The APA accredited Health Service Psychology Internship consists of a major rotation clinic (3-3.5 days per week) and a secondary rotation (about 0.5-1.5 days per week) to be assigned shortly after the start of internship. There are 7 internship positions for the 2027-2028 training year.
Major Rotation
Integrated Health Clinics: Copa Health is home to 5 integrated health clinics in Maricopa County, 1 outpatient clinic in Maricopa County, and 1 integrated health clinic in Northern Arizona where Interns work alongside primary care physicians, psychiatrists, nurses, pharmacy staff, case managers, program directors, clinical directors, employment support services, and other ancillary staff. Please note that, at this time, Interns are not placed at our Northern Arizona clinic. All clinics serve adults ages 18 and up. Our current enrollment at the clinics is roughly 8,500 SMI (Severe Mentally Ill) members and 1,000 GMHSU (General Mental Health/Substance Use) members. The Intern provides initial counseling assessments, treatment planning, individual therapy, family/couples therapy, group therapy, crisis intervention, risk assessments, consultation, and ongoing assessment of client issues and progress. Interns also provide brief consults as needed to clients receiving services from primary care physicians, psychiatrists, or other providers. All of our facilities are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Minor Rotation (NOTICE: the options below are examples of rotations offered during previous training years and current placement opportunities may be different)
Cultural Competence Staff Training Project Rotation: Copa Health’s People First Department (formerly Human Resources) provides human resources support and oversees the creation and implementation of agency-wide trainings at Copa Health, including New Employee Orientation, Clinical Week, and specialized staff certifications. Interns assigned to the Cultural Competency Staff Training Project rotation are responsible for developing and presenting trainings to clinical staff throughout the internship year. The rotation involves a multistep process during which interns select from an approved list of topics, conduct a needs assessment with the leadership of their primary clinic, identify an area of training value for their site, and create a new 1-2 hour presentation using current literature and best practices. The training project is expected to follow the ADDIE instructional model (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate) and interns are provided with technical and logistical support from the People First Learning and Development team. After interns have presented their trainings to their primary sites, they subsequently trade presentations with their peers and begin implementing the other trainings at their clinics throughout the course of the year.
ADHD Testing Rotation: Interns assigned to this rotation complete structured ADHD assessments for members referred by their prescribing psychiatrist or nurse practitioner. Interns are responsible for receiving and processing referrals, completing outreach for referred members, scheduling testing (max 3 per day), composing the summary of results, and staffing the diagnostic impression and recommendations with the referring provider when requested.
Neuropsychology Rotation: The minor rotation in neuropsychology provides an opportunity for the intern to develop their skills in providing abbreviated and comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations on patients with complex medical and psychiatric histories. The rotation will focus on training the intern to use common cognitive measures and to create flexible batteries that are deemed appropriate to answer the referral question. At a minimum, the intern will be able to function at the level of a board-certified psychometrist at the end of the rotation. Expectations in the rotation include thorough medical record reviews, consistently testing patients in a standardized manner, accurate scoring and norming of testing data, integrating the information into a neuropsychological report, and giving feedback to the patient and/or referring provider. This rotation aims to produce an intern who can successfully function in an interdisciplinary setting and provide neuropsychological consultations. As a final component of this rotation, the intern(s) will develop a neuropsychological case presentation for a member whose assessment they completed during the training year.
The Villages Day Treatment Program Rotation: The East and West Village interns will be responsible for creating, researching and facilitating groups that inspire, educate and promote recovery, resiliency, and overall mental wellness. The interns will be serving individuals within the SMI community that are in recovery and receiving services from their clinics. The interns will offer groups with the support of other program staff.
