Required Activities

Interns are required to maintain approximately 16 to 20 hours of direct patient contact per week throughout the year. Other clinical learning experiences include participation in interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary team discussions, observation of supervisors, and co-therapy.

Psychological assessment may consist of a functional analysis of behavior, formal developmental or cognitive testing, clinical diagnostic assessment, structured interviews, or other procedures deemed appropriate by the psychologist for gathering clinical information and answering the referral question. Psychologists might perform assessments in the context of gathering information on their own cases, in response to requests by members of another discipline such as psychiatry or social work, or in response to requests for a consult by medical personnel in the hospital or an outside agency already treating the child.

Psychological intervention is distributed across all service units and a wide variety of treatment settings. A typical weekly caseload might include four to eight hours a week of work with a child and his/her family on the interns’ rotation, six to eight hours of outpatient therapy with children, adolescents or families, an outpatient diagnostic evaluation; and one or two hours of group therapy. The form and focus of treatment (child, family, parent, or some combination) is determined by the intern and their supervisor after consideration of diagnostic input, the scientific literature, conference recommendations, and patient/family needs and resources.

Typical Week

A typical week is projected to 45 to 55 hours per week. An intern’s hours during a typical week are likely to be spent in the following way:

Clinical Service (16-20 hours)

  • 6-8 direct clinical hours in Outpatient Services (Intake, Diagnostics, and Treatment
  • 5-6 direct clinical hours during choice rotations, 10-12 direct clinical hours during acute care rotations (the Partial Hospitalization Program or Consult Service)
  • 4-6 direct clinical hours on the Testing Service (completed during choice rotation blocks)
  • 1-2 direct clinical hours group therapy (completed during choice rotation blocks)

Supervision (4-5 hours)

  • 2 hours outpatient therapy
  • 1 hour Testing Service
  • 1-2 hours major rotation

Didactics (5-10 hours)

  • 1-2 hours track specific seminar (Trauma Treatment Service Collective for Child Clinical track interns, Medical Psychology Seminar for Pediatric Psychology track interns)
  • 1-1/2 hours Neuropsychology Seminar
  • 1 hour Motivational Interviewing (MI) or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) Intensive Seminar
  • 1-2 hours multidisciplinary Topics and Treatment in the Pritzker Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health
  • 1-3 hours Case conferences, Grand Rounds and/or Guest Lectures

Meetings and Community Services (4-8 hours)

  • 4-8 hours clinic or team meetings (e.g., rounds, treatment planning meetings)

Research, Program Evaluation, and Advocacy (4-6 hours)

  • 4-6 hours per week

Paperwork, Phone Calls, etc. (4-6 hours)

  • 4-6 hours per week