Key Issues in Videoconference Forensic Evaluation (VCFE)

Presented by: E.E. White, PsyD, Jonnah Docherty, PsyD, Jamie Adkins, PsyD, ABPP
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2 Hours | 2 CEs

This program provides an overview of Ohio statutes and the state’s mental health system, equipping attendees with the essential knowledge for conducting virtual competency forensic evaluations (VCFEs). Participants learn practical strategies for managing VCFEs, including handling emergency situations, and will examine key ethical principles such as informed consent, confidentiality, and professional boundaries within telehealth contexts. The program also addresses the practical and ethical considerations for selecting and administering psychological tests in virtual environments, focusing on maintaining test validity and clinical utility while navigating the unique challenges of remote forensic assessments.

Presented By

Assistant Director of Forensic and Specialized Assessment Services for Netcare Forensic Center E.E. White, PsyD

E. E. White, Psy.D. is a licensed psychologist in Ohio and New York with specialized expertise in forensic assessment. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Crime & Justice from the University of Michigan and completed her doctorate in Clinical Forensic Psychology at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology in Los Angeles. Dr. White completed her pre-doctoral internship at Starr Commonwealth, a juvenile treatment facility in Michigan. She began her career with the New York State Office of Mental Health, where she primarily conducted psychological testing and assessments and facilitated competency restoration groups at the Central New York Psychiatric Center. She later served as an Assistant Research Professor at the University at Buffalo, where her work included conducting forensic evaluations, delivering mental health services in jail settings, training professionals, supervising students and psychiatric residents, and partnering with law enforcement on Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) and fitness-for-duty evaluations. In 2019, Dr. White relocated to Ohio and joined the Court Diagnostic and Treatment Center in Toledo as a legal examiner, later serving briefly as Executive Director. She currently works remotely as the Assistant Director of Forensic and Specialized Assessment Services at Netcare Forensic Center, where she helps oversee virtual forensic evaluations and outpatient competency services for both adults and juveniles, and provides training and supervision for postdoctoral fellows. Dr. White is a member of the American Psychology–Law Society and the Ohio Psychological Association, and she is a former board member of NAMI Wood County.

Forensic Examiner at the Court Diagnostic & Treatment Center Jonnah Docherty, Psy.D.

I received my Master of Arts degree in Clinical Psychology in August of 2018 and my Doctor of Psychology degree in August of 2020, both from Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona. I completed my APA-accredited internship at the Arizona State Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, with focus on the Forensic campus. I completed my postdoctoral training at the Center for Behavioral Medicine within the Department of Forensic Services in Kansas City, Missouri, which is certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP) for the five-year experience waiver for board certification in forensic psychology, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, the bulk of my postdoctoral training in conducting court-ordered evaluations was comprised of virtual evaluations of defendants. Currently, I am a licensed psychologist in the state of Pennsylvania and a PSYPACT-approved psychologist, and I work as a Forensic Examiner for the Court Diagnostic & Treatment Center.

Jaime Adkins, PsyD, ABPP

Dr. Adkins is currently in private practice. She completes forensic evaluations and is also serves in the role of Forensic Monitor.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this program you will be able to:

  • Describe Ohio statues

  • Describe the Ohio Mental Health System

  • Describe how to prepare for, set up, and conduct videoconference forensic evaluations (VCFEs) and how to manage emergency situations during VCFEs

  • Describe core ethical principles like informed consent and confidentiality and recognize common ethical issues in VCFEs

  • Describe ethical best practices for documenting, communicating, and making decisions in virtual forensic work

  • Describe how to choose and use psychological tests in virtual evaluations and know their limitations when done by telehealth

  • Describe when in-person testing is needed to support or replace virtual assessment results.

CE Sponsorship Information

Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. PaloAlto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT) maintains responsibility for this program and its content. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies(CONCEPT) is approved by the Canadian Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies(CONCEPT), SW CPE is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Boardfor Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers#SW-0356 and the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental HealthPractitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental healthcounselors. #MHC-0073. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT)has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 6811. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. CONCEPT ProfessionalTraining, #1480, is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved as ACE providers. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. CONCEPT Professional Training maintains responsibility for this course. ACE provider approval period: 11/22/23-11/22/26. Social workers completing this course receive (clinical or social work ethics) continuing education credits.