Training home

As one component of the FACTS Program, we are piloting an on-demand, online skills training program for families and caregivers of adults living with mental illness. This project seeks to decrease barriers to family and caregiver involvement and improve family and caregiver support by doing the following:

  • Developing an on-line, on-demand training that is available to families or caregivers whenever it’s most convenient for them. The content is relevant across any mental health diagnosis or symptoms and is adapted from existing evidence‐based treatments. 
  • Piloting the training with families and caregivers of patients receiving care at The Center for Behavioral Health and Learning. 
  • Getting feedback on the program from families and caregivers who take the training. 
  • Evaluating the program and making improvements based on family and caregiver input.

This foundational, “proof of concept” training will be used to test feasibility and acceptability of the online, on-demand approach and content before expanding to more detailed, diagnosis specific trainings. Family and caregiver input will also be used to guide new trainings, support and resources offered by the FACTS Program in the future.

Skills training

Communication Strategies for Families and Caregivers

Communication Strategies for Families and Caregivers is a training for people who are supporting a loved one who is living with a serious mental illness. This training is meant to provide information and teach strategies for building communication skills.


Additional trainings available for families and caregivers

Below is a list of other training courses for families and caregivers. These are free, and some are related to a specific diagnosis. 

Psychosis REACH: Psychosis REACH teaches concrete, evidence-based skills that based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Experts in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis and Family Interventions teamed up with families with lived experience to develop this training model.


Memory Hub: Offers support, education, and social programs for people whose loved ones are living with dementia.


NAMI Family to Family: The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is a national organization with local affiliates throughout the Puget Sound Region. The NAMI Family-to-Family is a free, 8-session educational program for family, significant others and friends of people with mental health conditions. It is taught by NAMI-trained family members who have their own lived experience and includes presentations, discussions and interactive exercises.