Clinical work is the centerpiece of the postdoctoral fellow’s experience at the center. The fellow conducts a minimum of 18 hours per week of a combination of therapy and assessment with children, adolescents and their families.
In addition, indirect services such as case management, attendance at IEP or other school meetings, contact with collaterals such as foster care workers, child protective services professionals, and multi-disciplinary consultation are often required to meet the complex needs of Center clients.
At this time, assessment and intervention work is a hybrid of in-person and telehealth assessment and intervention services.
Assessment is done both in formal psychological testing and intake diagnostic evaluations. Referrals for psychological evaluation typically come from therapists, psychiatrists, and/or family members. The questions include requests for diagnostic clarification, the influence of cognitive factors on the child’s functioning or treatment progress, and recommendations for getting therapy “unstuck.” The fellow conducts the testing and provides feedback to the clinical team, the child and the family, and also supervises doctoral interns on assessment tasks. The fellow also has time allotted for research projects.
The fellow regularly performs intake evaluations ("diagnostic interviews") to assess patients’ diagnoses and treatment needs. These diagnostic interview reports are then used to assign clients to evidence-based or other treatment modalities that are matched to the patient’s presenting concerns.
Fellows see a combination of therapy cases in the assessment, TF-CBT, and PCIT clinics. After establishing basic competency in these areas, the fellow chooses other training experiences depending on interest and training availability. A typical day may begin with seminars, supervision, research, and paperwork. Later afternoon schedules are usually filled with after-school evaluation or therapy appointments. Fridays are reserved by some fellows for research or paperwork.
The fellowship is approximately 40-45 hours per week, Monday through Friday. However, flexibility is possible in the daily schedule, as some fellows have chosen to work four 10-hour days or other arrangements, as approved by the training director. The fellow is required to see clients through at least one “late night,” per week, until 7 p.m.
There is no requirement for postdoctoral training in order to obtain Maryland licensure as a psychologist. However, the fellowship satisfies supervised practice hours that are required for several surrounding jurisdictions (i.e., Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania).