The Psychology Section is part of the Mental Health & Behavioral Science Service (MH&BS). The Psychology Section at the West Palm Beach VAMC consists of 36 full-time psychologists. Psychologists provide care in traditional mental health programs, including general Mental Health, Clinical Health, PTSD, and Substance Abuse clinics and are integrated into various other settings, including Primary Care, Blind Rehab, Domiciliary and Community Living Center. MH&BS leadership includes the Chief of the MH&BS, Associate Chief of MH&BS, Chief of Psychiatry, Chief of Psychology, Assistant Chief of Psychology and Director of Training, and Assistant Training Director.
The WPB Internship Program has been funded since the 2011-2012 training year. We had our initial APA accreditation site in 2013 and the next site visit is scheduled for early November 2022.
The Program follows a practitioner-scholar model. Our primary goal is to expose predoctoral interns to a diversity of patient problems and many different intervention techniques as guided by relevant scientific literature. Based upon this philosophy, interns receive broad, comprehensive training in preparation for entry-level, generalist practice in health service psychology with an emphasis on evidenced-based psychotherapies. Although we believe that training in clinical and counseling psychology at the predoctoral level should be broadly based, the internship retains sufficient flexibility to allow for specialized training needs and interests of the intern to be met.
Below is a list of the seven rotations that are currently available for psychology interns at the WPB VA. In addition, minor rotations are available in Mental Health Clinic, Interprofessional team experience, Suicide Prevention Team, Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery program, and Pain Management.
1 Mental Health Outpatient Clinic 2. Consultation and Liaison-Health Psychology 3. Trauma Recovery Program 4. Primary Care Mental Health Integration 5. Substance Abuse Treatment Clinic 6. Acute Inpatient Unit 7. Suicide Prevention Team