Manitoba and Nunavut

Miriam Duff
2011-2013

I have been providing psychosocial services to people in various contexts, and healthcare in particular, as a child life specialist, for many years. I view myself as a lifelong learner.. At present, I am completing my Master of Education in Counselling, thesis-based. I completed my graduate counselling practicum at the University of Manitoba’s Student Counselling and Career Services. Previously, I have completed a Bachelor of Arts and a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Education centred on counselling. I am a certified child life specialist, currently employed at Winnipeg Children’s Hospital, serving the psychosocial needs of children and families being cared for in the Pediatric Special Care Unit and the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. I have also worked for CancerCare Manitoba, providing one-to-one and group counselling services for patients and their families. I am currently Secretary on the executive for the Creative Arts in Counselling Chapter. In my personal life I am a mother, wife and artist, with a past steeped in community activism, particular related to the school system.

I have benefited greatly from being a part of CCPA, specifically in terms of networking (across Canada!) by specific interest groups (the chapters) and professional development opportunities (the conferences and workshops are great!). I consider the dialogue made possible through this organization essential to ongoing learning and growth, for myself as well as the field in general. I value having access to the organization’s list of qualified professionals, by geographic region, it is a highly relevant and useful referral resource. I appreciate the benefits of professional affiliation for consultation, resource and insurance purposes.

I recognize professional accreditation as an essential means to establishing and maintaining counselling practice benchmarks, thereby attaining credibility and protecting the public from harm. I look forward to obtaining my counsellor certification from CCPA upon graduating from my program.

I have been involved with the CCPA as student representative for the past two years. During this time, I have set up displays promoting the CCPA at the university and at the Canadian Art Therapy Association’s National Conference (2009). I also provide CCPA information and materials to students on a casual enquiry basis. Last year I was fortunate to be awarded a CCPA travel grant, which allowed me to attend the annual conference in Saskatoon – what a wonderful experience that was!

Director's Report - November 2011

Manitoba Director's Report

Miriam Duff

November 201

Abstract

The past six months have been about outreach and networking, within the university, the therapeutic arts community, the region generally and the North specifically. Consideration of training opportunities consistent with rising certification standards will be an area for attention by counselling students and faculty. Networking that brings people’s voices together will continue to be pursued as the need to organize locally and begin discussions about regulation becomes more pressing. A new student representative at the province’s francophone university has been welcomed and is anticipated to help broaden the regional base of CCPA in Manitoba and Nunavut.

Connections and Communications

Currently involved in the Northern Initiative Committee’s work doing outreach to CCPA members working in the Canadian North. This fulfills a goal I set for myself last year, stemming from concerns over the absence of representation and voices from the North within the Association. I am pleased to be working in tandem with my fellow Alberta and BC Directors as well as the President-Elect. We hope to learn from counsellors in the North what their needs and issues are and how to best connect with them, so that their needs are better represented at the Board table and they are better served by the Association. We plan to share our initial findings and recommendations with the Board at the November meeting in Ottawa.

Upon returning from the annual CCPA Conference in Ottawa, I assisted the local Creative Arts in Counselling chapter’s provincial representative in organizing and facilitating a meeting to discuss and establish a new grassroots organization for people concerned with healing and the Arts. This was a very positive and exciting opportunity to see people concerned with the therapeutic use of the Arts in a variety of modalities come together and find common ground.

This past fall, I invited local members to indicate their interest in exploring the matter of regional organization and regulation and was gratified to receive a positive response from several members. A local meeting to begin discussion on these matters is planned for early November. We will be fortunate to have the CCPA President in attendance to help bring everyone up to date on pan-Canadian developments.

I am also representing students at the University of Manitoba for one more year, and will be holding a meeting to connect with students and discuss upcoming changes to CCC certification, in mid-November.

Further to that effort, I met with the faculty member responsible for coordinating counsellor training at the University of Manitoba this September, to discuss changes to certification and implications for students in the current program. The goal of the meeting was to review ways that the program could facilitate students in attaining certification at the end of their training, given the upcoming changes.

A new student representative has stepped forward to serve at Universite de Sainte Boniface, I have met with her to welcome her into her role and review opportunities for development. Student representative vacancies remain at the University of Winnipeg and Brandon University.

I have responded to a range of enquiries and requests for assistance from local members over the past several months.

I continue to sit on the executive of the Creative Arts in Counselling Executive as secretary and Board Liason. I am also the Board Liason for the Pastoral and Spiritual Care Chapter.

Contributions and Celebrations

• Currently have taken on the role of Treasurer for CCPA and look forward to further  involvement in the Association’s ongoing development.
• Pleased to have contributed to preparations for and participation in, the official launch of the local grassroots network, Artwell on September 11, 2011.
• CCPA membership in the region has grown over the past year.

Concerns and Challenges

The Northern Initiative, meetings related to local organization and regulation are the main focus of efforts for the Manitoba and Nunavut region at present. The stirrings of interest in these areas are present and growing. They may require more voices and energy to get things moving.

Recruitment of student reps at the province’s three remaining universities remains an area for further attention.

Rising standards with respect to certification will present challenges for students graduating from the counsellor training programs in our province in the near future. Strategic planning and innovation in course offerings and supervised placements could offer potential solutions.

Coming Attractions

I hope to fan the flames of development in the North, and in local organization wit a view towards planning for regulation in the coming year. Together with the collective energy of local and Northern members, I am hopeful that we will move in a progressive direction in each area.

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