Learning &
Training

How does someone learn to sit with a person during a psychedelic experience? Psychedelic-specific training is often treated as if it were a single, clearly defined intervention. It is not. Training programs differ substantially in their structure, duration, content, teaching methods, and the competencies they aim to develop. Some emphasize safety and monitoring, others therapeutic or relational skills, and some also address spiritual, existential, religious, or cultural dimensions of psychedelic care. Recent work describing facilitator-training programs has therefore called for greater clarity, continuing education, and stronger field standards.

Training also does not begin from a common starting point. Practitioners enter psychedelic care with different professional backgrounds and baseline competencies, which means that the same curriculum may not produce the same learning needs or outcomes for everyone. In one recent evaluation, nurses completing a 15-week facilitator-training program reported gains in knowledge and skills, but most still felt that additional practical, in-person training was needed to feel adequately prepared. Objective changes in relational skills were more modest, underscoring the difference between completing a course and demonstrating competence. The ROLES Study therefore asks: what learning and training are actually required, provided, and reported for each role? We map psychedelic-specific education, practical preparation, supervision, assessment, and other learning experiences, and examine how these relate to practitioners’ prior qualifications and expected clinical behavior.