Training Opportunities
We offer a range of engaging, evidence-based trainings designed to build knowledge, skills, and confidence in supporting mental health and well-being. Whether you are a healthcare professional, educator, workplace leader, or community member, our sessions provide practical tools and strategies to better understand mental health challenges, foster resilience, and respond effectively to those in need. Trainings can be tailored to your organization’s unique context and are available in-person or virtually.
Mental Health for the Physical Health Clinician
A 1-day introductory course in mental health and psychologically informed care.
Location: Offered at Union Health and Performance in Squamish, BC:
Dates: January 10th, 2026 from 9 to 5pm
Price: $395.00 + GST
About: This 1-day introductory course in mental health and psychologically informed care is designed for the physical health clinician. Created by a physiotherapist and a registered clinical counsellor and social worker, the course reflects an interdisciplinary perspective that blends physical and mental health expertise.
This course introduces foundational mental health concepts that can be applied to any clinical setting where the emphasis is one’s physical health. This course is ideal for individual clinicians who want to begin integrating mental health awareness into their physical health treatments.
Consider the following client profiles:
1. A client with a long history of pain expressing suicidal ideation.
2. A client expressing hopelessness after a motor vehicle accident.
3. A highly anxious client attempting to regain function after a long hospital admission.
4. A client with signs of an eating disorder and an overtraining injury.
5. A client with a workplace injury involved in litigation who isn’t improving.
6. A client with a long history of pain expressing suicidal ideation.
By the end of the day, you’ll have a clearer understanding of how to support your clients when psychology and mental health impacts one’s physical health. You’ll have a starting point for applying psychologically informed care in your physical health practice.
Meet The trainers
Madison King MSW, RSW, RCC
Madison King is a Registered Social Worker and Registered Clinical Counsellor whose career has been shaped by her commitment to trauma-informed, relationship-centred care. She began her work in the field over a decade ago supporting children, youth, and families in community and wilderness-based programs.
After completing her Master’s in Social Work at the University of British Columbia, she went on to provide clinical services across public, private, and tele-health settings, developing expertise in trauma, grief and loss, workplace disability, and family systems. Her practice integrates a wide range of therapeutic modalities—including Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), and Emotion-Focused Therapy—while maintaining a systemic and attachment-based perspective.
She has delivered counselling to individuals and families navigating complex challenges such as disaster-related displacement, adoption and post-adoption adjustment, and first responder occupational stress. In addition to her clinical work, Madison has led mental health workshops for the Ministry of Child and Family Development, school boards, and health organizations, and provides consultation and supervision to other clinicians.
Since then, Madison has expanded her practice through Pacific Solstice Group and maintains a private practice in Squamish. She is registered with the BC College of Social Workers and with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors.
Recognizing the importance of bridging mental and physical health, Madison developed this introductory course alongside William Bateman to help clinicians begin integrating psychologically informed care into their work. Her goal is to support meaningful, lasting change by equipping both clients and practitioners with tools to cultivate resilience and authentic connection.
William Bateman, PT, MScPT, BSCKin
William Bateman is a physiotherapist whose clinical journey has been shaped by the intersection of physical health and mental health. He began his career over a decade ago in private practice. After opening and operating a clinic focused on treating rock climbing injuries, he developed a keen interest in persistent tendon pain. This led to a broader focus on chronic pain, prompting a move to Vancouver Coastal Health in 2019, where he helped design and implement BC’s first low-barrier, non-pharmacological pain management program for individuals experiencing concurrent mental health, substance use, and chronic pain disorders in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.
Working alongside family doctors, psychiatrists, counsellors, occupational therapists, and recreation therapists, William learned to adapt his physiotherapy interventions to clients with complex psychological presentations—including depression, anxiety, PTSD, psychosis, and substance use disorders. This interdisciplinary environment, combined with formal training in trauma-informed care, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Cognitive Functional Therapy, reshaped his approach to physical rehabilitation.
Since then, William has led VCH’s interdisciplinary PSS+ program, facilitating complex hospital discharges. He is a Clinical Instructor in UBC’s Physical Therapy Department, has served on the executive committee of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association’s Pain Science Division, and maintains a part-time private practice in Squamish.
Recognizing the gap in mental health literacy among physical health clinicians, William developed this introductory course alongside Madison King to help practitioners begin integrating psychologically informed care into their work. His goal is to offer practical tools or navigating the intersection of physical and mental health.
Learning Objectives
We draw from a variety of evidence-based modalities.
Module 1: Defining Mental Health and Its Relationship to Physical Health
Understand definitions of mental health.
Recognize the mental health continuum.
Identify general connections between mental and physical health.
Module 2: Mental Health Models and Theories
Gain introductory awareness of the following models and theories:
- Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
- Transdiagnostic Model
- Biopsychosocial Model
- Functional Contextualism
- Predictive Processing
- Polyvagal Theory
Module 3: Common Mental Health Disorders
Learn basic characteristics of the following conditions:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Trauma
Recognize how these conditions may appear in a physical health setting.
Identify activity-related behaviours that may impede physical health recovery.
Module 4: The Therapeutic Alliance and Establishing Trust
Develop strategies to self-assess your mental health.
Deepen your ability to effectively build a therapeutic alliance with your client.
Module 5: Screening and Risk Assessment
Understand the physical health clinician’s scope in mental health.
Gain introductory understanding of trauma-informed care (TIC).
Explore how TIC principles relate to common clinical presentations:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Kinesiophobia
- Dissociation or emotional numbing
Learn basic approaches to asking about mental health and referring clients.
Understand general principles of suicide risk awareness and emergency referral.
Module 6: Putting It All Together: Psychologically-Informed Care
Recognize basic psychological components:
- Thoughts
- Emotions
- Behaviours
- Physiology
Consider the role of language in clincial interactions
Practice introductory skills for discussing thoughts, feelings and behaviours
Adjust assessments and treatments with basic psychological awareness
