Dana George Trottier, MA, LCAT, RDT/BCT, is a Licensed Creative Arts Therapist (LCAT), a Registered Drama Therapist (RDT), and a Board Certified Trainer (BCT). He holds a master’s degree in Drama Therapy (NYU) and a Certificate of Advanced Training in LGBTQ Healthcare (Fenway Institute). He has experience working with individuals across the lifespan in a variety of settings including: acute care, medical, outpatient, PROS, Deaf community rehabilitation, children’s enrichment, and private organizations, and workplaces.
He is currently a Clinical Supervisor at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County, where he provides clinical and programmatic supervision for a multimodal team of creative arts therapists, activity therapists, rehab counselors, and training drama therapists. Within the public hospitals system, his clinical work has predominantly focused on the use of drama therapy in acute inpatient psychiatry and building a therapeutic curriculum to support wellness and recovery. Additionally, he has worked as a member of various interdisciplinary teams within specialty services including first episode psychosis and women’s reproductive mental health. He also maintains a private practice where he delivers clinical services, supervision, and career consultation. In support of his clinical work, Dana is a founding member of Four Quarter Theater—a NYC based theater collaborative of actors, directors, and playwrights.
His research, publications, and presentations have included the topics of: embodied supervision and clinical training; countertransference; traumatic loss and intergenerational trauma; role theory; social justice in clinical supervision; microaggressions and systems of oppression in treatment spaces; and minority stress and mental health in the LGBTQ community. He is co-editor of the book Creative Arts Therapies and the LGBTQ Community.
Degrees Held
- BA
- MA
Awards
- Lotus Award for Excellence in Patient Centered Care, Kings County 3W (2014)
- Lotus Award for Excellence in Patient Centered Care, Kings County 3E (2013)
- Robert deCsipkes Memorial Prize, outstanding research in psychology (2009)
- Award for Excellence: Psychology Manuscript (Quantitative Research), Eastern Colleges Science Conference (2009)
- Richmond County Psychological Association William Ellis Award, for dedication to psychology, civic issues, and performing arts (2009)
Publications
Books:
- Creative Arts Therapies and The LGBTQ Community: Theory & Practice. (contributing co-editor, with Briana MacWilliam, Brian T. Harris & Kristin Long), Jessica Kingsley (in press).
Chapters:
- Trottier, D. G. (2019). Therapist as guide: Role profiles, metaphor, and story to understand the parallel journey of the queer therapist and the straight client. In B. MacWilliam, D.G. Trottier, K. Long, & B.T. Harris. (Eds.), Creative Arts Therapies and the LGBTQ Community: Theory and Practice. London: Jessica Kingsley.
- Trottier, D. G, & Williams, B. (2019). Exploring social justice and dismantling dominant narratives through creative arts peer supervision. In B. MacWilliam, D.G. Trottier, K. Long, & B. T. Harris (Eds.), Creative arts therapies and the LGBTQ community: Theory and Practice. London: Jessica Kingsley.
- Williams, B., & Trottier, D.G. (2019). Queering the conversation: Facilitating dialogues on LGBTQ microaggressions and systems of oppression. In B. MacWilliam, D.G. Trottier, K. Long, & B. T. Harris (Eds.), Creative arts therapies and the LGBTQ community: Theory and Practice. London: Jessica Kingsley.
- *MacWilliam, B., Briggs, A., Hormadaly, M., & Trottier, D.G. (2017). The Impact of Culture and Community. In B. MacWilliam (Ed.), Complicated grief, attachment, & art therapy: Theory & Treatment. London: Kinglsey.
Peer-Reviewed Articles:
- *Trottier, D. G., & Hilt, L. (2017). I dont feel naked: The use of embodied supervision to examine the impact of patient clothing on clinical countertransference on an inpatient psychiatry unit. Drama Therapy Review, 3(2), 261-83.
*Indicates collaborative research and publications with students/supervisees
Courses:
- Clinical Populations for Drama Therapy
Research Interests:
- Embodied supervision and Drama Therapy pedagogy
- Severe mental illness and institutionalization
- LGBTQ mental health
- Role Theory
- Queer Theory in Drama Therapy
- Performance