Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy FAQs

5-day DIT training is provided for psychoanalytically / psycho-dynamically trained practitioners in order to hone their pre-existing skills to deliver an effective brief psychodynamic intervention for the treatment of depression. Training occurs as a CPD course over 5 days where practitioners will learn the necessary framework to conduct a time-limited (16 sessions) manualised psychodynamic therapy. In order to pursue DIT accreditation trainees are required to attend the full training, pass a roleplay (step 1) and successfully complete supervision of two concurrent cases (step 2) before passing a case study (step 3).

20-day DIT training is an extended DIT training course which is offered to counsellors and psychologists who do not meet all psychodynamic competencies (recognised by the Expert Reference Group on Clinical Competencies) in order to practice as a psychoanalytic/psychodynamic practitioner.  The 20-day DIT training is an extended version of the 5-day practitioner course and requires a much longer period of commitment. Requirements of this 20-day DIT course include  pre-course reading and assessment, 20 days of live teaching via zoom, masterclasses and passing a role play before close clinical supervision of a minimum of 3 cases. The 20-day DIT training is at a postgraduate level and requires a pre-existing Diploma level qualification in counselling or a psychology doctorate degree as a minimum entry requirement. Applicants also need to have current full BACP, UKCP, or HCPC registration as part of their core qualification. Applications from alternative professional accreditation bodies can be considered on a case-by-case basis. For the 20-day DIT training there is no requirement for experience of personal psychodynamic psychotherapy, although this would be preferrable and we would encourage you to access this during the training.

Please refer to the relevant sections on the Anna Freud website for further information.

The 5-day DIT training provides clinicians with prerequisite knowledge to progress under clinical supervision towards accreditation with the British Psychoanalytic Council. Accreditation status for the 20-day DIT training is currently awaiting final approval. The 5-day and 20-day DIT training requirements have differing requirements to fulfil the accreditation process and we advise you to check the relevant sections on the Anna Freud website for further information.

Trainees who are funded through an agreement with the Anna Freud Centre, such as IAPT services, are provided with access to an accredited supervisor for the purposes of completing training requirements towards accreditation as a DIT practitioner. A list of accredited supervisors is available on the Anna Freud website for practitioners who wish to pursue a private arrangement for supervision. Once practitioners achieve DIT accreditation status, they are required to continue with supervision with an accredited supervisor for a period of one year, with a ratio of one hour of supervision for every 12 hours of clinical contact. Following one-year post-qualification, DIT therapists can avail of peer supervision subject to their supervisors agreement for them to continue independently.

While IAPT-funded places take priority for enrolment, we are currently accepting expressions of interest from potential trainees who are not employed in an IAPT service. Such applicants will need to secure a funding arrangement of £9000 (this includes supervision and assessments) which will be paid in full before training commences. Application forms can be found on the Anna Freud Website where you can register your interest. All application forms will need to be accompanied by a statement from your supervisor (send to dit@annafreud.org) confirming your suitability. We recommend checking course dates on the website to ensure your availability to attend. Confirmation of a place on the course will be provided three weeks in advance of the start date.

After completing the DIT course, there is a timeframe of one year in which to begin training cases under supervision. Most trainees will begin seeing training patients within six months of attendance at the DIT training course. Where a period of more than one year has lapsed since attending a DIT training course, the trainee is required to attend a refresher training course before commencing clinical work. If more than three years have lapsed since attending a DIT training course, a full training course will need to be repeated before clinical work can commence. In special circumstances, clarification may be requested from the Anna Freud Centre (DIT@annafreud.org). Such queries will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

While you may have trained in more than one modality, psychodynamic experience is an essential requirement. This includes a psychodynamic component in practitioner training, psychodynamic supervision of clinical work and, in the case of the 5-day training, attendance for personal therapy with a psychodynamic/psychoanalytic practitioner. If some time has passed since your core training and/or you feel uncertain as to your ability to apply the principles of psychodynamic work, we recommend you consider the 20-day DIT training course, where you will be provided with more opportunities to freshen your skillset and consolidate learning.

Yes, we need to see documents confirming each requirement, as per the British Psychoanalytic Council accreditation stipulation.

Applicants should do their best to contact their therapist and obtain a written reference (this can be in an e-mail form) of their personal therapy. However, if special circumstances where this isn’t possible (e.g. if the therapist is deceased) we will consider written confirmation from the applicant.

Dynamic interpersonal therapy (DIT) and interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) have several common features, but they are not the same therapy and the approaches draw on distinct competencies.

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DIT for Complex Care is a two-day advanced training for qualified DIT practitioners to apply the DIT model to a complex patient group in secondary care. The training assumes existing knowledge of working with the 16-session model of DIT and that clinicians have the requisite competence. The DIT CC course focuses on modifications and extensions to the model and emphasises particular skills, like mentalizing, developing epistemic trust, stabilisation techniques and risk management. The adapted DIT CC model is a 28-session approach that is based on the published results of a pilot study carried out in Newham (Journal of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, 33(7) 1-22; August 2019.

The training days include pre-course reading, an overview of the new model and opportunities to apply new skills. 

Please refer to the relevant sections of the Anna Freud website for further information.

Yes, as long as you can provide evidence of professional registration and can complete supervised clinical work for the purposes of training. DIT training is currently being offered remotely with teaching via Zoom and electronic access to course reading materials. Weekly clinical supervision is provided remotely via Microsoft TEAMS.

Please note that non-UK trainees will need to source and gain consent from suitable patients for training purposes. The Anna Freud Centre takes no responsibility for clinical governance and will require written confirmation from the applicant's service lead stating their agreement to attend to all clinical responsibilities, including case management, relating to patient work.

While there are no formal clinical trials currently published which confirm the effectiveness of DIT with children and adolescents, anecdotal evidence of DIT with adolescents and young adults is very encouraging. Many advances in the application of DIT are currently underway, including DIT for use as a group therapy, work with post-natal depression and trauma.

The online platform, Zoom, is currently being used to deliver DIT training. Prior to booking , please ensure you meet the system requirements so that you are able to join training. Before the training, please test if your equipment is working by going to Zoom.us/test and following the instructions.

System requirements:

• an internet connection - broadband wired or wireless (3G or 4G/LTE)

• speakers and a microphone - built-in, USB plug-in or wireless Bluetooth

• a webcam or HD webcam - built-in, USB plug-in or:

  • an HD cam or HD camcorder with a video-capture care (Note: See the list of supported devices available via a link on the Anna Freud website).

  • virtual camera software for use with broadcasting software like OBS or IP cameras

• Note: For MacOS, Zoom client 5.1.1 or higher is required.

Trainees are also required to attend clinical supervision and to video-record clinical sessions for the purposes of marking DIT competencies using a rating scale. Trainees will need to check permissions with their service lead in order to agree a suitable method for clinical recording which meets the required standards for their organisation's information governance. Currently, many trainees have obtained consent to use Microsoft TEAMS for supervision and sessional recordings. Recordings will need to be stored and shared with a supervisor via confidential means (e.g. a private channel on Microsoft TEAMS) and guidance will be provided for trainees to set this up. Remote supervision will also take place via a secure platform and trainees will need to access this on a weekly basis for the duration of their clinical work.

Trainees completing the 5-day DIT training are required to submit a clinical case study of 3000 words following successful completion of their clinical work. Case studies will be marked against a particular criteria which will assist the trainee to show evidence of their clinical competencies in delivering DIT.

Trainees completing the 20-day DIT training course are required to complete three case logs in total for formal marking purposes. The 20-day DIT training course requires case logs of 3000 words each, submitted within one month of the completion of clinical work with three successive DIT training cases. Case logs are marked against certain criteria as developed by the course in order to demonstrate progression in clinical competence across the three report submissions.

Guidance for submission of course work is provided to trainees during training.

DIT applicants will need to pay a submission fee of £125 for the purposes of independent, formal marking.

Following successful accreditation as a DIT practitioner, some clinicians may wish to proceed towards gaining accreditation as a DIT supervisor. As part of this requirement, DIT supervisees will need to be secured. For the purposes of DIT supervisor accreditation, potential supervisors will need to train up by supervising trainee-DIT practitioners so that they can gain experience of using clinical rating scales, marking clinical course work and providing supervision to trainees throughout the course of their training journey. Supervisors who intend to supervise qualified DIT practitioners only will not be in a position to take on trainee-DIT practitioners without experience of doing this work under supervision. 

If an applicant needs support to source trainee DIT practitioners in order to provide supervision, they can contact the Anna Freud Centre at DIT@annafreud.org to discuss this further.