleck, LCSW, DCSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and has a Masters in Business Administration. He facilitates Mindfulness Based – Cognitive Therapy groups and mentors aspiring teachers on Zoom. Over 13 years he has facilitated more than 45 MBCT groups. Donald trained in MBCT with Zindel Segal, Susan Woods, Pat Rockman, Evan Collins and Gwen Morgan, all affiliated with both the University of California-San Diego Mindfulness-Based Professional Training Institute (MBPTI) and the Centre for Mindfulness Studies. Donald is a Certified MBCT teacher and an Approved MBCT Mentor with MBPTI. One of Donald’s current interests is in teaching MBCT as a core competency on which to base applications for chronic medical conditions, for example for the treatment of Health Anxiety, Tinnitus, or Diabetes. His other current interest is in offering Individual MBCT as well as groups, so that a wider range of clients can consider MBCT, then be directed towards the more appropriate modality. Donald is a leading figure in bringing MBCT to the New York area and with Zoom now trains worldwide. He has taken many initiatives with the professional mindfulness community in New York and beyond. Donald has lived outside the US and brings a multi-cultural understanding to his teaching and mentoring of therapists of various backgrounds.
Contact Donald Fleck
Website: www.LearnMindfulnessNow.com / 8-week MBCT Group
Phone: 917-202-5148
Carl Fulwiler, MD PhD is Professor of Psychiatry and Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Director of Strategic Initiative and MBCT training at Cambridge Health Alliance. He has been teaching MBCT since 2011 and has mentored MBCT teachers since 2017. He founded and led the MBCT program at the University of Massachusetts Center for Mindfulness from 2015-2017. He provides supervision and mentoring in MBCT to psychiatry residents and other mental health clinicians. His research has focused on mindfulness interventions targeting emotional factors in health behaviors and cultural adaptations of mindfulness for diverse populations. He presents nationally and internationally on mindfulness-based interventions and physician well-being, and is a practicing psychiatrist with a private practice specializing in the use of mindfulness-based psychotherapy including MBCT.
Alessandro Giannandrea, PhD, is a psychologist and psychotherapist trained in psychoanalytic psychotherapy and existential anthropology. He is a certified teacher of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) by The University of California, San Diego Center for Mindfulness, and he is a Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) teacher-in-training. He is one of the lead educators/facilitators of the Master of Mindfulness and Neurosciences at Sapienza University in Rome. Through Sapienza University, Dr.Giannandrea has taught MBSR, MBCT and MSC to hundreds of individuals and is currently involved in numerous research studies investigating the effects of mindfulness practices on health, behavior and brain functioning.
Today, Dr. Giannandrea teaches MBIs in a variety of settings, including hospitals, prisons, and schools.
He is the founder and director of the Abruzzo Center for Mindfulness, where he currently facilitates several mindfulness-based courses. Dr. Giannandrea is also an aikido teacher and has developed a program that integrates mindfulness meditation and aikido practices, aiming to enhance interpersonal mindfulness through aikido’s art of harmony. He provides consultation and mentorship in MBIs, integrating notions and skills that come from his various experiences. He sees the path of teaching mindfulness as a continuous journey of learning and deepening the exploration of consciousness and existence.
Contact Alessandro Giannandrea
Andrea Grabovac, MD, FRCPC, is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of British Columbia. Her psychiatric practice focuses on inpatient psychiatry at Vancouver Hospital and outpatient psycho-oncology at the BC Cancer Agency. Beginning in 2006, she has been facilitating both group and individual mindfulness-based interventions for various clinical populations, including mood disorders, sexual medicine and oncology. In collaboration with Dr. Mark Lau, she developed and continues to facilitate a monthly Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy consultation course for MBCT clinicians since 2009. In addition, she supervises psychiatry residents and other mental health clinicians in the provision of MBCT and is an Associate Teacher at 5-day MBCT teacher trainings. Her academic publications explore the clinical relevance of re-contextualizing mindfulness based interventions within Buddhist psychological frameworks. She has a particular interest in the clinical relevance of the progressive development of meditative skills as described in the Theravadan stages of insight. Andrea is a co-investigator on two funded trials investigating MBCT adapted for women with sexual disorders, and has co-authored MBCT treatment manuals for treatment of provoked vestibulodynia and low sexual desire in women. She is also an Associate Editor for the journal Mindfulness. She has practiced and studied in the Burmese Theravada Vipassana tradition since 2002. Andrea lives in Vancouver, Canada with her husband and their three children.
Dr. Amanda Guthrie is a Naturopathic Doctor and Psychotherapist practicing in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is a faculty member at The Centre for Mindfulness Studies in Toronto, where she facilitates MBCT groups for depression and anxiety, as well as trains healthcare professionals in MBCT as a therapeutic modality. In addition, she uses CBT and mindfulness-based interventions with individual clients in her private practice. Amanda is also a clinical and academic faculty member at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine where she supervises naturopathic medical interns in the teaching clinic and is involved in teaching the psychology curriculum. Amanda has completed the Supervised MBCT Facilitation Certificate offered by the Centre for Mindfulness Studies and certified by the University of Toronto Factor-Inwentash School of Social Work.
Contact Amanda Guthrie
Website: www.wholehealthtoronto.com
Mark A. Lau PhD, R Psych is a registered psychologist in private practice at the Vancouver CBT Centre, a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of British Columbia, a Founding Fellow of both the Academy of Cognitive Therapy and the Canadian Association of Cognitive and Behaviour Therapies and a Certified Trainer/Consultant of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy. Mark has over 20 years experience offering MBCT (and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)) in both group and individual formats. He has also trained mental health professionals in MBCT & CBT including single and multi-day professional MBCT trainings offered across North America, and abroad including Europe and Australia including. In addition, he has provided MBCT workshops to research administrators, researchers, lawyers and their support staff, academic staff and to the general public. He currently offers (along with Dr. Andrea Grabovac) a longitudinal consultation course for graduates of the 5-day MBCT Hollyhock professional training in Vancouver. He and Andrea have offered similar versions of this course for the past 6 years to mental health professionals looking for additional support in teaching MBCT. Mark was first introduced to MBCT in 1995 when he began working with Dr. Zindel Segal in Toronto to help conduct the first MBCT outcome study. He spent the next 11 years working with Dr. Segal before moving out to Vancouver in 2006. Mark has conducted research into the mechanisms underlying MBCT’s effectiveness, the development and validation of the Toronto Mindfulness Scale, and evaluating effective methods of disseminating MBCT, which has been published in scientific journals. Mark is an Associate Editor of the journal Mindfulness. Finally, he is registered to practice psychology in both British Columbia and Ontario.
Contact Mark Lau
Website: http://www.vancouvercbt.ca/dr-mark-lau.html
Gwen Morgan, MA MSW RSW is clinical Social Worker with over 25-years’ experience in medical settings with a focus on stress management and support for people living with chronic illness. Currently she is with the East Greater Toronto Area Family Health Team, where she facilitates groups in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). She is also a Mindfulness Facilitator for the Centre for Mindfulness Studies in Toronto where she has facilitated Mindful Eating Awareness groups and programs for marginalized people. She is an Adjunct Lecturer with the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work where she does field supervision. She has lectured and led workshops for social workers and other health professionals in Mindful Eating, Mindfulness Interventions and MBCT.
Roger Nolan, M.A., LMFT, is a Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapist in private practice in South Pasadena, CA. He has been teaching MBCT since 2008, and has co-facilitated the MBCT Foundational Training with Zindel Segal, Ph.D., Sarah Bowen, Ph.D., and Steven Hickman, Psy.D. Roger served as an initial consultant in the development of Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention for addictive behaviors, and is currently a member of the Affiliate Faculty at Antioch University Los Angeles developing mindfulness-based curricula.
Tracy Ochester, PsyD, RYT-200 is a psychologist in private practice, Heart-Mind Coordinator for the Midwest Alliance for Mindfulness, and a registered yoga teacher. She has completed advanced teacher training and certification in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and foundational teacher training in Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBSR). She also co-leads Mindful Self-Compassion courses. She has lead Mindfulness Based Interventions in a private practice setting, a mindfulness center, and in the prison system. Dr. Ochester also has experience training and supervising aspiring psychologists.
Ochester Psychological Services
Midwest Alliance for Mindfulness
Patricia Rockman, MD, CCFP, FCFP is an associate professor with the University of Toronto, department of family and community medicine; cross appointed to psychiatry. She is the lead educator for the Level C MBCT Facilitation Certificate Program at Factor-Inwentash, University of Toronto, faculty of Social Work (Applied Mindfulness Meditation program). She is a mentor with the Ontario College of Family Physicians Collaborative Mental Health Network. She has a private practice in CBT and leads MBCT groups. She has been educating healthcare providers in stress reduction, CBT and mindfulness-based practices for over 20 years. She is the director of education at the Centre for Mindfulness Studies, www.mindfulnessstudies.com.
German Speaking MBCT Mentor
Marion Pahlen, Psychotherapist (ECP, DVG, BAPt), Supervisor (DGSv) and Mindfulness Teacher (MBSR / MBCT / .b / Mindfulness in Schools Project). Marion has been working for many years as a mindfulness-based counselor and psychotherapist in the field of international education and health care. She is very experienced in bringing mindfulness into schools and universities as well as to populations in clinical settings. In her private practice one of her main fields of interest is Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for clients with recurrent depression and its application to other disorders (anxiety, OCD, addiction). She has been offering MBCT groups since 2012 and mindfulness retreats in general since 2008. Her own meditation practice began in 1992. In addition to her training in MBCT (with Oxford Mindfulness Centre and CMRP Bangor University) and MBSR (through Center of Mindfulness, University of Massachusetts Medical Center) she has also significant experience in mindfulness-based body work and mindfulness-based supervision.
Mandarin Speaking MBCT Mentor
Galen Hung (MD, ScM) is the Chief Psychiatrist at Blossom Clinic of Psychosomatic Medicine (www.blossomclinic.com.tw). Graduated from Harvard School of Public Health, He is currently an assistant professor with National Yang Ming University, School of medicine.
Dr. Hung is a certified MBCT teacher through The University of California, San Diego Center of Mindfulness. He has extensive experiences teaching MBCT for patients with depressive disorder. His private practice is specializing in the use of mindfulness-based psychotherapy.
Dr. Hung has led numerous MBCT workshops for health professionals, along with providing consultation and mentorship on MBCT. His research focuses on combining MBCT with novel treatment modalities such as therapeutic apps and non-invasive brain stimulation. (Galen’s bio in Mandarin)
Debbie Hu (MD, MSc) is the Chief of Psychiatric Department at the Tainan Municipal Hospital in Taiwan (https://www.tmh.org.tw/en-us/psychiatry.aspx). She is specialized in the child and adolescent psychiatry and psycho-oncology. She is also a university lecturer. Dr. Hu is a certified MBCT teacher and a trainer through the Oxford Mindfulness Center. She was trained to be a supervisor through the Mindfulness Networks UK. She has extensive experiences teaching MBCT for cancer patients, teenagers, university students, medical professionals and general populations. Dr. Hu has led MBCT workshops for health professionals and trainees, along with providing consultation and mentorship on MBCT. Her research focuses on MBCT for the well-being’s of cancer patients, young students and medical professionals. (Debbie's bio in Mandarin)
