Perinatal Loss and Bereavement Conference:
A Virtual Gathering of Learning and Sharing for Pregnancy Loss Professionals 

Friday, April 16th 2021
11:00 AM - 1:30 PM

Friday, April 30th 2021
11:00 AM - 1:45 PM
CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Friday, April 16th, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM KEYNOTE: Working with Families Following Perinatal Loss: Current Research and Self-reflection with Psychologist Pamela A. Geller, PhD  
Considering recent research in the field, this presentation will offer current perspectives on enhancing your work with families who have experienced perinatal loss. Dr. Geller will discuss the impact of healthcare provider communication on patient mental health following loss, and the importance of maintaining an active, empathic role to optimize psychological outcomes and healing. Opportunities to reflect on challenges experienced when caring for perinatal women following a loss will be provided through discussion and consideration of case vignettes. An introduction to certification in perinatal loss care also will be presented.  
*SW CE Credits Provided for this Session
12:00 PM – 12:10 PM Break
12:10 PM – 12:30 PM Small Group Networking
12:30 PM – 1:30 PM Concurrent Sessions
Session 1: Beyond Mothers: The Impact of Perinatal Loss on the Whole Family
Presenters: Bob Bamman, LCSW, Yonina Kaufman, LCSW, M. Ed., Chumi Friedman, Director, A Time
For good reason, much of the field of perinatal loss focuses on the woman who experienced the miscarriage or stillbirth. In this session, participants will consider the impact of the loss on fathers, grandparents and siblings. The discussion will include supporting these “disenfranchised grievers,” and the complicated family dynamics that may arise.  Presenters will share principles of vicarious trauma as it relates to the impact of loss on families.
*SW CE Credits Provided
Session 2: Engaging the Interdisciplinary Hospital Team in Best Practices of Perinatal Bereavement Care
Presenter: Ivy Diamond, LCSW
Learn from an experienced social worker about caring for families in the hospital during their loss. Best practices include memory-making, respectful disposition options, creating memorials, and support groups.
Presenter: Aviva Kleinman, RN, C-MNN, IBCLC, CPLC
Explore strategies for engaging staff via experiential learning and support so they are empowered and prepared to provide the best care.
*SW CE Credits Provided
Session 3: Getting Grief Right: Help for Doubting Parents and a Skeptical Society
Presenter: Joann Galst, Ph.D.
Dr. Galst will review various theories of grief and introduce participants to parental concerns as to whether they are grieving “appropriately” for their lost babies. This is a particular challenge in the face of familial and societal responses that minimize perinatal death and the extent of parental grief. The lifelong continuum of healing after the loss of a baby will also be discussed.
*SW CE Credits Provided
Friday, April 30th, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM Concurrent Sessions 
Session 1: The Long-Awaited Stork: Pregnancy After Reproductive Loss
Presenters: Carolyn Berger, LCSW and Dr. Gila Leiter, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.
Participants will explore the experience of pregnancy after loss (PAL) considering the medical implications and emotional challenges. With the use of case studies, participants will learn about the medical protocols for women who are pregnant after a miscarriage, stillbirth or termination for medical reasons. The session will cover emotional challenges, such as anxiety and depression that often accompany such pregnancies, as well as crucial coping skills to support pregnancy after loss.
*SW CE Credits Provided
Session 2: Models of Group Work for Grieving Parents
Presenters: Laurie Chameides, LCSW and Nancy Berlow, LCSW
Participants will learn how support groups promote healing for parents experiencing perinatal loss. The session will cover different models of support groups, principles for beginning a support group in your agency and existing support group resources in the New York metropolitan area.
*SW CE Credits Provided
12:00 PM – 12:10 PM Break
12:10 PM – 12:30 PM Small Group Networking
12:30 PM – 1:30 PM Racial Disparities in Perinatal Loss
Presenter: Dr. Cynthia Gyamfi Bannerman
Dr. Gyamfi will offer a review of existing medical literature on stillbirth rates across race in the United States. She will discuss potential factors that contribute to fetal demise. Participants will be encouraged to reflect upon their own experiences, and opportunities to make change within their practice.
 *SW CE Credits Provided
1:15 PM – 1:45 p.m. Closing

Social Workers can receive 4 Continuing Education Credits for attendance in the two-day conference.

Nursing Education Credits: This activity has been approved for 4 contact hours. 2 contact hours will be granted for each day. NYU Langone Hospital—Long Island is an Approved Provider of continuing nursing education by the Northeast Multistate Division, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.  Provider Number: 4002978

For more information, contact Naomi Skop Richter at plsp@ncjwny.org
Sponsored by the Pregnancy Loss Support Program at
NCJW NY and UJA-Federation of New York