MENTAL HEALTH CENTER OF FLORIDA PRE-DOCTORAL INTERNSHIP PROGRAM
MHC Florida in conjunction with Dr. Ann Monis PA is proud to present the Mental Health Center of Florida Pre-Doctoral Internship Program.
Goals
By pairing interns with qualified experienced Doctors of Psychology, who will promote professional, meaningful, first-hand experience and knowledge in the field of psychological services with an array of populations, interns will become competent in providing psychotherapy services independently. Interns will be able to provide compassionate practice with people of all ages, races, ethnicities, faiths, genders, sexual orientations, socioeconomic backgrounds, and physical abilities with diagnoses ranging from anxiety and depression to paranoid schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Interns will gain experience and competence in a variety of psychological intervention models.
Program Content
Following an initial orientation into the program, interns shadow their mentors while treating patients in office, nursing home, and assisted living settings. They gradually progress from shadowing to providing direct psychotherapy services and having patients of their own. Licensed Psychologists supervise interns through this process and meet individually for a minimum of two hours per week. Two-hour group supervision meetings are held weekly for case discussion and peer support. Seminars regarding an array of practice and clinical issues are conducted weekly as well. All meetings are held at the Broward MHC Florida located in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
Expectations
The MHC Florida Internship Program is an APA accredited program and uses the AAPI for application purposes. We also require two redacted reports of varying types to complete your application. You may contact us for any additional information via email and/or telephone if need be. Once an intern has been formally accepted, a written agreement will be signed by both the intern and the site. Interns complete 2000 hours over 12 months by working approximately 40 hours per week. Weekly two-hour individual supervision, two-hour group supervision, and two-hour didactics are provided and attendance is mandatory.
Interns maintain a case load of approximately 20-25 clients plus testing cases and thus engage in approximately 30 clinical contact hours per week. Interns are expected to schedule and conduct sessions, perform assessments, develop treatment plans, and evaluate for results of treatment.
Mandatory performance evaluations are conducted twice per year. Interns are measured on the basis of the following skills:
- Ability to build rapport and show effective interpersonal skills.
- Case conceptualization, treatment planning, intervention skills, crisis management.
- Diagnostic skill, instrument selection, administration and scoring, test interpretation, report writing, communication of results, providing recommendations.
- Multidisciplinary collaboration and consultation assessment.
- Cultural awareness and effects of cultural considerations on clinical activities.
- Knowledge of legal, ethical, and professional standards, adherence to ethical principles and guidelines.
- Theories and methods of supervision and effective use of supervision.
- Professional awareness, interpersonal relationships, self-awareness, clinical documentation.
- Application of scientific knowledge to practice and program evaluation.
Grievance Procedures
Should any issue or concern arise on the part of an intern, the MHC Florida Internship Program has designed grievance procedures to assist and support that intern. It is our objective to address the concerns, rectify any problems, and promote a professional, competent cohort of interns.
Any intern with a grievance should first attempt to address it verbally with their supervisor. Should that not provide the desired result or if the supervisor is the one with whom an intern has a grievance, a written complaint should be filed with the next-level manager. Complaint forms and information regarding the grievance procedure are provided to interns upon orientation.
No intern shall at any time or in any way be retaliated against for having filed a grievance.
We have a casual, “open door” policy, and it is our hope that grievances can be addressed and rectified promptly.
Contact info:
Paris Gandy-Walker, Psy D
Internship Training Director
Regional Chief Psychologist (South Florida & Orange City)
1848 SE 1st Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316
Phone: 954.885.9500
Fax: 954.885.9444
E-mail: info@mhcflorida.com | drparis@mhcflorida.com
This internship site agrees to abide by the APPIC policy that no person at this training facility will solicit, accept, or use any ranking-related information from any intern applicant.
Download The Internship Admissions, Support, and Initial Placement Data
Download our Internship Brochure. (PDF)
Download the 2023 – 2024 Calendar of Didactic Trainings. (PDF)
Download Internship Handbook. (PDF)
Accreditation
The Mental Health Center of Florida Internship Program is accredited by the American Psychological Association. Questions related to the program’s accreditation status should be directed to the Commission on Accreditation:
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
American Psychological Association
750 1st Street, NE,
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 336-5979
Email: apaaccred@apa.org