Specific Practicum Descriptions
The Center for Management of ADHD
Autism Integrated Care/Neurodevelopmental Assessment Clinic
Center for Autism Research
Behavioral Health in Urban Schools Program
CARE Clinic Follow-Up Support Program
CHOP Family Care Center
The Family Stress and Illness Program
Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Center
Division of Oncology - Assessment Practicum
Division of Oncology - Intervention Practicum
Division of Oncology, Neuro-Oncology Program - Neuropsychology Assessment Practica
Pediatric Neuropsychology Program
Pediatric Sleep Center
The Center for Management of ADHD
Director: Thomas J. Power, PhD
Position: The Center for Management of ADHD at CHOP is a multidisciplinary program providing assessment, treatment and consultation services for children with ADHD and their families. The Center treats children from ages 3 to 18 years. In addition to clinical services, the ADHD Center is also dedicated to research investigating innovative treatment services for children with ADHD. Patients are seen at several locations in the CHOP system (Voorhees, Exton, Bucks County, Springfield and 3440 Market Street, Philadelphia).
Primary duties:
Assessments (4-16 hours per week)
- Participating in diagnostic evaluations with a staff psychologist
- Receiving training in administration and scoring of standardized intellectual and academic achievement tests, as well as self-report measures of emotional functioning
- Recording and communicating behavioral observations
- Collaborating with lead clinician (licensed psychologist) in interpretation of assessment findings
Qualification: Pre-requisite: Students should have completed a graduate level course in psychological assessment before starting this practicum.
Start date: July 2013
Autism Integrated Care/Neurodevelopmental Assessment Clinic
Susan F. Epstein PhD, supervisor
Position: The position is for an advanced practicum student who is interested in learning about differential diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders through a comprehensive assessment process. The student will learn about integration of various forms of assessment data in order to create a diagnostic formulation and will have the opportunity to learn about recommendations commonly made for this population. Patients are generally elementary school age, but there may be opportunities to see pre-school or high-school patients.
Primary duties: Administration of a broad variety of cognitive instruments. In some cases this will be part of a brief evaluation (IQ and Autism diagnostic measures) and others will be a more in-depth neuropsychological evaluation where the battery will be determined by the needs of the patient. Practicum students will be responsible for writing up a part of the assessment report, depending on their contribution to the case.
Qualifications: The applicant should be very comfortable with administering a variety of assessment instruments. Minimally, experience with a psychoeducation assessment model is needed. Optimally, some neuropsychological assessment experience is preferred. The DAS-II is the primary general measure used. Some experience with autism spectrum disorders and testing behaviorally challenging children is needed.
Start date:June 1, 2013
**NOTE: The practicum student will have the opportunity to observe administration of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and may have the opportunity to begin learning aspects of administering it. It is important to know, however, that this practicum will not provide the level of training needed for proficiency and reliability of ADOS administration in any other setting.
Center for Autism Research
Lisa Blaskey, PhD; Judith Miller, PhD
Position: The psychology practicum student will obtain broad knowledge in evaluation and diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) across development (toddlers through teenagers), providing assessment of the cognitive, academic behavioral and emotional functioning of children with ASDs. The student works under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist.
Primary duties:
- Administers and interprets measures of cognitive, academic, behavioral, and emotional functioning for patients participating in research studies in the Center for Autism Research, under the supervision of a licensed psychologist.
- Performs evaluations using standard tools and techniques.
- Obtains training in gold standard tools for evaluation of ASDs, such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R).
- Completes written reports of assessment results. Obtains approval and feedback on all reports and makes edits within a reasonable amount of time.
- Prepares for and is responsive to supervision in individual and group formats.
- Participates in additional research and didactic activities as appropriate.
Qualifications:
- Enrolled in a graduate program in clinical or school psychology
- Experienced in assessment of cognitive and behavioral functioning of children
- Competent in administering and scoring psychological and behavioral assessment measures
Start date: July 2013
Behavioral Health in Urban Schools Program
Ricardo Eiraldi, PhD; Jennifer Mautone, PhD, NCSP
Position: The Behavioral Health in Urban Schools program was designed to provide experience across multiple domains, including assessment, individual therapy, group therapy and school consultation.
Primary duties:
- Will conduct diagnostic assessments using structured interviews and rating scales.
- Will have the opportunity to be involved in collection of outcome data as part of a federally-funded clinical trial.
- Will also learn how to Implement interventions for Tiers 1 and 2 in a School-wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS) program. The Tier 1 interventions are focused on school-wide support, and Tier 2 interventions focus on small groups of students with or at-risk for externalizing behavior problems and anxiety disorders.
In the context of the SWPBS component of the program, externs will learn how to provide support to school personnel who will run intervention groups for children at the Tier 2 level. Supervision will be provided by a licensed psychologist.
Qualification: Prerequisite – Students should have completed a graduate level course in psychological assessment before starting this practicum.
Starting date: July 2013
CARE Clinic Follow-Up Support Program
Nancy Braveman, MS, PsyD
Position: The Safe Place Treatment and Support Program offers psychosocial support services and mental health treatment to children and families where there is suspected or known sexual abuse. The program typically treats children from 2 to 14 years of age who have been seen at the CARE Clinic for a specialized medical exam and treatment related to concerns of sexual abuse. Practicum students would work as part of an outpatient team that includes medicine, social work and psychology. The practicum is offered for 14 to16 hours per week.
Primary duties:
- Participate in CARE Clinic on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 to 5 p.m.
- Provide time-limited interventions, including psychoeducation/support and Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Treatment on a weekly outpatient basis
- Complete progress notes of treatment sessions
- Complete initial assessments of new patients
- Receive at least two hours per week of individual supervision
- Participate in direct observation of and by clinical supervisors
- Participate in additional research and didactic activities as appropriate
Qualifications:
- Enrolled in a graduate program in clinical psychology, counseling psychology or clinical social work
- Preferably has had at least one year of supervised clinical experience
- Experience and interest in doing trauma-related work with children and families
Start date: Summer 2013 (exact date somewhat flexible)
CHOP Family Care Center
Nancy Silverman, PhD
Position: CHOP Family Care Clinic, a service specializing in the treatment of infants, children and adolescents with perinatally-acquired HIV infection. The clinic provides both primary and specialized care and consists of a multidisciplinary staff including medicine, nursing, social work, health education, nutrition and psychology.
The practicum focuses primarily on psychological assessment and involves learning to administer, score, interpret and write up the results of cognitive and developmental evaluations across a wide age range (infancy to early adulthood). Instruments routinely used include: Bayley Scales of Infant Development (3rd edition), WPPSI-III, WISC-IV, WASI and WAIS-IV. Opportunities are also available to administer and write up comprehensive psychoeducational batteries utilizing tools to assess academic functioning (WIAT-III) as well as tests of other relevant areas such as memory and learning, phonological processing and executive functioning. Students are also responsible for and receive training in presenting test results and recommendations to both caregivers and clinic team members.
Primary duties: The practicum also offers the opportunities to conduct individual and group psychotherapy. Students receive close individual supervision from a licensed psychologist on all assessment activities. For therapy activities, individual supervision with a trained social worker is provided. Practicum students also participate in regular multidisciplinary patient care meetings that occur at the close of each clinic day.
Practicum is either for 8 hours (one day) or 16 hours (two days) per week. Students must be available on either Mondays or Wednesdays. A student interested in a 16-hour/week placement is preferred.
Qualifications: The practicum is appropriate for students who are at least in their second year of graduate training as well as those who have had some exposure to administering cognitive/IQ tests.
Start date: July 3, 2013
The Family Stress and Illness Program
Paul Robins, PhD; Canice Crerand, PhD
Position: The Family Stress and Illness Program provides family-based outpatient services to address the psychological needs of children and families experiencing acute or chronic illnesses, as well as more general child clinical concerns.
The unique strengths of families are recognized through all aspects of care, in particular the essential impact families have on illness management and health outcomes. Priority is assigned to providing care for children and families who have recently experienced inpatient medical hospitalization and require ongoing psychological care to optimize healthy adjustments. Many children seen through this program are experiencing somatoform spectrum type concerns (e.g., recurrent abdominal pain, irritable bowel syndrome, and other pain presentations).
Primary duties:
- Complete initial intake, progress notes, treatment plan, and discharge summary
- Prepare for and participate in weekly team based as well as individual supervision
- Schedule families
- Provide individual and family therapy
- Participate as team member in initial family intervention session
Qualifications: Preference for third or fourth year doctoral-level students in clinical child psychology.
Start date: July 1, 2013
Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Center
Loretta Martin-Halpine, PsyD; Colleen Lukens, PhD; Christine Reinhard, PhD; Nancy Silverman, PhD
Position: The psychology practicum student works with a consultative, interdisciplinary team comprised of psychology, medicine, nutrition, speech therapy and occupational therapy to evaluate feeding disorders. The clinic serves a range of children, primarily from infancy through elementary ages, who demonstrate a variety of feeding problems, such as limited intake of food and/or fluids, limited variety of foods accepted and failure to transition to advanced food textures. The student works under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist.
Primary duties:
- Evaluates behavioral aspects of feeding as part of an interdisciplinary team
- Develops initial behavioral recommendations
- Completes written sections of evaluations
- Participates in discussion of initial recommendations with caregivers
- Fulfills other assigned responsibilities as appropriate
Qualifications:
- Enrolled in a doctoral program in school, clinical, or counseling psychology
- Experience with behavioral treatment models preferred
- Clinical experience with young children preferred
Start date: Flexible
Division of Oncology – Intervention Practicum
NOT ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
Position: The Division of Oncology at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia offers an intervention practicum for advanced psychology graduate students with familiarity and/or previous experience with clinical intervention for children, adolescents and their families. The student works under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist in the Division of Oncology.
Primary duties: The practicum provides students with opportunities to participate in pediatric psychology programming activities in oncology. The primary activity is to meet with families of children newly diagnosed with cancer to review materials focused on psycho-education and coping strategies. Depending on the experience level of the practicum student and current department needs, other activities may include working with other staff members on the development of educational workshops for patients and/or parents, co-leading a support group for parents of children with cancer, facilitating school re-entry for children with cancer, and providing psychological intervention for children and families. Patients referred to the service vary in age, cancer diagnoses, and time since diagnosis with some in active treatment and others who are cancer survivors.
Qualifications:
- Enrolled in a graduate program in school, clinical, or counseling psychology
- Prior psychological intervention experience with children/adolescents and their families
- Experience and/or familiarity with empirically-based intervention approaches for children/adolescents and their families
- Experience and/or familiarity with pediatric psychology theory and research
- Availability of 8-12 hours a week
Requires some mobility and some bending and lifting.
Contact: If you have questions about this practicum position, please contact Lamia P. Barakat, PhD, director of Psychosocial Services in Oncology and coordinator of Psychology Practicum in Oncology at barakat@email.chop.edu, or Lynne Kaplan, PhD, Oncology Intervention Practicum supervisor at kaplanly@email.chop.edu.
Division of Oncology – Assessment Practicum
Position: The Division of Oncology at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia offers an assessment practicum for advanced psychology graduate students with previous experience conducting cognitive assessments and familiarity and/or experience with neuropsychological measures for children and adolescents. The student works under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist and/or neuropsychologist in the Division of Oncology.
Primary duties: The practicum provides students with extensive experience administering neuropsychological measures to pediatric oncology patients (preschool through young adult) and scoring, interpreting and writing the findings to address potential cognitive late effects of disease and/or treatment. Practicum students will participate in family interviews, feedback sessions and report writing. Patients referred to the service vary in age, cancer diagnoses, and time since diagnosis - with some in active treatment and others who are cancer survivors.
Qualifications:
- Enrolled in a graduate program in school, clinical or counseling psychology.
- Experience with Wechsler tests and familiarity with neuropsychological measures.
- Competent in administering and scoring of psychological and behavioral assessment measures.
- Prior experience conducting cognitive/psychoeducational assessments with children/adolescents.
- Able to commit to 16 hours per week (at least one full day on site for testing plus report-writing on one or more days) for at least nine months.
Requires some mobility and some bending and lifting.
Contact: If you have questions about this practicum position, please contact Oncology Assessment Practicum supervisors, Melissa A. Alderfer, PhD at alderfer@email.chop.edu and Iris Paltin, PhD at paltini@email.chop.edu. Please copy Lamia P. Barakat, PhD, director of Psychosocial Services in Oncology and coordinator of Psychology Practica in Oncology at barakat@email.chop.edu on your correspondence.
Division of Oncology, Neuro-Oncology Program – Neuropsychology Assessment Practica
Position: The Neuro-Oncology Program in the Division of Oncology at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia offers an assessment practicum and a clinical research practicum for second or third year psychology graduate students with previous experience conducting neuropsychological assessments and familiarity and/or experience with neuropsychological tests for children and adolescents. The students work under the close supervision of a licensed and boarded neuropsychologist in the Neuro-Oncology Program.
Primary duties
Clinical practicum position: The clinical practicum provides students with extensive experience administering neuropsychological tests and procedures to mainly pediatric patients with brain tumors and other brain cancers as well as genetic disorders that carry risk for brain cancer. Patients range in age from pre-school to middle age adults; most patients are school age.
The student will conduct comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations in an outpatient setting (score, norm, review medical records, interpret findings, learn to: write reports, make recommendations for education, occupation and rehabilitation goals, provide feedback and referrals). Other diagnoses occuring in this population include seizure disorders, cerebrovascular disorders, Asperger’s syndrome, ADHD, head injury and other developmental disabilities. The student will learn quantitative and qualitative assessment techniques using a large, structured battery, and the position requires learning both adult and pediatric tests. Good opportunity to examine effects of focal lesions on cognitive and emotional behavior, and to understand cognitive dysfunction in neurocognitive syndromes. May involve cognitive testing of clinical research subjects.
The clinical practicum applicant must commit to at least 16 hours/week (two full days) including Fridays for one year.
Research practicum position at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia will involve testing adults in the new Perelman Center of the University of Pennsylvania Proton Center, which is a clinical research study. Comprehensive but briefer neuropsychological evaluations to identify damaging effects of proton radiotherapy are conducted, provide more opportunity for experience in interpretation of findings and writing reports, and also involve differential diagnosis of neurocognitive disorders. This position includes clinical research studies within the Lab. that involve experimental tests of neurocognition, and well known neuropsychological and cognitive tests
The clinical research practicum applicant must commit to at least 16 hours/week with regular but more flexible schedule.
Qualifications: Both positions offer additional hours, beyond the normal 16-hour commitment, and can include research within the lab, which is encouraged for thesis or dissertation. Other opportunities include weekly professional and topic seminars in psychology and clinical neuroscience at CHOP, weekly tumor boards at CHOP and Penn, brain cuttings, grand rounds and other major talks at CHOP/Penn.
Students should be:
- Enrolled in a graduate program in neuropsychology or in clinical or cognitive psychology with special interest in neurocognition, and
- Competent in giving the Wechsler intelligence batteries and some neuropsychological tests
Physical demands include toting test equipment across the campus.
Start date: beginning July 2, 2013
Contact: If you have questions about this practicum position, please contact the Director of the Neuropsychology Lab in Neuro-Oncology, Carol L. Armstrong, PhD, APN, at armstrongc@email.chop.edu. Please copy Lamia P. Barakat, PhD, Director of Psychosocial Services in Oncology and Coordinator of Psychology Practica in Oncology at barakat@email.chop.edu on your correspondence.
Pediatric Neuropsychology Program
Lauren Krivitzky, PhD, ABPP-Cn, Neuropsychology Externship Recruiter; Thomas Flynn, Ph.D, Program Director
Position: The Pediatric Neuropsychology program provides neuropsychological assessment and consultation services for children/adolescents from a wide age range and with varying presenting concerns. The program receives referrals from many different medical services, including neurology, neurosurgery, hematology/oncology and physical medicine and rehabilitation, and from a variety of clinics for neurodevelopmental disorders. The neuropsychology practicum student has the opportunity to work with one of our neuropsychology faculty on outpatient neuropsychological assessments and may also gain exposure to inpatients and the various multidisciplinary teams with whom the neuropsychologists collaborate.
Primary duties:
- Administer/score neuropsychological tests for a range of ages from preschool through adolescent/young adult.
- Participate in parent/child interview and feedback sessions.
- Prepare for and participate in weekly individual supervision.
- Opportunity to participate in didactics through the neuropsychology program and other Hospital/program specific didactics.
- Potential opportunity for observing interdisciplinary team meetings or clinic.
Qualifications: Preference for students with prior exposure to neuropsychology through either course work and/or clinical experience. Also preference for third or fourth year doctoral-level students.
Start date: July 2013
Pediatric Sleep Center
Jodi Mindell, PhD and Melisa Moore, PhD
Position: This rotation provides practicum students the opportunity to work with an interdisciplinary team from pulmonary, neurology, psychiatry and psychology. Practicum students will gain kowledge of the diagnosis and treatment of both physical and behavioral sleep disorders, with a special emphasis on the behavioral treatment of bedtime problems and night wakings. In addition to learning skills relevant to sleep disorders, this is an excellent opportunity for students to learn general behavioral principles and techniques.
This year we will offer two clinics, Wednesday and Thursdays, where we see patients from ages 3 months to 21 years with a variety of sleep disorders.
Primary duties: Students are responsible for interviewing patients, formulating diagnoses, creating treatment plans and providing follow-up care.
- Hours for both Wednesdays and Thursdays are to be determined. Students can participate in morning and/or afternoon clinics depending on availability and hours needed.
- For Thursday clinic only, every other week will take place at our King of Prussia location (right across from the King of Prussia mall).
- For both Wednesday and Thursday clinics, an orientation period is provided during the Wednesday clinic for the first eight weeks of the practicum (through August). Students may attend this clinic in place of Thursday clinic during this training period.
- The Wednesday clinic includes a required weekly didactic from 12 to 1 p.m.
- Practicum students are required to complete all reports by the end of each clinic and to note all patient-telephone contacts by the end of the week.
- Throughout the week, practicum students may provide telephone follow-up with their behavioral cases. This typically adds up to one hour per week.
- Group supervision occurs after Wednesday clinic and individual supervision occurs after Thursday clinic.
Qualifications: Third or fourth year doctoral students preferred.
Start date: July 3, 2013
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