Introduction:

The techniques described below have been developed to improve the quality of Case Discussion in AMBIT. In many respects there is (in common with most of Mentalization-based practice) little that is startlingly new about this; rather, the theory of Mentalization offers a framework for understanding how or why such practices might be effective.

The common thread that attaches these is the fact that Mentalization is reduced/prevented in situations where there is very significant affect present - particularly if this emotional context triggers the Attachment system into action. This happens when a worker is "alone" with a case, or in a team meeting (the opposite of the Keyworker well-connected to wider team.)

Both techniques given below are designed to create a well-demarcated "safe zone" around an stressful situation, to allow the kind of imaginative activity (which includes Mentalizing) required for thinking out a therapeutic course of action, whilst maintaining the structure to ensure that basic safety requirements are maintained.

Techniques/Skills in case Discussion:

Thinking Together - points at how to set up a discussion that allows the right information to be shared and then thought about... This can structure a 1:1 conversation, but also a whole team cae discussion.

Passed-outwards Discussion or POD - the Keyworker arranges for information that s/he has passed down to a colleague to be 'passed down' again in his/her presence.