Postdoctoral Fellowship in Behavioral Psychology

There are no Behavioral Psychology fellowships available for 2008.

Below is information about the Behavioral Psychology fellowship:

wsh_newThis program exposes fellows to both the functional behavioral assessment and rehabilitation of clients with a variety of severe and persistent psychiatric disorders and medical illnesses as well as assessment and therapy of behavioral medicine outpatients. Clinical training includes two ongoing rotations at Western State Hospital, a JCAHO accredited inpatient facility, and at the Behavioral Medicine Center at the University of Virginia Health System. Clinical experiences include functional behavioral assessments, psychological assessments, treatment using a variety of therapeutic modalities (e.g. cognitive-behavioral therapy, biofeedback), and consultation services for patient care teams throughout both facilities. The postdoctoral Fellow has the opportunity to practice as a member of a multidisciplinary team in both a general and psychiatric hospital setting. On each rotation, fellows work with, and receive supervision from at least two faculty members who specialize in that service area.

Clinical Focus (80%)

Behavioral Analysis

Three days each week are devoted to the Behavioral Consultation Team at Western State Hospital. This team provides services for a wide variety of patient populations. Fellows conduct functional behavioral assessments, case conceptualization, interventions, consultation, staff trainings, behavioral therapy, cognitive-behavioral assessment, supervision, and research. Referrals to the consultation team typically involve persistent behavioral problems (i.e. self-injurious behavior). The postdoctoral Fellow has the opportunity to practice as a member of a multidisciplinary team and to provide the team with information on the development, implementation, and evaluation of behavioral assessments and treatment plans and in tracking patient response to treatment plans. Fellows learn to integrate assessment data and psychiatric history into functional behavioral reports and gain experience with working with persons from various socioeconomic statuses and ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Fellows can also participate in the facilitation of groups that address behavioral and cognitive interventions. Didactic and collaborative research opportunities are available and encouraged.

Behavioral Medicine

Approximately two days each week. See Behavioral Medicine page for information on clinical component of Behavioral Medicine rotation.

Educational & Professional Development at WSH (10%)*

  1. Meetings with the Program Director and postdoctoral fellows across sub-specialty areas during the academic year to discuss administrative issues and professional development.
  2. Western State Hospital Grand Rounds
  3. Basic "Forensic Evaluation Training"
  4. Involvement in hospital-wide committees that focus on the application of psychological knowledge throughout the hospital (e.g. Behavioral Management Committee, Program Development Committee, and behavioral training of direct care staff).

Research Focus (10%)*

This may include projects designed by the Fellow or a variety of faculty projects:

  1. Assessing the interaction skills of direct care staff
  2. Case studies

* see Behavioral Medicine description for other education and professional development and research focus.

Clinical Opportunities at Western State Hospital (Staunton, VA)

wsh oldWestern State Hospital (WSH) is a public psychiatric treatment facility located in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia approximately 25 miles west of Charlottesville. The hospital is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO). WSH serves 34 counties and 12 cities, and admits individuals who are 18 years of age or older. All patients admitted to WSH must have been assessed by a mental health professional in the community and judged to require inpatient psychiatric treatment. Currently, the hospital maintains a census of approximately 240 patients. Each area of the hospital is described in the following text.

Acute Care

The Acute Care (admissions) area is comprised of three units that serve acutely disturbed psychiatric patients. The majority of these individuals meet involuntary commitment criteria (viz., inability to care for self, dangerous to self or others due to mental illness) at the time of admission. The primary goal of care in this area is to provide intensive diagnostic evaluation and treatment directed toward stabilizing florid psychiatric symptoms (generally, acute psychosis and/or suicidality) and returning patients to their community as quickly as possible. There are two coed wards serving patients 18-65 years and an all-male forensic ward (viz., patients who have pending legal charges, are not competent to stand trial, or who have been adjudicated NGRI). Psychologists on these wards focus on diagnostic interviewing and assessment, brief individual and group therapy, and behavioral treatment planning.

Extended Rehabilitation

The nine Extended Rehabilitation wards serve patients who have persistent impairments and who cannot be discharged from an acute care ward. These patients exhibit refractory psychiatric symptoms and living skill deficits that impair their ability to function in a community setting. Some also exhibit problem behaviors or deficits in basic self-care that are difficult for community placements to tolerate. There are several Psychosocial rehabilitation Day programs that provide self-management and self-care training to individuals from these wards. The psychologists conduct a variety of structured group therapies, in addition to ore traditional group therapy in these programs. Psychologists on these wards are also involved in developing and refining ward contingency management procedures (e. g., token economies) and individualized treatment plans. They also conduct serial assessments to assess progress.

Neuropsychology

A separate Neuropsychology Laboratory provides intellectual, personality, and neuropsychological evaluations on a consultation basis for patients throughout the hospital. The focus of assessment or consultation may range from brief, focused neurocognitive assessments to a full neuropsychological battery. Dr. Bernice Marcopulos directs this service.

Behavioral Consultation Service

The Behavioral Consultation Service provides technical assistance in behavioral assessment and plan development to all areas of the hospital. This service, with two behavioral clinical psychologists and two behavior specialists, consults to all treatment teams to improve the behavioral integrity of treatment plans and accepts consultation requests for challenging cases that cannot be adequately addressed within the capabilities of the team. In addition, the members of this service provide training to all direct care staff regarding the incidental use of behavioral methods in providing psychiatric care.

WSH also offers seminars that are available to psychology fellows. These include the weekly grand rounds for WSH professional staff and the monthly in-services specifically for the psychology department faculty. Dr. Jeff Phillips is the Director of Psychology at Western State Hospital.

Core Faculty

Western State Hospital

  • Jeff Phillips, Ph.D., Director of Psychology
  • Krista Gattis, Ph.D., Behavioral Consultant
  • Gerald F. McKeegan, Ph.D., ABPP, Behavioral Consultant

Behavioral Medicine Center (UVaHS)

  • Linda Gonder-Frederick, Ph.D. (BM Director of Training & Clinic Director)
  • Andrea Bauchowitz, Ph.D.
  • Daniel Cox, Ph.D., ABPP  (Director of Research)

Current Fellow

  • Jason Haium, Ph.D.

 

DIRECT INQUIRIES AND MATERIALS TO:

Krista Gattis, Ph.D.
Western State Hospital
P. O. Box 2500
Staunton, VA 24401-2500
mailto:Ayonda.Lanier@WSH.DMHMRSAS.gov

Other Available Fellowships:

Faculty and Fellows
Psychology Residencies Home Page and Application Instructions