The primary goal of the Chillicothe VAMC Psychology Internship program is to expand upon academic graduate studies with the knowledge and skills of evidence-based clinical practice as a psychologist. Our goal is to prepare Interns for entry level or postdoctoral positions in either the public or private sector. We strive to provide generalist training in a range of inpatient and outpatient settings. To this end, we emphasize the development of intermediate to advanced skills in the profession wide competencies of psychology, in addition to facilitating further development of relative expertise in an area of emphasis (e.g., PTSD, Serious Mental Illness, geropsychology, primary care mental health integration). Each intern completes two 6-month major rotations (3 days per week) and one 12-month minor rotation (1 day per week). See website and brochure for a list of rotations.
Our Internship program is geographically located to allow for a unique training experience with Veteran living in both rural and urban environments. Many of the veterans in our outpatient catchment area live in rural communities and thus Interns will become knowledgeable of the specific challenges and health disparities to which Appalachian Veterans are vulnerable. Interns will develop behavioral competency for culturally-sensitive delivery of services to rural Appalachian Veterans. However, many of the Veterans engaged in our numerous residential programs (inpatient psychiatry, CLCs, substance abuse programs) come from urban areas such as Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, and Huntington, WV. Therefore, internship training will include the opportunity to explore many variables that impact identity development.
Our training program's philosophy for the education and training of doctoral psychology interns is best characterized as a practitioner-scholar model. Students are taught to use science in the service of clinical practice. This is a process that guides all decisions regarding training objectives. The psychology staff views the development of knowledge and skills related to evidence-based treatments as critical to competence in professional practice, and actively guide students through the process of incorporating evidence-based practices into their clinical work across rotations and through didactic experiences.