Doctoral Internship

The Kaiser Permanente Sacramento Valley Psychology Internship Program offers education and training in an integrated health care system. The doctoral internship will offer rotations in Adult Outpatient Mental Health, Adult Psychological Assessment, and Trauma Informed Care. Each rotation is designed to provide a breath of training experiences with the purpose of developing a generalist practitioner in health service psychology. The rotations offer specific, direct service opportunities to expand the doctoral intern’s research knowledge and theoretical skills with varying patient populations, including diverse age, disability, religion/spirituality, gender identification, sexual orientation, socioeconomic, race, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds.

We pride ourselves in having a culture that is incredibly supportive, innovative, and collegial. The clinical team consists of Psychiatrists, Registered Nurses, Psychologists, LCSWs, MFTs and Neuropsychologists. Interns are integrated into clinics to build support, cohesion, mentorship and to further develop their professional identities.  With a supportive leadership team, innovation and emphasis on empirically driven treatments, the Kaiser Permanente Sacramento Valley team welcomes interns with similar mindsets.

Additionally, we seek likeminded applicants who are interested in continuing to develop their clinical skill as it relates to evidence-based practices, working with a variety of patient populations, and working in an integrated multidisciplinary health care setting.

• Individual therapy and group therapy in multiple different locations
• Psychological assessment
• Supervision experience with practicum students
• Program evaluation/research project
• Community involvement
• Integrated team meetings
• Collaboration with wide array of multidisciplinary professionals
• Provide services to broadly representative population

Interns within our program have a variety of opportunities to work with a wide range of clinical presentations and diversity within the Sacramento Valley. Due to our rotational structure, interns have the opportunity to gain clinical experience in a variety of settings. As mentioned previously, each intern has the opportunity to complete one 12-month track in Adult Mental Health and Wellness and two 6-month rotations over the course of the training year.

The three major rotations include:

• One 12-month track in Adult Outpatient Mental Health Department
• Two 6-month rotations in Adult Psychological Assessment and Trauma Informed Care

Doctoral Interns in the Adult Outpatient Mental Health can expect to work with a range of presenting difficulties, including behavior and relational problems, depression and anxiety, psychosis, psychosomatic concerns, trauma, personality disorder.  The resident may also be assigned to conduct ADHD evaluations, co-leads therapy groups and assists in the teaching of psychoeducational classes. The doctoral intern will develop treatment plans and learn how to articulate those plans to their patients. The doctoral intern will utilize evidence-based interventions within a feedback informed care model (e.g., AOQ). The doctoral intern will utilize both individual and group supervision for case formulation and treatment planning.

There are a variety of patient presentations from mild adjustment disorders to severe mental illness. There is opportunity to work with underserved populations with a substantial proportion of MediCal insured patients and the population is highly diverse in culture.

The Adult Outpatient Mental Health team is made up of an interdisciplinary team with multiple psychiatrists on staff. The psychiatrists, primary care physicians, and nurse practitioners are very open to collaboration for the best possible integrated services to the patient. The team is made up of generalists as well as providers with specialties in areas such as treating trauma, eating disorders, domestic violence/interpersonal violence, and personality disorder populations.

The Adult Psychological Assessment rotation offers doctoral interns the opportunity to assess and evaluate for a range of different psychological issues, including ADHD, personality disorder, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and/or mood disorder. This evaluation process consists of completing an initial intake interview in order to rule out other psychological factors (e.g., severe persistent mental illness, substance abuse, and/or other factors) which may confound the psychodiagnostics profile. Once the assessment process and reports are completed, feedback is provided to the patient.

Doctoral Interns involved in this rotation will also have an opportunity to conduct in-depth comprehensive psychological evaluations for diagnostic clarification. These evaluations consist of the administration of several psychological batteries in order to guide treatment recommendations and connect patients with appropriate care.

Here is a list of potential focus areas:

• Adult Psychological Assessment
• Autism Spectrum Disorder Assessment with Children

The Trauma Informed Care rotation is focused on evidence-based treatments for individuals with PTSD/Trauma Related Stress Disorder. While working in this rotation, doctoral interns will have the opportunity to work closely with Managing Complexities Program (MCP).  It should be noted, many of the patients involved in the MCP program have co-occurring histories of trauma and likely Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).

Interns involved in the MCP rotation will focus on aspects of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) in their clinical practice. Additionally, training in Skills Training in Affective Interpersonal Regulation (STAIR) for PTSD is part of the rotation experience. Individual providers also incorporate elements of Cognitive Processing Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Programming (EMDR), and Exposure Therapy into their work with this patient population.

• Direct Patient Care: 20
• Individual Supervision: 2 hours
• Group Supervision: 2 hours
• Assessment Supervision: 1 hour
• Didactic Training: 2 hours
• Program Evaluation: 1 hour
• Supervision of Practicum Students: 1 hour
• Community Benefit Project: 1 hour
• Journal Club: 1 hour
• Case Consultation: 1 hour
• Non-Patient Care: 8 hours

• CPS/APS Reporting
• Suicide risk
• Obsessive compulsive disorder
• Trauma
• Gender and Sexual Minorities Psychology and Health
• APPIC Postdoctoral Application Process, Timeline, and Interview Tips
• Justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion
• Chronic Pain
• Supervision
• And many more…