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Compassion Cultivation Training

for Physicians and Psychologists

A note from the course director, Dr. Diana Adams

Dear Fellow Physicians and Psychologists,

In all my years in training and practice as a psychologist and member of the Stanford Medical Staff, no one ever used the word suffering.  Nor did any one approach how we can cope with the suffering we witness.  Almost all of us, recognize suffering in others.  Most of us have chosen to make our life’s work about alleviating suffering in others.  Many of us absorb in the suffering of others without having a tool to let it go.  This may lead to burnout, compassion fatigue and empathic distress.

Compassion Cultivation Training™   offers a way to transform this suffering by letting it go through us and out.   CCT™ is a life skill that can be learned in 8 sessions. It focuses on secular Buddhist and Mindfulness techniques aimed at increasing compassion for ourselves and others and learning a tool for coping with suffering.  Research in to the science underlying CCT™ is exploding. I believe CCT™ is the most important education that I have had since getting my doctorate.  CCT™ was developed at the Stanford Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE ™).  Seed money for CCT™ was provided by the Dali Lama.

 I am teaching a Compassion Cultivation Training ™ class offered exclusively to MDs and PhDs.  We have found that it is important for doctors to have dedicated CCT™ classes developed for their needs and privacy.  We will also explore the science of compassion training.

This class is offered jointly through the Stanford Department of Psychiatry and the Stanford Center for Continuing Medical Education (SCCME).  It offers up to 16 CME for the full 16 hour class.  It is eligible for STAP funding.  

Please take a look at the program.

Warmly,
Diana

Diana Adams Ed.D.
Adjunct Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University Medical School
Stanford, CA, 94305-5717
650-327-7117
diana.adams@stanford.edu

About Compassion Cultivation Training©

CCT™ is an 8-week program, developed at Stanford University, with insights and techniques from psychology, neuroscience, and contemplative practice. The course integrates evidence-based meditation techniques, interactive discussions, and lectures as well as real-world exercises to put learning into practice. This class will provide a private and safe environment for physicians and psychologists to explore compassion issues.

CCT™ has applications for your own well-being, response to suffering within yourself and others, burnout, your relationship to your work and in clinical applications for treatment of anxiety. The Stanford WellMD/WellPhD Center's Professional Fulfillment Model emphasizes Personal Resilience. Compassion and Self Compassion are two measures of Personal Resilience that the Center tracks as measures of medical staff wellbeing. Compassion Cultivation Training has been also studied in reducing burnout.

Activate your own compassionate nature as a powerful force in your everyday life. CCT™ is taught worldwide and offers practical skills, tools, and knowledge. As a graduate, you establish the habit of relating to yourself, others, and the world around you from a place of greater understanding, joy, and purpose. This CCT class is designed with supplemental materials that focus on the unique education and experience of being a physician or psychologist.

The circle of compassion begins with ourselves

Throughout the course, we help you lean into challenges, build the courage to take compassionate action, manage your emotions, and develop your resilience to prevent empathy fatigue.

  • Improve your personal relationships
  • Support health, happiness, and well-­­being
  • Reduce stress, depression, and anxiety
  • Make a positive difference in the world

Our course includes:

  • Weekly 2 hour class including lecture, discussion, and in-class exercises
  • Daily meditation practices
  • Real-world assignments for practicing compassionate thoughts and actions

Steps in CCT™ :

Step 1: Settling the mind
Step 2: Compassion and kindness for a loved one
Step 3: Self-directed compassion and kindness
Step 4: Common humanity
Step 5: Cultivating compassion for others
Step 6: Active compassion

Audience

This CCT™ course is specifically designed to support physicians and psychologists  who want to engage compassion for themselves and improve their relationships with others. For this session, registration is limited to physicians and psychologists. We welcome our physicians and psychologists colleagues from other Medical Institutions to join us. This is a hybrid class; learners may attend in-person on the Stanford campus, or via Zoom videoconferencing.

Winter 2026 Course Schedule

Mondays, January 26 - March 23, 2026, for 8 class sessions
(No class on February 16th due to federal holiday.)

from 6:00pm - 8:00pm PST (Pacific Standard Time)

Accreditation Statement

In support of improving patient care, Stanford Medicine is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team. ​

Credit Designation 

American Medical Association (AMA) 

Stanford Medicine designates this Live Activity for a maximum of 16 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditsTM.  Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. 

American Psychological Association (APA) 

Continuing Education (CE) credits for psychologists are provided through the co-sponsorship of the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of Continuing Education in Psychology (CEP). The APA CEP Office maintains responsibly for the content of the programs. 

Cost

CCT Attendee with CME: $475.00

For Cultivating Compassion Attendees who would like to receive CME credit for attendance. Early bird registration rates end on January 7, 2026 and will increase to $525.

CCT Attendee - NO CME: $425.00

For Cultivating Compassion attendees who do not wish to claim CME credits. Early bird registration rates end on January 7, 2026 and will increase to $450. 

Registration

Register with a Credit Card

Cancellation Policy

Cancellations received in writing no less than 20 days before the course will be refunded, less a 20% administrative fee. No refunds will be made on cancellations received after that date. Please send cancellation requests to psych_edcore@stanford.edu

Stanford University School of Medicine reserves the right to cancel or postpone this program if necessary; in the event of cancellation, course fees will be fully refunded.