Graduate Certificate in Integrated Behavioral Healthcare & Medical Family Therapy

Why Integrated Behavioral Healthcare & Medical Family Therapy?

Medical Family Therapy (MedFT), sometimes referred to as Integrated Behavioral Healthcare, is the practice of utilizing mental health providers in medical settings. It is a rapidly growing field developed to help promote communication and collaboration between health care systems’ staff. MedFT integrates patients’ and families’ medical, psychological, social, and spiritual worlds with medical science and family systems training. Working closely with medical provers, MedFTs focus on treating the "whole" patient and their family system, thus promoting lasting healthy changes and healing.

Competencies for Medical Family Therapists

Students in the Oregon Tech MFT Program develop competencies in the following domains, identified by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT; 2018) and Tyndall, et al. (2012):

Systems

• Integrating and implementing systems theory concepts and ideas

Biological, psychological, social, and spiritual

• Recognizing that health is comprised of all four areas of mutual influence

Collaboration

• Working cooperatively with others to maximize the benefits of team-based care, research, policy work, and training

Leadership

• Guiding systems toward a more collaborative and integrated approach to health care, as well as championing for resources so that healthcare systems function most efficiently.

Ethics

• Promoting the highest standard of work in accordance with the AAMFT Code of Ethics, in recognition of other healthcare team members’ codes of ethics, and in accord with rules and laws governing one’s profession and professional setting

Diversity

• Recognizing various groups, communities, and cultural influences that impact the delivery, response, policies, and study of integrated behavioral health care

AAMFT. (2018). Competencies for family therapists working in healthcare settings.

Tyndall et al. (2012). Medical family therapy: Charting a course in competencies. Contemporary Family Therapy, 34, pp. 171-186.

Earning a Graduate Certificate in Integrated Behavioral Health Care and Medical Family Therapy prepares professionals to be equipped to:

• Understand the complex ways individuals and families are affected by chronic and terminal health conditions
• Develop effective communication and collaborative work practices with medical personnel to benefit the patient and their family
• Identify personal experiences with illness and disability and how these experiences inform professional work with patients and families
• Respectfully and appropriately assist patients and families with their healing.