2022 Melbourne Regional Conference

Student registrations are reviewed and accepted upon approval. Student registrants must provide proof of current status in a related field and must submit verification by email or fax. Discounts for Emerging Professionals (first three years after licensure or graduation) are available, please email a copy of your license or degree to ISSTD HQ for discount codes. All registration fees listed are in Australian Dollars (AUD)

Group rates are available for groups of five or more from the same hospital, facility, or university through 31 October 2022. Please email the ISSTD HQ for assistance with group rates.

Cancellation Policy
Cancellations must be received in writing via email to cfas@isst-d.org or via fax to +1 888.966.0310. A processing fee of $75 will be charged for cancellations received on or before 20 October 2022. No refunds will be issued for no-shows. Refund requests will not be accepted after 20 October 2022. Not all requests will be granted. Substitutions for attendees are accepted at any time until the day before the start of the conference.

Registration Contact Information
Email: cfas@isst-d.org
Phone: +1 844.994.7783

Meet our Plenary Speakers!

Colin A. Ross, MD
Colin A. Ross, MD completed medical school at the University of Alberta and his psychiatry training at the University of Manitoba in Canada. He is a Past President of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation, and is the author of over 250 papers and 36 books. He has spoken widely throughout North America and Europe, and in China, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand. He has been a keynote speaker at many different conferences, and has reviewed for over 30 different professional journals.

Dr. Ross has been running a hospital Trauma Program in the Dallas area since moving to Texas in 1991. The Trauma Program is based at UBH hospital in Denton, TX. He also has a Partial Hospitalization Program in Cedar Park, Texas.

Dr. Ross’ books cover a wide range of topics. His clinical books focus on trauma and dissociation and include: Dissociative Identity Disorder. Diagnosis, Clinical Features and Treatment of Multiple Personality, Second Edition (1997); Schizophrenia: Innovations in Diagnosis and Treatment (2004); The Trauma Model: A Solution to the Problem of Comorbidity in Psychiatry (2007); Trauma Model Therapy: A Treatment Approach for Trauma Dissociation and Complex Comorbidity (2009); Structural Dissociation: A Proposed Modification of the Theory (2013); Treatment of Dissociative Identity Disorder: Techniques and Strategies for Stabilization (2018); and The Genetics of Schizophrenia (2020).

Dr. Ross has published a series of treatment outcome studies in peer-reviewed journals, which provide evidence for the effectiveness of Trauma Model Therapy. Many of his papers involve large series of cases, with original research data and statistical analyses, including a paper entitled ‘Trauma and Dissociation in China’ in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts
Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts is a proud Bundjalung woman. Vanessa is a storyteller who loves a yarn alongside being a writer, activist and is currently on her final stages to completing a Law and Social work degree at the University Of New South Wales. Vanessa took out the 2019 Australia’s young person’s human rights medal with an acceptance speech that went viral sharing the importance of abolishing the current system of criminal justice and statutory Out of Home Care (OOHC) demanding justice for children and young people. She has represented Australia at international and national levels.

Vanessa has a lifetime commitment to addressing the over-representation of Aboriginal children in custody and OOHC. Vanessa is proud to be a part of the resilience, the love, the kinship and truth that stems from the roots of being First Nations, and will continue to demand justice for the lives, bodies and lands through political discourse, writing and utilising the law as a mechanism to contribute to justice.

Vanessa’s commitment to studying Law stems from the disproportionate impact of the law in her own community, which over policing and racism was and is highly present. Vanessa was forcibly stolen from her community and family at the age of 10.5 due to falsified allegations of neglect and the role racism played at both an institutional and direct practice level. Vanessa’s commitment to healing children and amplifying their voices through her writing, the legal system, storytelling and advocacy remains at the frontline of all her work.

Besides his clinical psychiatry interests, Dr. Ross has published papers and books on cancer and human energy fields, as well as literary works including essays, fiction, poetry and screenplays. He has several different hobbies including travel.

Dr Kyllie Cripps
Dr Kyllie Cripps is a Scientia Fellow and Senior Lecturer in the Law Faculty at the University of New South Wales. Kyllie as a Palawa woman has worked extensively over the past twenty years in the areas of family violence, sexual assault and child abuse with Indigenous communities, defining areas of need and considering intervention options at multiple levels. She has led three major Australian Research Council grants in the areas of Indigenous family violence including one defining and contextualizing, Indigenous and non Indigenous, community and service sector, understandings and practices of partnerships in the family violence sector. The research in this area was significant for identifying gaps and opportunities in the sector that could facilitate improvements in service responses to Indigenous family violence. A further ARC grant with fellow CI’s Professor Megan Davis and Professor Annie Cossins explores ‘The role of cultural factors in the sentencing of Indigenous sex offenders in the Northern Territory‘. This project involved an empirical analysis of the extent to which extra-legal factors relating to sexuality and Indigenous culture influenced the sentencing of sex offenders. The study is currently in the processes of publishing its results and will contribute much needed evidence to support future NT policy, legal practice and law reform relating to sentencing in sexual assault cases with broader application to other Australian jurisdictions.

Kyllie is also leading an AHURI project with Associate Professor Daphne Habibis from the University of Tasmania undertaking research exploring the relationship between Indigenous family violence and housing and the final report this project will be released in the first half of 2019.

Kyllie’s interests in the intersection between family violence and child protection are also evident in her publication and public speaking record. In particular her focus on ‘failure to protect’ exploring the impact of policy and legislation for Aboriginal mothers charged with failing to protect their children in contexts of family violence and also the significance of permanent care law reforms and their implications for Indigenous children’s cultural connections.

Kyllie’s expertise in the area of interpersonal violence is regularly recognised with invitations to provide advice to state and federal governments this is demonstrated in her publications, in her public speaking and her appointments to state and national committees responding to family violence. She also routinely provides advice and training to professional groups and Indigenous communities in her areas of expertise. Kyllie’s work has also been recognised internationally with invitations to speak and to teach on Indigenous experiences of violence in the United States and Canada.

Warwick Middleton MB BS, FRANZCP, MD
Warwick Middleton MB BS, FRANZCP, MD, holds appointments as Professor, School of Medicine, University of Queensland, and as Adjunct Professor, School of Public Health, La Trobe University, School of Behavioral, Cognitive & Social Sciences, University of New England, and Department of Psychology, University of. He has made substantial and ongoing contributions to the bereavement and trauma literatures and was with Dr Jeremy Butler author of the first published series in the Australian scientific literature detailing the abuse histories and clinical phenomenology of patients fulfilling diagnostic criteria for Dissociative Identity Disorder. He chairs The Cannan Institute as well as its research and conference organizing committees. In 1996 he was the principal architect in establishing Australia’s first dedicated unit treating dissociative disorders (the Trauma and Dissociation Unit, Belmont Hospital – Healthe Care) and he continues as its Director. He is the first researcher to ever do systematic research into ongoing incestuous abuse during adulthood.

He is a Past President and Fellow of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) and a recipient of that Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He chaired an editorial grouping that put together a Special (double) Issue of the Journal of Trauma and Dissociation (“The Abused and the Abuser: Victim – Perpetrator Dynamics”), published in 2017 and published also in expanded and updated book-form in 2018 (Routledge). He is Co-Chair of the ISSTD Membership Committee (with Abigail Percifield), Vice Chair of the Scientific Committee and a member of the Webinar Committee.

Preliminary Online Schedule

Just Added! Our full online preliminary conference schedule is now available. This schedule will give you a full breakdown of the schedule for each day, provided details on each conference presentation and introduce you to our conference speakers. This site can be used to created your individual conference schedule and this information will link to our conference app.

Schedule Highlights

Friday, 11 November 2022
Pre-Conference Workshops (Half and Full Day Options)

• Track 1
  • The Developmental Trauma, Shame and Dissociation Triangle (Full Day) – Naomi Halpern and Martin Dorahy
• Track 2
  • Approaches to Treating DID: An Overview and Case Presentation (Half Day) – Kate McMaugh and Diane Clare
  • Memory: Remembering and Forgetting Ordinary and Traumatic Events (Half Day) – Sylvia Solinski
• Track 3
  • Introduction to Dissociation and the Dissociative Disorders (Half Day) – Mary-Anne Kate
  • Working with Families Who Have Experienced Sexual Abuse: How to Ride the Roller Coaster and Not Fall Off (Half Day) – Helen Kambouridis
• Track 4
  • The Body Knows, Keeps, and Changes the Score (Half Day) -Sam Gold
  • The Role of EMDR in Responding to Work Based Trauma and Promoting Clinician Self-care: An Experiential Workshop (Half Day) – Jenny Dwyer

Saturday, 12 November 2022

Conference Opening

Plenary Addresses

• Maladaptive Daydreaming and Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) – Colin Ross
• Implications of Intergenerational Trauma and Systemic Abuse for Australia’s First Nations: Considering the Role of Activism in Healing – Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts and Kylie Cripps
• Organized Abuse and the Power of the Few – Lysha Rose and Warwick Middleton

Plenary Panel

• Healing Intergenerational Trauma Through Cultural Strength, Advocacy and Resistance – Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts, Kyllie Cripps, Ruby Warber and Michael Salter(Moderator)

Conference Dinner featuring Grace Tame

Sunday, 13 November 2022

90 Minute Workshops (Three Tracks)
Full Day Workshop (One Track)

Closing Panel

• Social, Systemic and Legal Considerations in Addressing Violence Against Women – Sandra Hacker, Prof Kelsey Hegarty, Josh Bornstein, and Michael Salter (Moderator)

Conference Closing

Melbourne is Australia’s mecca for all things trendy and tasty. The city offers up exquisite dining, exhilarating sport and abundant opportunities to experience art.

A perfect blend of rich cultural history and new age trends is waiting for you in Melbourne. As the sun goes down, the city comes to life with a vibrant dining scene as well as events and exhibitions. Explore its bustling laneways, trendy neighbourhoods and sophisticated foodie scene to get a taste of what Melbourne is all about.

Hotel Information

Grand Hyatt Melbourne
123 Collins Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
Australia
+61 3 9657 1234

Hotel Reservations
Hotel reservations may be made here.

Amenities

Dining

Collins Kitchen
Collins Kitchen is Grand Hyatt Melbourne’s award-winning signature restaurant.

Named after the hotel’s prestigious location on Collins Street, Collins Kitchen offers guests a unique dining experience. Its modern open plan layout provides a contemporary setting, creating an intimate and relaxing escape from the bustling CBD.

Guided by the philosophy, “Food. Thoughtfully Sourced. Carefully Served,” the culinary team have collaborated with the best Victorian farmers and local producers to deliver the most exceptional and truly indulgent menu, including the restaurant’s multi-award winning breakfast buffet. With offerings such as a dedicated smoothie and juice bar, a cold cuts and carving station, patisseries handmade by in-house pastry chefs as well as an extensive wok and steamer selection, the spectacular breakfast feast at Collins Kitchen is always a memorable occasion.

Ru-Co Bar
Tucked away in a city laneway, Ru-Co Bar brings an inimitable flair to the bar scene serving up a unique cocktail culture inspired by Melbourne’s eclectic spirit. We pour our expertise and imaginations into the creation of signature cocktails featuring local flavours. Exuding urban sophistication and contemporary luxury, Ru-Co Bar sets the stage for exclusive and extraordinary experiences.

Ru-Co Bar is a Melbourne cocktail bar that is both bold and modern in design with warm, rich tones and dramatic sculpture artworks. Featuring a stunning courtyard with alfresco seating and an exclusive private fireside seating, offering a secluded area for our guests. In summer, revel in the soulful sounds and bold beats with a revolving rotation of the latest chilled electric beats within the open-air courtyard. Whilst in the cooler months, enjoy live acoustics indoors from Melbourne talent with unique touches of local flair.

Bistro Bar
In a city that takes coffee culture seriously, the Bistro Bar does not disappoint.

Whether you are after a quick morning espresso to-go or a place to enjoy a lunch meeting with clients, the Bistro Bar is the perfect spot to get your caffeine fix or pursue the extensive wine and pre-dinner cocktail list.

Find your perfect blend whilst soaking up the energy of the city overlooking Russell Street after a day of shopping in the surrounding luxury retail precinct.

Designed to highlight the talents of our mixologists, the menu features an extensive list of signature cocktails, craft beers as well as an impressive list of single malt whiskeys and cognacs, and a wine list drawn from the 2,700 premium bottle wine room. The menu combines quality flavours with a bespoke selection of fresh, locally sourced Victorian produce to create Light Bites.

Lobby Lounge
Experience 5-star service, modern design and all day dining at Grand Hyatt Melbourne’s Lobby Lounge.

The Lobby Lounge is a unique venue, offering a relaxed setting to catch up with friends or even to host a client meeting.

The Lobby Lounge is situated parallel to Collins Kitchen and is open daily.

Travel

Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport VIC 3045, Australia
Public transport is available from the airport to the hotel via buses, ride share, and taxis. More information is available here.

Sponsorship Opportunities

We anticipate approximately 300 social workers, marriage & family therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, general practitioners/primary care physicians, and counselors from across Australia and New Zealand, and beyond. This conference is an opportunity for your organisation to provide support to clinicians in the field and introduce your organisation to attendees. 

PRESENTING SPONSOR PACKAGE (LIMIT 3) – $5,000 AUD

• Sponsorship of one of three major events: Opening Ceremony, Conference Dinner or Closing Ceremony including signage
• Two complimentary conference registrations
• Exhibit space with table and two chairs
• Acknowledgement on the conference website and online program
• Acknowledgement on event signage and during conference 
• Free conference totebag insert (400 provided by sponsor)

MAJOR SPONSOR PACKAGE – $2500 AUD

• Sponsorship of one break or lunch including signage
• One complimentary conference registration
• Exhibit space with table and two chairs
• Acknowledgement on the conference website and online program
• Acknowledgement on event signage and during conference 

GENERAL SPONSOR PACKAGE – $800 AUD

• Acknowledgement on the conference website and online program
• Acknowledgement on event signage and during conference 
• Free conference totebag insert (400 provided by sponsor)

Contact ISSTD staff via email at cfas@isst-d.org for additional information or to develop a custom sponsor package today.