Using VR for Substance Abuse Counseling

Dr. Micki Washburn is an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work. Prior to her appointment at UTA, Dr. Washburn worked as a Research Scientist at the University of Houston Center for Drug and Social Policy Research, and was the Coordinator of the Virtual Reality Clinical Research Lab. Dr. Washburn frequently integrates aspects of technology into her scholarship and has expertise in VR development and telehealth. Her current research focuses on the development of interventions for Latinx women with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders who are at risk of child welfare involvement. Dr. Washburn’s other work focuses on the implementation of large scale system improvements to better serve LGBTQ+ youth and families with child welfare system involvement. In addition, she has extensive program evaluation experience related to mental health, substance abuse and child welfare system improvement projects.

For over 15 years, Dr. Washburn has worked with people experiencing co-occurring mental health, substance abuse and physical health concerns. She holds practice licenses in both Social Work and Professional Counseling. She is also a State of Texas board approved LPC Supervisor. Dr. Washburn is trained in multiple evidence-based intervention approaches including motivational interviewing (MI), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Mindfulness Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE). Her extensive practice experience brings real world knowledge to the classroom to further develop the knowledge base and skills of the next generation of social work professionals.