Continue the Message to Clinical Psychology Doctorate Students

Abstract

A report from the most recent Doctorate Employment survey conducted by the American Psychological Association indicated that 33% of recipients selected employment in the Health area. Of that number, it was reported that 20% worked in University settings and 40% worked in Medical School settings [1]. Additional attention in this area has led to organized listings of competencies for Clinical Psychology work in the health related settings. In fact, the formal title, “Integrated Healthcare in Primary Care settings” has been the focus of the competency areas [2]. For example, two representative competencies are [1] Communicate with physicians and other providers professionally, including asserting oneself as a doctoral level health professional with equal status, and [2] Understand how patients feel and perceive medical treatment. Understand what constitutes a normal versus pathological response on the part of the patient to the medical encounter [2,3]. The reported job outlook and work seem conducive to the training of Clinical Psychologist. To date, secure counts of the numbers of Clinical Psychologists working in health settings (i.e., primary care practices, training of medical students, consultations in medical settings) is unknown. Further, is the coursework/internship training opportunities preparing students to understand and work in the health care work settings.