Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 851

Tonight's special guest is Dr. Eliana Gil from Fairfax, Virginia, who's in group private practice at Gil Institute for Trauma Recovery & Education (www.gilinstitute.com) where she provides therapy, consulting, supervision, and training services. She's a well-known lecturer, author, and clinician. Bilingual and bicultural (originally from Guayaquil, Ecuador), Dr. Gil conducts intensive trainings through Starbright Training Institute for Child and Family Play Therapy in Northern Virginia. Her most recent of several books are "Helping abused and traumatized children: Integrating directive and non-directive approaches" and "Helping Children Heal from Interpersonal Trauma: The Power of Play." Other books discuss various topics and issues in play therapy: Art Therapy, Play Therapy, Sand Therapy, Family Play Therapy, Doll-house play, Puppet Stories, Videotherapy, Bibliotherapy, Filial Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy. "This is an exciting time to be a professional in the field of child maltreatment," she writes. "Talented, responsible clinicians and researchers are doing more and more impressive work---and there is much yet to learn. Never before has there been such a large group of interested professionals advancing theories and approaches in order to help abused and traumatized children." And she continues, "Each approach seems to have its own merits, and scientific data are increasingly guiding our understanding of treatment effectiveness. I am committed to observe, learn, and study so that I can best assist my clients."