Postdoctoral Fellowship in Behavioral Psychology
General Information:
This fellowship between Western State Hospital and the Department of Psychiatry 
and Neurobehavioral Sciences at UVa exposes fellows to practice as a member of a multidisciplinary team in both general and psychiatric hospital settings. The Postdoctoral Fellow has the opportunity to provide functional behavioral analysis and rehabilitation of clients with a variety of severe and persistent psychiatric disorders, behavioral excesses and deficits, and medical illnesses, as well as assessment and treatment of behavioral medicine outpatients.
Clinical training includes ongoing rotations at Western State Hospital, a JCAHO accredited inpatient facility in Staunton, VA, and at the Behavioral Medicine Center at the University of Virginia Health System. Clinical experiences include providing functional behavioral assessments and treatment in a variety of modalities (e.g., individual cognitive-behavioral therapy, group therapy, biofeedback), serving as a 
behavioral consultant, providing training to hospital staff, and supervising practicum students. There is significant opportunity to seek out training experiences of interest and to customize the fellowship experience, via development of group and training materials and selection of cases and treatment modalities. 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 Consultation
Three days each week are devoted to the Behavioral Consultation Team at Western State Hospital. This team provides services for a wide variety of the inpatient population. Fellows conduct functional behavioral analyses, case conceptualizations, individual and group interventions, consultations, staff trainings, behavioral therapy, cognitive-behavioral assessment, supervision, and research. Referrals to the consultation team typically involve persistent behavioral problems (e.g., self-injurious behavior, aggression). 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 to track 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. They lead groups that address behavioral and cognitive interventions. Didactic and collaborative research opportunities also 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%)*
- Meetings with the Program Director and postdoctoral fellows across sub-specialty areas during the academic year to discuss administrative issues and professional development.
- Western State Hospital Grand Rounds
- Five-day "Forensic Evaluation Training" provided through UVa Institute of Law, Psychiatry, and Public Policy
- 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:
- Assessing the interaction skills of direct care staff
- Case studies
* see Behavioral Medicine description for other education and professional development and research focus.
Location of Fellowship
Behavioral Medicine Center, University of Virginia Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences (Charlottesville, VA)
See the description provided for the Behavioral Medicine Fellowship.
Western State Hospital (Staunton, VA)
Western 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 specialized assistance in behavioral analyses and assessments and treatment 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. They focus particularly on consultations 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 everyday use of behavioral methods in providing psychiatric care, as well as other training as identified by either the wards or hospital.
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. Fellows are also required to attend the Monthly Psychology Fellows Meeting held at UVa.
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)
- Daniel Cox, Ph.D., ABPP (Director of Center for Behavioral Medicine Research)
- Scott Bender, Ph.D.
- Doug DeGood, Ph.D.
- Elaine Bailey, Ph.D.
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
Krista.Gattis@WSH.DMHMRSAS.virginia.gov
Other Available Fellowships:
- Behavioral Health & Technology
- Behavioral Medicine
- CARE
- Forensic Psychology
- Neuropsychology
- Rehabilitation Neuropsychology
Faculty and Fellows
Psychology Residencies Home Page and Application Instructions