Psychology Internship Program
Pre-doctoral Internship in Psychology
Purpose
Two predoctoral internship positions are offered. The purpose of both year long internships in clinical psychology is to enable doctoral level students to complete their professional degree requirements in a semi-rural setting emphasizing comprehensive health care (e.g., health promotion and education in addition to assessment and treatment; health psychology as well as more traditional mental health; community - based and hospital - based services; children, adolescents, adults and geriatric populations; community mental health outpatient and inpatient programs).
The Environs
The scenic Annapolis Valley starts about 45 minutes by car northwest of Halifax and within a short distance is the picturesque town of Wolfville, home of Acadia University. The environs of Wolfville and Kentville (a 10-minute drive from Wolfville) offer a variety of cultural, sporting and recreational activities including professional and community theatre, music, rep cinema, university hockey and football teams, downhill skiing, golf and fine and casual dining. The beauty continues as you progress southwest to Middleton and Annapolis Royal (where you will find community theatre, funky shops, fine dining and beautiful gardens). Rental accommodation is available throughout the area, with rent for a 1-bedroom apartment falling between $300-600/month.
Annapolis Valley Health
Annapolis Valley Health (AVH) serves two counties (Kings and Annapolis) and offers health care service based in Valley Regional Hospital, Soldiers Memorial Hospital and several community health centres to a total referral population of approximately 100,000 people living in the Annapolis Valley Region (www.avdha.nshealth.ca). Valley Regional Hospital is located in Kentville, which is about 110 km (an easy 1-hour drive) from Halifax. Soldiers Memorial Hospital is located in Middleton, a 45-minute drive south of Kentville.
AVH Mental Health out-patient Services are based in the AVH-Chipman building (located 7KM from Valley regional Hospital in Kentville) and the Soldiers Memorial Hospital (Middleton), with three satellite clinics (Wolfville, Berwick, and Annapolis Royal). Both Adult and Child and Adolescent clinics are offered in these facilities. Adult psychiatric in-patient services and health psychology services are located in Valley Regional Hospital. All services are within one hour’s drive of each other with most services being considerably closer.
PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES
Psychological services are provided within the context of multidisciplinary teams (e.g., nursing, psychiatry, social work) located within the primary mental health clinics in the two main facilities. Teams are also located within specific service units (e.g., psychiatric inpatient unit; medical unit). Staff psychologists are administratively responsible to mental health management at AVH-Chipman.
Discipline of Psychology
Currently, the Discipline of Psychology has
seven doctoral level psychologists working in the settings listed above and who supervise interns. Supervisory staff are as follows:
Andrew Anthony, Ph.D., York University, 2001. Mainly adult population; cognitive-behavioural approach, as well as integrating other therapeutic approaches; assessment and treatment of a variety of clinical problems; an interest in basic cognitive testing and personality assessment.
Glen Berry, Ph.D., University of Western Ontario, 1996. Inpatient and outpatient adult clinical psychology; cognitive-behavioural and interpersonal approaches; special interest in anxiety, early psychosis, cognition and emotion; psychometric assessment includes Rorschach and objective testing.
Becky L. Churchill Keating, Ph.D. York University, 2007. Clinical-Developmental. Assessment (cognitive, academic, and personality) and treatment of children and adolescents. Integrative theoretical orientation including CBT and family systems. Special interest in parenting and social/emotional development of school age children.
Stefani Hurley, Ph.D., McGill University, 2004. Adult clinical psychology; cognitive-behavioural, interpersonal approaches; interest in anxiety management, senior’s mental health, eating disorders, health promotion programs.
Norma Kennedy, Ph.D., Dalhousie University, 1994. Adult clinical psychology; special interest in medical inpatient and outpatient health psychology, eating disorders, and severe and persistent mental illness.
Edward Strok, Ed.D., Boston University, 1974. Early response crises intervention for adults, child and adolescents and the Emergency Room at Valley Regional Hospital; diagnostic and treatment consultations; non-violent crises intervention; brief psychotherapy, hypnotherapy, forensic hypnosis. Internship Director.
Tara Szuszkiewicz, Ph.D., University of Windsor, 2001. Child and adolescent clinical psychology; special interest in autistic spectrum disorders and other developmental disabilities, eating disorders, ADHD.
The Discipline of Psychology also includes
Paula
MacPherson,
M.A.
(Candidate
Register),
University
of Manitoba,
2003; Ph.D.,
University
of Manitoba,
anticipated
2010.
Adult
clinical
psychology;
assessment
and
treatment of
a variety of
clinical
problems;
cognitive-behavioural
and
interpersonal
approaches;
special
interest in
assessment
and
treatment of
mood and
anxiety
disorders;
severe and
persistent
mental
illness.
Monique
Simonse,
M.A.,
University
of Nijimegen,
1993. Childhood
disorders,
family
therapy.
Melissa Smith, M.A., University of Waterloo, 1999. Child and Adolescent team. Psychometric testing includes developmental assessments and learning screening; special interests in behavioural interventions and anxiety disorders.
Stephen
Theriault,
M.S., Acadia
1998.
Assessment
and
diagnosis of
ADHD,
treatment of
anxiety
disorders
and PTSD,
emerging
personality
disorders in
adolescents.
Mikaela
Vidmar-Perrins,
M.S.,
Acadia,
1999.
Assessment
and
treatment of
forensic
sexual
behaviours
in various
populations.
Core Experiences
The pre-doctoral internship positions are full-time positions composed of two to four rotations. Interns must select one or both of the primary rotations and are expected to participate in one or two of the elective rotations at some point throughout the year. The primary rotations are designed to provide broad, general training in delivering mental health services to adults and/or children and adolescents in a semi-rural outpatient setting. The duration of the primary rotation will be determined by the intern’s area of interest. One primary rotation must be at least six months in length. The elective rotations offer the opportunity for in-depth experience with specialized populations / programs, again in a semi-rural setting. An elective rotation must be at least 4 months in length.
Primary Rotations
Adult Community Mental Health Rotation
Interns obtain experience delivering a full range of mental health services offered by psychologists to adults presenting in community mental health clinics. Interns will conduct diagnostic assessment interviews, formulate case
conceptualizations, and develop and implement treatment plans in a variety of areas (e.g., anxiety disorders, mood disorders, eating disorders, adjustment disorders, personality disorders). The rotation also entails conducting comprehensive assessments (e.g., personality, ADHD, cognitive). Interns will be expected to gain experience in crisis management. Additional opportunities include participation in a mood disorders treatment group and health promotion activities (e.g., stress management workshop). Interns may be asked to provide consultation to other disciplines (e.g., psychiatry, social work). Sub-rotations in supportive psychotherapy, anger management and pain management may be arranged. Duration: 3 to 4 days/week for 4 to 12 months.
Child and Adolescent Community Mental Health Rotation
Interns obtain training in the assessment and treatment of individuals 18 years and younger. Interns gain experience in comprehensive assessment (e.g., behavioural, developmental, ADHD, psychoeducational, personality, autism). Therapeutic intervention opportunities include parent training groups (child and teen), family therapy, and individual treatment from cognitive-behavioural and behavioural perspectives. The rotation involves interdisciplinary and multi-system consultation (i.e., schools, physicians, child welfare). Community outreach and program development experiences are offered. Duration: 3 to 4 days/week for 4 to 8 months.
Elective Rotations (1-2 days per week for 4-12 months)
Health Psychology Rotation
Psychological services to medicine cover a range of chronic medical illness such as cancer, cardiac disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and gastrointestinal difficulties. Psychology provides inpatient and outpatient mental health services, consultation liaison to the hospital, and is a member of the inpatient Medical Unit Multidisciplinary Team rounds. Reasons for referral include coping with a chronic illness, lifestyle modification, stress management, adherence issues, anxiety and depression. Training opportunities include responding to inpatient consultation referrals, facilitating a coping with illness psychoeducation session for medical inpatients, and providing psychological services to individuals on an outpatient basis. Opportunities for health promotion in the community also exist. Duration: 6 –12 months.
Psychiatric Rotation
This rotation emphasizes psychological assessment as well as group treatment of acute and chronic patients in the inpatient psychiatry unit at the Valley Regional Hospital. The rotation emphasizes a multidisciplinary approach. Opportunity exists for interns to co-facilitate an outpatient psychoeducation group for those with persistent and severe mental illness. Duration: 6 – 12 months.
Other Activities
A variety of educational opportunities exist. Interns attend a weekly AVH seminar series focusing on professional and clinical issues. In addition, interns participate in a province-wide seminar series with interns from the Halifax/Dartmouth area internship settings, followed by a peer support session. Interns are also encouraged to attend relevant Telehealth Rounds and educational opportunities offered both through AVH and Acadia University located in Wolfville, as well as workshops and colloquia offered in the Halifax area. Further, the intern may assist with supervision of clinical psychology graduate practicum students. Interns have the option of spending up to four hours per week on research, which may include working on your doctoral dissertation.
Supervision
Interns are supervised by members of the Discipline of Psychology for a minimum of four hours per week in accordance with the accreditation guidelines of the Canadian Psychology Association. Interns have recourse to standardized procedures if encountering difficulties in the supervisory relationship.
Evaluation
Evaluation is an ongoing process throughout the internship and formal evaluations occur at mid-rotation points and at the end of each rotation. Intern performance standards are set for each rotation. A contractual agreement is made between each supervisor and intern specifying the exceptions of each, compulsory and optional activities, and the methods of supervision and evaluation. Supervisors are evaluated formally at the end of each rotation. Interns evaluate each rotation upon completion, as well as evaluating the internship as a whole at the end of the internship year.
Eligibility, Stipend and Benefits
Applicants should be Ph.D. students in recognized clinical psychology training programs who have been granted permission by the latter to begin internship. Applicants completing doctoral degrees in areas of psychology other than clinical are required to demonstrate “equivalency” with clinical programs through reference to course content and training experiences. Preference will be given to applicants who are Canadian citizens or who have landed immigrant status in Canada.
The internship begins the first day in September and continues for 12 months, including three weeks vacation, five days of paid educational leave, and accumulated sick leave benefits. A stipend of $27,500 with standard deductions (UI, CPP) is available for each of the two internships. Travel money of up to $500 is available to assist with travel to Halifax for the provincial internship seminars and other workshops.
Application Procedure
AVH pre-doctoral internship participates in the APPIC’s computerized matching service and adheres to APPIC Match Policies. This internship site agrees to abide by the APPIC policy that no person at this training facility will solicit, accept or use any ranking-related information from any intern applicant. Completed applications should be received by December 1st. Applicants are notified of acceptance on the uniform notification date established by APPIC
computerized
matching
service.
Please
follow APPIC
requirements.
• Applications should be
directed to:
Ed Strok, EdD
Kentville Mental Health Centre
!5 Chipman
Drive
Kentville, NS, B4N
3V7
Phone: (902) 679-2657 (ext. 2856)
Fax: (902) 678-4917
Email: estrok@avdha.nshealth.ca
An in person interview, although not required, would be desirable, but expenses would have to be borne by the applicant; phone interviews may also be arranged
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