Early Bird offer tickets are now available 

The Inspire Foundation, Malta’s leading organisation in the disability sector dedicated to improving the quality of life, equality, and inclusion for individuals and families experiencing challenging behaviours, is proud to announce the “Behaviours of Concern, Whose Behaviour – Whose Concern?” conference. The event will take place on May 25th, 2023, from 8.00 am to 5.00 pm, at the Malta Fairs & Conventions Centre.

The conference features several distinguished international speakers and will be an excellent opportunity for attendees to learn about evidence-supported, trauma-informed and empathic approaches that reflect more up-to-date theory. The speakers will present their experiences, theories, and research to provide attendees with a better understanding of how to reduce stress in workers and greatly improve well-being.

Behaviours of concern, often referred to as challenging behaviour, represent a significant challenge to the quality of life, equality, and inclusion. The situation applies at home, at school, and across a range of health and social care settings. The conference will also provide an opportunity to discuss how individuals and families can be excluded from all forms of participation in their communities, and often experience mental health treatments that are inappropriate and often harmful.

Paula Doumanov, Chief Quality Officer at Inspire Foundation said: “This conference aims to bring together experts from the field of mental health to discuss the behaviours of concern and their impact on people’s lives. The conference will delve into the topic from various perspectives, including education, health services, and policies, with the ultimate goal of providing insights and solutions to support people affected by these behaviours.”

Speakers:

Charlene Borg has been with Inspire since 1998 and now leads the Family Relations Department. With a background in Inclusion and Special Educational Needs and a Masters in Systemic Family Psychotherapy, Charlene focuses on building strong relationships between families to empower them as caregivers of autistic individuals. She has a special interest in couple relationships and has extended her studies to clinical supervision.

Neville and Olga Cassar Bonavia are parents to Alexander, who attended Inspires’ STEP Intensive Early Intervention and STEP Forward programmes. They participated actively in discussions and shared their experiences, reflections, and hopes for their son Alex, building a new narrative around his behaviour and communication. This helped them understand each other and their family dynamics better.

Alexis Quinn is a former schoolteacher, professional athlete, and now the author of two books: Unbroken, a memoir, and Autistic and Expecting, a guide for autistic parents-to-be. She works as Manager of the Restraint Reduction Network and is studying for an MSc in Psychotherapy at the University of Greenwich.

Dr. Elena Giouroukou is a psychologist with a clinical and research interest in autism. Her current work focuses on the cognitive aspects of autism, both in terms of assessment and intervention. She was part of the team that developed the Synergy program to support schools working with children with challenging behaviour, and she currently works as a mentor for teachers who work with autistic children.

Dr. Ian A. Davidson is a highly experienced consultant psychiatrist and healthcare manager with expertise in healthcare services management and leadership, as well as governance and regulation. He is currently the national clinical lead for the crisis/acute mental health program at NHSE/I GIRFT and has been involved in work to reduce inequalities in accessing mental health services for autistic people.

Dr. Ruth Moyse is a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Southampton, an advocate for participatory research and the co-production of knowledge, and an autistic co-lead on the autism Train the Trainer training program for adult mental health inpatient settings. Her research interests include the education and well-being of autistic children and young people, particularly the female experience.

Professor George Bagakis is an Emeritus Professor of Methodology and Policies of Lifelong Learning and In-Service Training at the University of Peloponnese. He has extensive experience in educational leadership, teacher professional development, and lifelong learning and has written numerous books and articles.

Professor Richard Mills is an Associate Consultant at AT-Autism in London, a Research Fellow at the University of Bath, and a visiting Professor at Taisho University in Tokyo, Japan. He also holds positions as a Consultant at the Autism Resource Centre in Singapore, an Advisor to the Government of Jersey CI, and a Research Associate at the Centre for Practice Innovation, Scottish Autism. Richard’s current research and practice interests include program and service evaluation, autism and mental health, forensic issues, and behaviours of concern.

Nicci Paine is an Honours degree-qualified Occupational Therapist who has worked in various learning disability services. She is a Director of Leap Children’s Therapy, providing direct therapy for children of all ages and staff and parent training sessions. Nicci has a special interest in all things autism-related, particularly in supporting the understanding of sensory needs among adolescents and adults.

Dr. Georgia Pavlopoulou is an award-winning lecturer at University College London, the lead autism workforce trainer at the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, and an AT-AUTISM associate. She is committed to creative participatory research and is currently editing a book on collaborative practice and autistic mental health in clinical services. Georgia is also a co-investigator in a large interdisciplinary MRC-funded co-produced study on the prevention of depression in neurodivergent young adolescents.

Dr. Bernadette Grosjean is a psychiatrist with 30 years of experience in private practice, community hospitals, and nonprofit organizations helping vulnerable populations. She values humility, curiosity, and flexibility as essential qualities for clinicians. She co-authored comprehensive guides in French about BPD, bipolar disorders, and adult autism for patients and families.

Dr. Athanasios Koulis is a Post-Doctoral Researcher of Teachers’ Professional Development at the Department of Social and Educational Policy of the University of Peloponnese. He is a mathematics teacher in a public high school and has presented his research at national and international conferences. His research interests include teachers’ professional development, job satisfaction, burnout, inclusive education, and innovative teaching practices.

Early Bird tickets are available for €80 till 15th March 2023, and attendees can purchase them from the following link: https://inspire.org.mt/event/behaviours-of-concern/. The Inspire Foundation is encouraging interested attendees to purchase tickets early to ensure they don’t miss out on this exciting and informative conference.