The fellow will be engaged in multiple activities in both the Oakland and Martinez VA Primary Care settings. Both settings provide behavioral health services fully integrated into primary care but the models of integration are distinct, providing the fellow with exposure to different care models. In both settings, the fellow will be involved in providing both same-day access to mental health services for veterans seen in Primary Care and specialized behavioral medicine interventions that are critical to the mission of prevention, health promotion, and chronic disease management. The fellow will function on a variety of interprofessional teams in a variety of specific roles.
Specific activities include:
• Behavioral health consultation according to the Co-located, Collaborative Care Model.
• Provision of same-day/as needed access to mental health assessment and treatment services for veterans in Primary Care.
• Consultation to primary care providers and other specialists related to management of behavioral health concerns in a medical setting, chronic disease management, and utilization of behavior change strategies related to improving medical outcomes.
• Implementation of evidence-based/supported individual intervention practices, such as CBT, ACT, Motivational Interviewing, and skills based approaches (e.g., stress management, pain management) targeting behavior change to promote physical and mental health.
• Co-facilitation of interdisciplinary group programs for chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, chronic pain, smoking cessation, and the MOVE! weight management program.
• Participation in the Codisciplinary Pain Clinic, a twice-monthly interprofessional assessment and intervention setting staffed by a Pain Medicine physician, a physical therapist, and a Behavioral Medicine psychologist. Same-day co-assessments are also conducted with the Pain Medicine physician on request.
• Psychosocial assessments for transplant (e.g., lung, kidney, liver, stem-cell) and bariatric surgery.
• Psychoeducational lectures to specific groups of care providers and patients (e.g., stress management education for patients with diabetes, managing PTSD in a medical setting for nurses).
• Collaboration and consultation with a variety of other disciplines related to implementation and evaluation associated with the Patient Aligned Care Teams.
• Development of an independent quantitative project related to improving clinical care, such as implementation and evaluation of a clinical program, interdisciplinary trainings, development of a treatment manual, etc.
Location: The primary training sites for the fellowship program are in Oakland and Martinez, two communities in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The Bay Area offers a vast array of world class cultural and recreational opportunities, comfortable weather, and a rich multicultural environment. Northern California is home to Yosemite National Park, Lake Tahoe, the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, Pacific beaches, and the wine country of Sonoma and Napa Counties.
Start Date: September 1, 2012
Stipend: $50,006 for the one year position.
Benefits: Health insurance, 10 federal holidays, 13 days paid vacation and up to 13 days of sick leave.
Minimal Eligibility Requirements:
1. United States citizenship
2. Doctoral degree in psychology from an APA-accredited doctoral program obtained prior to the September 1 start date.
3. Completed an APA-accredited psychology internship.
Application Process
Applicants should submit:
• A Cover letter. Please make sure your cover letter indicates your specific interests in our program.
• Curriculum vita
• Two letters of recommendation
• A letter from the graduate program Director of Training specifying current dissertation status and the projected timeline for completing all requirements for the doctoral degree. If you have already completed your degree, a copy of your diploma or other indication from your graduate program is acceptable.
• A statement from the internship training director indicating good standing in the program and expected completion date (if the internship is already completed, please submit certificate or similar documentation).
• Graduate transcripts (photocopies are acceptable)
It is requested that applicants submit application materials electronically to: joel.schmidt@va.gov. Cover letters and vitae should be attached as MS Word, PDF, or similar documents. If possible, please have your letter writers send their statements directly to the above email address from their university or agency email address. Scanned transcripts are acceptable but may also be sent as hard copy to the address below:
Joel Schmidt, Ph.D.
Training Director, Psychology Behavioral Medicine Post Doctoral Fellowship
VA Northern California Health Care System (116)
150 Muir Rd. (116)
Martinez, CA 94553
Application materials must be received (email) or postmarked (for those items sent by mail) by January 6, 2012. Please contact us with any questions about the application process.
Additional information is available at our website:
http://www.psychologytraining.va.gov/northerncalifornia/
Please also contact the training director at joel.schmidt@va.gov for additional information.
