Contact
Kristen DohertyMcHenry County Mental Health Board
815.455.2828
kdoherty@mc708.org
Sexuality and Autism Spectrum Disorder
Presented by Dr. Rachel Loftin, PhD
Thursday, January 24, 2019 - 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm
Free: 1.5 CEU's for attending this training
(IAODAPCA Included)
Who Should Attend: Psychiatrist (MD), Psychiatric Nurse (RN), Psychologist (Ph.D), Social Worker (MSW), Mental Health Counselor, Mental Health Therapist, Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner (ARNP), and other mental health professionals.
Training Overview:
Attendees will learn some reasons that quality sexuality education is particularly important for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Dr. Loftin will explain some barriers to talking with parents about sexuality and address ways for dealing with these. Approaches for teaching people with ASD about sexuality will also be discussed.
Presenter: Dr. Rachel Loftin, PhD
Rachel Loftin is a clinical and school psychologist who specializes in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disorders (DD). She has extensive experience in diagnosis, assessment, and intervention to help promote positive outcomes for people with autism. In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Loftin has been involved in both federal and local cases involving special education, family, criminal, and civil law. In this work, she provides assessment and expert testimony on developmental differences that can increase social vulnerability and complicate interactions with law enforcement.Dr. Loftin has particular expertise in sexuality education for people with autism. Dr. Loftin is adjunct faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine and the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Northwestern University. She was previously an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Rush University Medical Center, where she was also the clinical director of the autism center. Dr. Loftin earned her PhD in the School Psychology program at Indiana University, with a doctoral minor in Special Education.
She completed internship and postdoctoral training in developmental disorders at the Yale Child Study Center at Yale University's School of Medicine. Dr. Loftin also completed a social policy fellowship in the Edward Zigler Center while at Yale and continues to consider social advocacy an important component of her work. Dr. Loftin is on the board of directors for Community Support Services, where she chairs the Program Committee, and the Chicago Autism Network.