The CAPS doctoral internship training program has two general goals, which are to prepare interns for professional practice in health service psychology through 1) development of core clinical and counseling skills, and 2) development of professional attitudes and behaviors. This is accomplished through focus on nine specific competency areas that are:
- Evidence-based Intervention: Demonstrates appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes in the selection, implementation, and evaluation of interventions that are based on the best scientific research evidence; respectful of clients’ values/preferences; and relevant expert guidance.
- Evidence-based Assessment: Demonstrates appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes in the selection, administration, and interpretation of assessments consistent with the best scientific research evidence and relevant expert guidance.
- Ethical and Legal Standards: Demonstrates appropriate ethical and legal knowledge, skills, and attitudes in all professional roles.
- Individual and Cultural Diversity: Demonstrates appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes about cultural and individual differences in all professional roles.
- Research: Demonstrates appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes to produce and disseminate scientific research and to make appropriate use of scientific methods and findings in all professional roles.
- Professional Values, Attitudes & Behavior: Demonstrates dispositions and engages in behaviors that reflect the values and attitudes of the psychology profession, in all professional roles.
- Communication and Interpersonal Skills: Demonstrates ability to communicate effectively, to interact appropriately, and to develop meaningful and helpful relationships in all professional roles.
- Consultation / Inter-professional / Interdisciplinary: Demonstrates appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes regarding inter-professional and interdisciplinary collaboration in relevant professional roles.
- Supervision: Demonstrates appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes regarding the instruction and oversight of trainees and other professionals.
Development of the above competencies is specifically addressed by training in the following skill areas:
Brief Screening Assessments:
- Conducts telephone / in-person screenings in line with best scientific evidence
- Provides screenings that are culturally-contextualized, and developmentally appropriate
- Assesses the presenting difficulty, and differentiates between client needs that are emergent, urgent, and non-urgent
- Integrates and synthesizes relevant biopsychosocial data in making a disposition determination
- Effectively communicates disposition and referral options to the client
- Consults and communicates effectively with the supervisor and other relevant professionals to support continuity of care
- Completes timely screening write-ups in line with best professional practice and agency standards
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Intake Assessment, Diagnosis and Tx Recommendations:
- Conducts biopsychosocial intake evaluations in line with best scientific evidence
- Conducts standard-of-care mental status exams and risk assessments (re: suicide, homicide, and psychosis) in line with best scientific evidence
- Utilizes systematic approaches to gathering data to form a multidimensional, developmentally-appropriate, and culturally-informed case formulation
- Provides diagnoses that are culturally-contextualized, and developmentally-appropriate
- Develops student-centered treatment plans that account for individual and situational factors
- Effectively communicates formulations and treatment plans to clients
- Implements student-centered referral and/or case management processes
- Writes comprehensive yet concise intake reports that effectively communicate a multidimensional, developmentally-appropriate, and culturally-informed narrative, and treatment plan
- Consults and communicates effectively with the supervisor and other relevant professionals to support continuity of care
- Completes timely intake reports in line with best professional practice and agency standards
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Individual Psychotherapy:
- Effectively communicates empathy and establishes rapport with a broad range of clients
- Develops student-centered treatment foci and therapeutic frame
- Engages in self-assessment of personal cultural factors and personal biases for the betterment of the therapeutic process
- Utilizes knowledge of Self to effectively work with diverse clients from the University population
- Implements interventions with fidelity to evidence-based models and flexibility to adapt where appropriate
- Reflectively attends to and makes use of client transference, and therapist counter-transference in the therapeutic process
- Reflectively attends to and tailors interventions based on developmental and situational factors in the therapeutic process
- Thoughtfully attends to the interplay of emotions, cognitions, behaviors, and physiology, and utilizes this awareness in facilitating client growth
- Evaluates treatment process and modifies treatment planning based on outcomes measures
- Collaboratively addresses termination during treatment planning, and makes use of it during the therapeutic process
- Collaboratively reviews therapeutic experience, progress, and areas of future growth during the termination phase
- Collaboratively provides appropriate referrals and/or resources, and clarifies the role of any future CAPS services during the termination phase
- Completes timely progress notes in line with best professional practice and agency standards
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Group Psychotherapy:
- Identifies clients who may benefit from group and informs potential members of the value and rationale for group treatment
- Conducts group screening interviews, makes collaborative decisions and communicates with the client regarding goodness of fit
- Attends to group composition, taking developmental, biopsychosocial, and cultural factors into account in order to maximize potential for both effective group process and individual client benefit
- Clearly communicates basic structure, expectations and ground rules for participation in group
- Assists group members in formulating practical and achievable group goals
- Works effectively with the co-facilitator through collaboration and communication regarding the group development and process
- Furthers stages of group development and balances members' needs for support and challenge at key points in the group process
- Utilizes evidence-based therapeutic group factors (e.g., Universality, Imparting Information, Installation of Hope, etc.) to facilitate effective group process and individual client benefit
- Evaluates treatment process and modifies treatment planning based on outcome measures
- Utilizes knowledge of Self to effectively work with co-facilitator and group members
- Makes use of the here-and-now as well as process level interventions
- Maximizes therapeutic value of termination at the group and individual level
- Completes timely progress notes in line with best professional practice and agency standards
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Crisis Intervention & Clinical Consultation:
- Effectively communicates empathy and establishes rapport with a broad range of students
- Understands the unique function of crisis intervention and appropriately communicates this frame to the student
- Tailors tone and style of consultation to the consultee (e.g., parent, peer, administrator, other health professional, etc.)
- Conducts standard-of-care mental status exams and risk assessments (re: suicide, homicide, and psychosis) in line with best scientific evidence
- Assesses the presenting difficulty, and differentiates between student needs that are emergent, urgent, and non-urgent
- Utilizes voluntary and involuntary hospitalization procedures, in order to best serve the student's safety needs
- Implements student-centered referral and/or case management processes
- Provides appropriate post-intervention follow-up with the student and other relevant persons to best serve the student's needs and system circumstances
- Exercises sound judgment when engaged in consultation
- Develops and communicates knowledge of institutional and community resources, in the service of providing integrated care
- Develops and maintains collaborative relationships with other professionals, and exercises sound professional judgment in utilizing these relationships for the benefit of students
- Utilizes awareness of cultural phenomenon in crisis intervention and consultation
- Provides appropriate after-hours interventions with students and other relevant persons that reflects the presenting issue and system circumstances
- Completes documentation in a timely manner, in line with best professional practice and agency standards
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Outreach & Community Consultation:
- Takes initiative in planning student-centered and evidence-based outreach activities
- Develops culturally-relevant material and interventions that are tailored to the community being served
- Provides assessment of community needs and implements preventive and responsive interventions
- Coordinates with university partners via professional and effective communication
- Delivers engaging, culturally responsive and inclusive outreach services
- Develops and maintains collaborative relationships with other professionals, and exercises sound professional judgment in utilizing these relationships for the benefit of students
- Consults and collaborates effectively with supervisors and other relevant professionals in the development and implementation of outreach services
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of providing outreach
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Cognitive and Personality Testing: *only if psychological testing summer rotation is available & chosen by intern
- Effectively establishes rapport with a broad range of testing clients
- Conducts biopsychosocial intake evaluations in line with best scientific evidence
- Develops proficiency and administers psychological tests with knowledge of appropriate standardization procedures
- Develops appropriate batteries based on the referral question, presenting issue, and cultural and individual circumstances
- Accurately scores and interprets individual test results
- Integrates test results across the battery with both behavioral observations and clinical data to communicate a coherent and explanatory narrative
- Generates individualized student-centered recommendations based on assessment findings and client goals
- Demonstrates working knowledge of ADA and purpose of academic accommodations when applicable
- Meaningfully communicates testing feedback, with attention to the presenting problem, assessment findings, and the client's goals
- Clearly communicates individualized recommendations, and collaborates with the client to move forward on next steps
- Completes timely psychoeducational assessment reports in line with best professional practice and agency standards
- Writes comprehensive yet concise psychoeducational intake and assessment reports that effectively communicate a multidimensional, developmentally-appropriate, and culturally-informed narrative
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Supervision Knowledge / Provision:
- Effectively establishes rapport with supervisee
- Sets supervisory frame and establishes supervision contract, in the context of the developmental level of the supervisee
- Facilitates supervisee's awareness of ethical, legal, and policy-related issues in providing clinical services
- Facilitates the development of the supervisee's goals agreed upon in the supervision contract
- Demonstrates awareness of cultural and theoretical differences occuring in the supervisory relationship
- Supports supervisee's development of reflective practice in order to best serve the needs of diverse clients
- Supports the supervisee in differentiating what aspects of Self are helpful to the therapeutic and/or supervisory process, and those which are better addressed outside of the workplace environment
- Evaluates supervisee with regard to established goals, and in the context of the developmental level of the supervisee
- Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of APA ethical principles and Code of Conduct and other relevant policies/laws
- Communicates relevant ethical duties and limitations in the course of clinical work
- Consults appropriately with peers and supervisors regarding ethical issues and dilemmas
Professional Values, Attitudes and Behaviors:
Openness:
- Appreciates the value of continued learning about legal and ethical issues relevant to clinical work and the profession as a whole
- Appreciates the value of continued learning about multicultural issues relevant to clinical work and the profession as a whole
- Identifies and discusses personal and professional characteristics and/or behaviors that aid or interfere with clinical work
- Utilizes content and skills discussed in supervision to improve effectiveness in clinical work
- Collaboratively develops supervisory frame and training goals
- Monitors workload and issues related to self-care and takes initiative in addressing concerns
Interpersonal Effectiveness:
- Develops and maintains effective professional relationships with clinical and administrative staff
- Develops and maintains collaborative relationships with other professionals, and exercises sound professional judgment in utilizing these relationships for the benefit of clients
- Addresses differences and areas of challenge within supervisory and other relationships in order to maximize professional growth
Conscientiousness:
- Behaves in timely manner for clinical appointments, supervision and meetings, and makes appropriate arrangements in the event of scheduling changes
- Attends seminars regularly as an engaged participant and comes prepared to discuss readings and/or case material
- Prepares for supervision in support of the established training goals
- Seeks supervision or consultation appropriately, to best serve client needs and system circumstances