The mission of the Possibilities Clinic Residency Program in Clinical Psychology is to train residents in culturally responsive clinical psychological care to a diverse population with a wide breadth and depth of clinical presentations. Residents’ skills are developed to ensure they are ready for an early career level of independent practice at the conclusion of the one year program. Underlying all goals in the training program is the development of a solid foundation of ethics and professinal standards of psychological service.
The Residency Program follows a scholar-practitioner training model that is developmental in nature. Training experiences are offered in a principled and organized way so skills and expertise grow systematically, moving residents forward to entry-level supervised practice.
The residency program’s goals are to develop resident competencies in the following areas:
Residents are provided supervised clinical training in the following:
Functional competencies:
- Assessment
- Intervention
- Consultation in interdisciplinary team functioning in clinic, and in other organizations such as schools and community agencies
- Supervision
- Applied Research
- Program development and evaluation for one of the Clinic’s existing or newly developing programs (e.g., methodology for quality management and interprofessional service development and evaluation)
Each of the six functional competencies listed above are evaluated through the following eight foundational competencies:
- Individual, social and cultural diversity
- Indigenous interculturalism
- Evidence-based knowledge and methods
- Professionalism
- Interpersonal Skills and Communication
- Reflective practice, bias evaluation
- Ethical standards, Laws, Policies
- Interdisciplinary collaboration and service settings
The Residency Program offers an organized and coherent sequence of activities so training experiences and expectations increase in complexity commensurate with residents’ developing knowledge and skills. Assessment and intervention training begins with the resident observing the supervisor, then the supervisor observes the resident. When the supervisor deems the resident is ready, the resident will provide assessment and intervention skills on their own and the cases are discussed in supervision. This developmental structure cultivates and consolidates skills over time.
All clinical activities are clearly informed by science and inform science. The resident’s Resident Training Plan is completed by the Director of Psychology Training at the beginning of the program once rotations are chosen. The plan includes training goals and objectives as well as caseload expectations. Residents are given an opportunity to contribute to program planning, development, and evaluation of one service area at the Clinic.
The Possibilities Clinic currently has 2 Clinical Psychology residency positions. Residents can focus on children and adolescents, or adults or both.
Residents have a major rotation in assessment (ADHD and LD) and intervention (major therapies including CBT, DBT, ACT)) in their chosen population (children and adolescents, aduts or both). The major rotation is 3 days a week and there is a minor rotations of half a day a week. Minor rotations include Autsim Assessment, Neuropsychological Assessment, Comprehensive Behavioural Assessment for Tics, Academic Therapy in Reading and Group Therapies for ADHD in Adults. The fifth weekday is reserved for didactics, program evaluation, and research or dissertation work. Residents are supervised by Ph.D. level clinical psychologists registered in either Child, Adolescent, Adult, or all populations that corresponds with the population residents choose. In addition to being supervised by registered psychology practitioners, residents will also work with Psychotherapists, Psychiatrists, Paediatricians, Family Physicians, Nurses, Social Workers, Occupational Therapists, Speech-Language Pathologists, and Certified Teachers.
There are weekly Resident Didactic Seminars, Team Meeting rounds and biweekly Psychology Department meetings. Residents learn how to complete both in person and virtual ADHD and LD assessments, including diagnosis of comorbidities.
