AVERILL PARK, NY – June 14, 2017

Jesse Ritvo MD will join the faculty of The American Meditation Institute (AMI) for its 8th annual mind/body medicine CME conference October 24-28, 2017 at the Cranwell Resort and Spa in Lenox, Massachusetts. Entitled “American Meditation: The Heart and Science of
Yoga,” this 30 credit hour training is accredited through the Albany Medical College Office of Continuing Medical Education. In his upcoming lecture on “Alleviating Trauma, PTSD and Building Resilience,” Dr. Ritvo explains that, “The mantra-based practice of AMI Meditation and easy-gentle yoga taught at the upcoming CME physicians’ conference is an incomparable technology for calming the mind and relieving both physician and patient burnout. While alleviating the symptoms of trauma, PTSD and physicians’ burnout, these practices can build the kind of resilience we all need to live a more healthy, relaxed, and balanced life.”

Dr. Ritvo graduated from Harvard College and received his medical degree from the Brown-Dartmouth Medical Program. He is currently the assistant medical director of inpatient psychiatry at the University of Vermont Health Center-Central Vermont Medical Center, in addition to his position as assistant professor of medicine at UVM.

AMI’s 9th annual “Heart and Science of Yoga®” CME conference will provide easy-to-learn practices that work synergistically (within the intricate medium of the stress system) to reduce inflammation and burnout and allostatic load while working toward establishing homeostasis. With fewer than 75 physicians attending, this intimate program is designed to encourage active participant interaction by combining engaging lectures, panel discussions and Q&A. Although recent studies have demonstrated that 75% of health care costs associated with chronic diseases could be prevented or reversed by lifestyle changes, many clinicians do not offer themselves, or their patients, strategies that encourage meaningful change.

The devotion, enthusiasm, and teaching methodology of the entire AMI faculty will combine to create a dynamic and interactive course for healthcare professionals. Each AMI faculty member is committed to the advancement and training of Yoga Science as holistic mind/body medicine. In addition to Dr. Ritvo’s lecture on “Alleviating Trauma, PTSD and Building Resilience,” presenters include program director Leonard Perlmutter, AMI founder, meditational therapist and award-winning author; Mark Pettus MD, Director of Medical Education and Population Health at Berkshire Health Systems; Anthony Santilli MD, board-certified in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine; Prashant Kaushik MD, board-certified Rheumatologist; Sara Lazar PhD, instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and an Associate Researcher in the Psychiatry Department at Massachusetts General Hospital; Susan Lord MD, a private practice holistic physician
focusing on prevention and treatment, and former course director for the The Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s “Food As Medicine” program in Washington, DC; Beth Netter MD MT, holistic physician and acupuncturist, Albany, NY; Jyothi Bhatt BAMS, Ayurvedic practitioner and faculty member of Kripalu School of Ayurveda and Physician’s Assistant at New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center; Gustavo Grodnitzky PhD, noted author and psychologist and Chair of The American Meditation Institute’s Psychological Education Department; and Jenness Cortez Perlmutter, faculty member of The American Meditation Institute.

According to conference faculty director Leonard Perlmutter, “Most of the obstacles to health and well being––including trauma and PTSD––reside in the mind. Meditators learn how to develop the tools that can change the software of the mind and therefore, the reality they experience. By incorporating the practices taught at this conference, physicians can sharpen the focus of their attention, enhance their creativity, and experience a sense of purpose and comfort to better serve themselves, their families, their patients and their medical practices.”