ECNP Course on Anxiety Disorders

Registration is closed — E-learnings

Aim of the course
The Executive Committee, together with the Educational Committee and the ECNP Networks, has developed the ECNP Courses to broaden the range of its educational activities for both clinical and non-clinical scientists. As part of this endeavour, interested individuals can enroll in an innovative two-year course, comprising colloquia, live e-learnings, directed reading and report submission, leading to recognition by ECNP of achieving specialist expertise in anxiety disorders. This course has been developed by the ECNP Anxiety Disorders Research Network (ADRN) and the ECNP Educational Committee and it will be presented as a first pilot. No registration fee is charged for the pilot courses (full course and e-learning only). In return ECNP will request participants to give feedback on the course at set times during the two years. This feedback will be used for potential development of similar courses.

Who can participate
This course is designed to be suitable for two main constituencies:

• Clinicians working in mental health services (principally, psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, and mental health pharmacists) who wish to extend their expertise in anxiety disorders
• Laboratory-based researchers with an interest in preclinical and translational investigations of the mechanisms underlying anxiety and the response to treatments for anxiety disorders

Possession of a relevant undergraduate degree is essential, and possession of a relevant postgraduate degree or similar completed professional qualification is desirable.

The course and all related communication will be in English.

How to participate
There are two ways to follow the course:

1. Selected for the complete two-year course including two in-person colloquia
   A limited group of participants is selected by a review committee on the basis of their career potential. For these selected participants, the course takes two years and consist of a series of directed reading, participation in 20 live e-learnings (participate in 15 to finish the course), an assessment and two in-person colloquia on the Friday afternoon/evening before the 36^th ECNP Congress in Barcelona and the 37^th ECNP Congress in Milan. There is no registration fee for this pilot course. In return participants agree to provide feedback several times during the course to be enable ECNP to evaluate the pilot.
   Registration for the 36^th ECNP Congress Barcelona 2023 (purchased via the congress website) and the 37^th ECNP Congress Milan 2024 is mandatory. Travel and hotel accommodation is at own cost of the participant.
   Writing an assessment after the full course is required. Attendance will be recorded.
   
   It is no longer possible to apply for the whole two-year course. The deadline was 3 May 2023.
        
2. Join the live e-learnings only
   Interested individuals can join the e-learning sessions. Participants can follow the live e-learnings per block of five sessions, but will not be invited to the in-person colloquia or asked to submit as written assessment. They will have access to the direct reading material.
   There is no registration fee for the pilot course. In return, participants agree to provide feedback after the live e-learnings to enable ECNP to evaluate the pilot.
   
   Registration for the e-learnings 
   It was possible to register for live e-learnings up to two days before the start of a module.
   
   

The two-year course consists of:

• Directed reading
  Participants should read two or three key papers linked to each key topic, and to reflect upon 2-3 learning points for each paper, in advance of attending live e-learnings in which they would discuss their responses with their peers and the facilitator. A link to pdf versions of all key papers will be provided, and data will be collected on when papers are downloaded.
  
  
• Live e-learnings
  ECNP will host a series of one hour-long live e-learnings on key topics presented by experts within the ADRN Network; participants are expected to attend at least 15 live e-learnings. Each e-learning will have a moderator in addition to the expert speaker. E-learnings will include questions-and-answers for discussion, in the manner of an Educational Update Sessions.
  
  The e-learning sessions are grouped and follow a course from phenomenology via aetiology to treatment, and address both trans-diagnostic concerns and specific points relating to particular conditions.

When
All e-learnings take place on a Thursday from 16.00-17.00 CET (Central European Time)/CEST (Central European Summer Time).

Module 1
Moderator: David Baldwin

Module 2
Moderator: David Baldwin

Module 3
Moderator: David Baldwin (15 and 29 February; 18 April and 2 May)
Moderator for 4 April: Paolo Brambilla

Module 4
Moderator: David Baldwin (16 and 30 May; 13 and 27 June; 11 July; 18 July)
Moderator for 16 May: Katharina Domschke

• Assessment (only for participants selected for the full course)
  Selected participants are required to submit a 3,000-word report, focused on evidence-based management of three patients (for clinicians) or laboratory work relating to anxiety (preclinical scientists). Reports will be assessed by two markers (drawn from the ADRN Network and the Educational Committee) who will agree whether or not the report meets pre-specified standards.
  
  
• Colloquium (only for participants selected for the full course)
  The colloquium provides participants a face to face meeting, organised on Friday 6 October 2023 from 15.00-20.00 CEST (Central European Summer Time) in Barcelona, prior to the 36^th ECNP Congress. The programme will have two 2-hour sessions each with four topics and includes a dinner for networking. The second colloquium will take place on the Friday before the 37^th ECNP Congress in Milan.
  
  
• Certificate of completion (only for participants selected for the full course)
  Based on evidence of accessing key papers, participation in at least 15 e-learnings, participation at the colloquia and submission of a satisfactory report, a certificate of achieving specialist expertise in anxiety disorders will be awarded.

How to apply 
It is no longer possible to apply for the full two-year course. The deadline was 3 May 2023.

During the application process, applicants were asked to upload the following:

• Curriculum Vitae (CV)

A motivation letter (250-1,000 words) to explain, in the applicant’s own words, why they would like to attend, is mandatory to fill in.
All text and documents needed to be in English.