Calendar of Events - The American Balint Society

An online Balint Group is now forming which will meet monthly on the second Saturday at 11am Eastern/8am Pacific. The series will begin in January and run through August. Because group cohesiveness affects participants’ experience of the group, and a minimum number of participants are required to hold a session, registrants are asked to commit to attending all sessions. Please do not plan to arrive late, leave early or miss sessions, etc.

Leaders facilitating the group: Eddo de Lang, MD, and Darlene Lawrence, MD


Eddo de Lang, MD, has been a family physician since 1980. My first introduction to Balint was in the late 1970s while I was doing my Family Medicine Residency training in the Netherlands. after practicing for several years in Europe, I moved to the United States. Participating in Balint groups as a group member or co-leader has taught me the importance of divergent thinking and reflection. Darlene Lawrence and I are both credentialed Balint Group leaders and have co-led two previous ABS online groups and we have both co-led several in-person Balint Groups as well. I am currently involved in the ABS Scholarly Activity Committee, Balint Leadership Intensives Committee, and ABS council. It will be a pleasure meeting you online when our group will have its first Balint Group session. Hope to see you there.


Darlene Lawrence, MD, FAAFP, is a board-certified family physician who graduated from Georgetown University School of Medicine, and completed her residency at the Georgetown/Providence Family Medicine Residency Program in her hometown, Washington, D.C. Providing full-service family medicine, including obstetrics for 26 years, Dr. Lawrence has been teaching medical students and family medicine residents for more than 30 years. Currently, she is associate program director of The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education Family Medicine Residency Program at Unity Health Care at Parkside Health Center and directs advising, Balint, Practice Management, and Resident Wellness. She is an ABS credentialed leader and faculty member at Balint intensives. She is a proud wife, parent of four and dog mom of two.


Time: 11:00am - 12:00pm Eastern Time/8:00am - 9:am Pacific. The initial meeting will be 90 minutes to allow for introductions and an overview of the Balint method, meetings two - eight will be 60 minutes.
Number of meetings and Dates: Eight (8) monthly meetings on the second Saturday:  January 10, February 14, March 14, April 11, May 9, June 13, July 11, and August 8, 2026.

Cancellation Policy:
If cancelled by the ABS or hosts due to insufficient registrants, those registered will receive their money back. Otherwise, no return of fee is possible, including in the event of registrant's partial attendance or inability to complete the sequence of sessions. 

1. Registrants must be clinically active and willing to present cases.
2. Balint work can stir strong emotions. If the registrant is at an unusually stressful period in their life, we recommend they sign up at another time.
3. Because the success of the group depends in part on cohesion, steady attendance matters. Registrants must intend to attend all sessions of the group.
4. In welcoming international participants, please know that the meetings will be held in English.

Target Audience
This series is appropriate for clinicians new to the Balint Group method as well as experienced Balint Group leaders. Suitable for those in active practice including physicians (primary care, psychiatry, other specialists), nurse practitioners, psychologists, social workers, and others. 

Accreditation
The AAFP has reviewed Balint Group - Decreasing Isolation with Peer Consultation, and deemed it acceptable for AAFP credit. 

AMA/AAFP Equivalency: AAFP Prescribed credit is accepted by the American Medical Association as equivalent to AMA PRA Category 1 Credit toward the AMA Physician's Recognition Award. When applying for the AMA PRA, Prescribed credit earned must be reported as Prescribed, not as Category 1.

The American Balint Society is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The American Balint Society maintains responsibility for this program and its content.  

More Information

Grievance Policy:
Any concerns should be brought to the attention of Rebekah Schiefer, Committee Chair.

ABS Grievance Policy

The Foundation Psychosomatic and Social Medicine invites medical students to consider applying for The International Balint Award 2026 – "Ascona Prize"

They should describe a student-patient relationship, an experience, or experiences, from the student’s medical studies and include critical reflection on personal meetings with patients. Prize monies of € 5,000 are available for the authors of the best three essays. Papers must be in English. Each essay will be reviewed by an international jury with final prize winners being selected by a committee named by the Foundation and the International Balint Federation.

The criteria by which the papers will be judged are as follows:

1. Exposition: The paper should include a presentation of a truly personal experience of a student-patient relationship. (Manuscripts of former medical theses or diplomas cannot be accepted.)
2. Reflection: A description of how the student experienced this relationship, either individually or as part of the medical team.
3. Action: The student's own perception of the demands to which s/he felt exposed and an illustration of how s/he responded.
4. Progression: A discussion of both ways in which the student's own approach might change in the future, and also possible ways in which future medical training might enhance the state of awareness for individual students.

Submissions of 5.000-12.000 words should be sent by email, as a Word attachment to Prof Don Nease: DONALD.NEASE@CUANSCHUTZ.EDU

They must be received before 31st January 2026. Prizes will be given at the International Balint Congress in Aarhus, Denmark, 30 Sept – 3 October 2026.

The prize winners will be expected to give a short presentation of their essay (not more than 15 minutes) at the Congress and the full text of the papers will be published in the Proceedings of the Congress and other Balint journals.

The Congress fee will be waived for prize-winners and they will be provided with free accommodation. In addition, each prizewinner may claim reasonable travel expenses (the lowest available air fare) on the production of appropriate receipts.

Read more: stiftung-ps.de/home-en-gb/, www.balintinternational.com

Leaders: Lisa Buck, MD and Albert Lichtenstein, PhD
Time: The first meeting will be 90 minutes 7:00pm - 8:30pm Eastern Time/4:00pm - 5:30pm Pacific Time. Subsequent meetings will be 60 minutes 7:00pm - 8:00pm Eastern/4:00 - 5:00 Pacific. 
Number of meetings and Dates: Ten (10) monthly meetings on the following Tuesdays: February 10, March 10, April 14, May 12, June 9, July14, August 11, Sept 8, October13, and November 10, 2026.

Fee:
$250 for ABS Members
$400 for non-members

Cancellation Policy:
If canceled by the ABS or hosts due to insufficient registrants, those registered will receive their money back. Otherwise, no return of fee is possible, including in the event of registrant's partial attendance or inability to complete the sequence of sessions. 

1. Registrants must be clinically active and willing to present cases.
2. Balint work can stir strong emotions. If the registrant is at an unusually stressful period in their life, we recommend they sign up at another time.
3. Because the success of the group depends in part on cohesion, steady attendance matters. Registrants must intend to attend all sessions of the group.

Target Audience
This series is appropriate for clinicians new to the Balint Group method as well as experienced Balint Group leaders. Suitable for those in active practice including physicians (primary care, psychiatry, other specialists), nurse practitioners, psychologists, social workers, and others. 

Accreditation
The AAFP has reviewed Balint Group - Decreasing Isolation with Peer Consultation, and deemed it acceptable for AAFP credit. 

AMA/AAFP Equivalency: AAFP Prescribed credit is accepted by the American Medical Association as equivalent to AMA PRA Category 1 Credit toward the AMA Physician's Recognition Award. When applying for the AMA PRA, Prescribed credit earned must be reported as Prescribed, not as Category 1.

The American Balint Society is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The American Balint Society maintains responsibility for this program and its content.  

More Information

Grievance Policy:
Any concerns should be brought to the attention of Rebekah Schiefer, Committee Chair.

ABS Grievance Policy

• Help the group explore the patient-clinician relationship when issues of diversity and difference arise
• Find opportunities to help the group dig deeper
• Facilitate a group in which the clinician’s identity and personal values seem at odds

                                                            

The four-day Intensive course is designed to teach Balint group leadership technique primarily through experiential groups, supplemented by topic-focused small discussion groups and faculty panel discussions. Attendees will have ample time to present cases, practice leading a Balint group, and engage informally with other participants. 

The Spokane Leadership Intensive course is appropriate for clinicians new to the Balint Group method as well as experienced Balint Group leaders. The course is well-suited to those who are currently leading, expect to lead in the future, or are seeking a better understanding of Balint groups.  The curriculum is appropriate for physicians (primary care, psychiatry, other specialists), psychologists, social workers, other mental health care providers, veterinarians, and pastoral care providers.

Course Details

Because group cohesiveness affects participants’ experience of the course, registrants are required to commit to attending all sessions and to attending each session in its entirety. Please do not plan to arrive late, leave early or miss sessions.

The Balint Leadership Intensive is a training course and is not intended as therapy. Nevertheless, Balint Group work can sometimes stir up strong feelings. Prospective registrants who are experiencing a particularly vulnerable period in their lives may want to consider participating in this training at a later date.
Course Schedule

Health care professionals are invited to attend the Healing, Mindfulness and Compassion Retreat at the beautiful and tranquil Ratna Ling Conference Center in the Redwoods of Sonoma County, California. The weekend conference combines Eastern and Western approaches to healing: Tibetan Yoga and Meditation as well as Balint sessions that address the complex emotional landscape of the clinician-patient relationship. The Balint group format is an empathy-enhancing practice to strengthen treatment alliances, improve care delivery, increase practitioner resilience and decrease professional isolation. Further context on the neuroscience of compassion and its importance in the provision of effective service will increase understanding of the connection between practitioners’ self-care and the care they are able to offer others. The accommodations and architecture are exquisite and the weekend is educational, restful, and rejuvenating.

Cancellation Policy
Registrants wishing to cancel their registration must do so in writing by the cancellation deadline of March 12, 2026. For cancellations received by the cancellation date, $100 of the registration fee will be withheld for administrative fees and the refund will be issued within 30 days of acknowledgment of the cancellation. For cancellations received after the cancellation date, no refunds will be available. 
Complete Event Details

• Help the group explore the patient-clinician relationship when issues of diversity and difference arise
• Find opportunities to help the group dig deeper
• Facilitate a group in which the clinician’s identity and personal values seem at odds

• Help the group explore the patient-clinician relationship when issues of diversity and difference arise
• Find opportunities to help the group dig deeper
• Facilitate a group in which the clinician’s identity and personal values seem at odds

                                                         

The four-day Intensive course is designed to teach Balint group leadership technique primarily through experiential groups, supplemented by topic-focused small discussion groups and faculty panel discussions. Attendees will have ample time to present cases, practice leading a Balint group, and engage informally with other participants. 

The New England Leadership Intensive course is appropriate for clinicians new to the Balint Group method as well as experienced Balint Group leaders. The course is well-suited to those who are currently leading, expect to lead in the future, or are seeking a better understanding of Balint groups.  The curriculum is appropriate for physicians (primary care, psychiatry, other specialists), psychologists, social workers, other mental health care providers, veterinarians, and pastoral care providers.

Course Details

Because group cohesiveness affects participants’ experience of the course, registrants are required to commit to attending all sessions and to attending each session in its entirety. Please do not plan to arrive late, leave early or miss sessions.

The Balint Leadership Intensive is a training course and is not intended as therapy. Nevertheless, Balint Group work can sometimes stir up strong feelings. Prospective registrants who are experiencing a particularly vulnerable period in their lives may want to consider participating in this training at a later date.
Course Schedule

Cancellation Policy

Registrants wishing to cancel their registration must do so in writing by the cancellation deadline of September 15, 2026. For cancellations received by the cancellation date, $100 of the registration fee will be withheld for administrative fees and the refund will occur within 30 days of acknowledgment of cancellation. For cancellations received after the deadline, no refunds will be available. 

ABS Grievance Policy
Any concerns should be brought to the attention of Eran Metzger, metzger@hsl.harvard.edu.

ABS Grievance Policy

• Help the group explore the patient-clinician relationship when issues of diversity and difference arise
• Find opportunities to help the group dig deeper
• Facilitate a group in which the clinician’s identity and personal values seem at odds