Best wishes from the Training and Supervision Department at MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC)!
In a world reckoning with collective trauma, we extend our gratitude to you for your dedication to trauma healing. We hold the vision of a time in which effective trauma treatments, including MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, can be more greatly accessible to those who could benefit from them.
Online Trainings in 2020
MAPS PBC Trainers Annie Mithoefer, B.S.N., and Michael Mithoefer, M.D., recently completed the first ever live online training for the MDMA Therapy Training Program with support from MDMA Therapy Training Program staff. They delivered the online training across two weekends, June 20-21 and June 27-28, to the current CIIS Certificate in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies and Research (CPTR) cohort. Michael Mithoefer and Annie Mithoefer provided a second online training to over twenty-five clinicians in July. MAPS PBC trainers Marcela Ot’alora, G, L.P.C., and Bruce Poulter, M.P.H., will be providing an online training for Naropa University in October. Annie Mithoefer, B.S.N., and Michael Mithoefer, M.D., will be providing an online training in November to prepare additional therapists in Europe for the new study protocol, the open-label lead-in study for the European segment of Phase 3, also researching MDMA-assisted psychotherapy as a treatment for PTSD.
The training team is excited to learn from our online trainings as we continue to work on training design and program development to support the growth of the MDMA Therapy Training Program. Sign up for the MDMA Therapy Training Program Newsletter to receive updates on future trainings.
MAPS Protocol Updates
In June, the study site in Klecany, Czech Republic, was the first of several European sites to begin screening participants for the new protocol. Forty European therapists are completing their final phase of training to prepare for work on this protocol.
MAPS is continuing Phase 3 clinical trials of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD at 14 sites in the U.S., Canada, and Israel, the second MAPS-sponsored Phase 3 study for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. This study will enroll participants who have moderate or greater severity of PTSD and are in otherwise good health. The second FDA-regulated Phase 3 clinical trial has started participant recruitment with COVID-19 safety measures in place, and we expect completion of the study in early 2022. If you know someone with PTSD who is interested in participating in a clinical trial, they can visit mdmaptsd.org to find more information to apply.
MAPS will conduct a Phase 2, open-label, multi-site study of the safety and feasibility of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for eating disorders, anticipated to begin enrollment in 2021. This study will explore MDMA-assisted psychotherapy and adjunct caregiver involvement in the treatment of individuals with for anorexia nervosa restricting subtype (AN-R) and binge eating disorder (BED). The addition of a supportive caregiver as a treatment ally with every participant reflects this most recent development in science and practice; supportive caregivers enrolled in the study will receive non-drug psychotherapy support. Strategy Lead Adele Lafrance, Ph.D., is overseeing this study and also recently participated in a panel Can Psychedelics Offer A New Treatment For Eating Disorders?
The multi-center expanded access program, which will allow patients with PTSD to receive the investigational treatment of MDMA combined with psychotherapy outside of a clinical trial, is anticipated to begin enrollment in early 2021 at various approved sites in the US.
We appreciate your support as we work for collective healing, and to bring the healing potential of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD to those in need. • Learn More
