About Us

The Mental Health Training Program (MHTP) in Kaiser Permanente Northern California has been an integral part of Kaiser Permanente’s larger vision for over 60 years.

The Kaiser Permanente MHTP is the largest non-governmental mental health training program in the United States. We currently host over 300 Mental Health trainees per year at the premasters, postmasters, predoctoral and postdoctoral levels in over 21 Northern California medical centers and the virtual Kaiser Permanente Counseling Center. Our unique regional structure allows us to provide training that is well supported, comprehensive, and consistent, while also allowing for areas of specialization and individualization at the site level. The breadth of our program allows trainees to obtain training at any level, from pre-degree to post degree, or to complete all components of their training with us from practicum to licensure. Our dedicated training faculty collaborate across the program to provide carefully curated graduated, sequential curricula that focus on evidence-based practices and cutting-edge specialty treatment.

All of our Postdoctoral Residency and Doctoral Internship programs are APA-accredited or are in the process of accreditation, with the exception of our Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Residency programs (APPIC members only). In addition to providing patient care, Kaiser Permanente MHTP trainees also attend weekly cohort specific didactic trainings, gain experience in community partnerships, conduct program evaluations, attend monthly speaker seminars with world-renowned expert speakers, participate in a bimonthly diversity forum hosted by our dedicated Diversity Officers, and have the opportunity to attend Trainee Wellness and Professional Development events.

Use of Virtual Technology

Since the pandemic, the MHTP has pivoted to a hybrid training model that incorporates telehealth and in person care opportunities in our medical centers. In addition to our medical center sites that offer hybrid training, our Kaiser Permanente Counseling Center is a fully virtual training program.

When done virtually, group supervision and didactics are conducted through Microsoft Teams. Individual supervision is conducted either face-to-face in person or via video depending on local site guidelines and in keeping with accreditation and state board guidelines. Clinical care, when conducted virtually, is done using an encrypted HIPAA-compliant platform for video visits.