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Postdoc Description
The Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior of the Georgia Health Sciences University (GHSU): is seeking a qualified psychologist for a full-time postdoctoral fellowship in Psychotic Disorders. The person that we are seeking must have a Ph.D. in clinical/counseling psychology and have completed an APA accredited predoctoral internship/residency. The Psychotics Disorders Psychology Fellowship blends clinical service/program development (70%) and research (30%) activities that are focused primarily around collaborative clinical and research projects involving the Georgia Health Sciences University and East Central Georgia Regional Hospital. These project efforts are directed toward implementing a “Recovery Model” of mental health education and care for individuals with serious mental illness based on a commitment to self-determination, shared decision making, and support. The Postdoctoral Fellow will work collaboratively with other psychiatric/psychological providers in assisting mental health consumers with serious mental illness to regain control over their own recovery process. Clinical duties will include assisting consumers with therapy and basic support services, goal development, advocacy, and regaining independence in the community. The position will also involve program development and research in regard to implementation of clinical services at the partnered training and service sites of the departmental outpatient clinic and the East Central Georgia Regional Hospital. The stipend is $42,000 annually. Preferred start date is July 16, 2012 although a later start can be negotiated based on completion of requirements for graduation. To apply send a letter of application that addresses the applicant’s position qualifications, service/teaching/research interests, a curriculum vita, and three letters of reference to: Dr. Alex Mabe, Chief of Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior, Georgia Health Sciences University, Augusta, GA, 30912-3800. (Phone: 706-721-8812; Email: amabe@georgiahealth.edu) The Georgia Health Sciences University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer. The Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior is committed to a record of inclusion of minorities and women in developing and maintaining a diverse faculty. Therefore, we strongly encourage women and members of minority groups to apply.

Goals for the Fellowship

1. To train Fellow to function effectively in inpatient and outpatient community mental health care settings – with an emphasis on being able to work effectively with interdisciplinary care teams and to engage in community treatment planning and implementation.

2. To develop a working knowledge of the core psychiatric disorders associated with serious mental illness. Particular emphasis is placed on understanding serious mental illness in regard to diagnostic criteria, epidemiology, and empirically supported treatment models.

3. General Assessments. The goal of this component of the specialty training is to prepare the Fellow in the fundamental methods of assessment including the administration and interpretation of psychological tests in the service of the identification of problems and targets for community treatment planning.

4. In addition to the core competencies of rapid assessment, de-escalation/stabilization, and triaging in dealing with individuals with acute psychiatric conditions, the Fellow will become proficient in:

A. Treatment engagement skills – able to effectively use motivational interviewing and shared decision-making.

B. Psychosocial Rehabilitation Services (e.g., cognitive remediation, social skills training, etc.).

C. Programmatic application of behavioral management-single case design.

D. Application of the recovery principles of empowerment, holistic care, support, and hope in addressing the stresses of serious/chronic illness.

5. Forensic Assessments. The goal of this component of the rotation is to expose the Fellow to the process of psychological assessment in forensic contexts so that he/she will learn what is involved in a typical assessment, what can be gained from the evaluation, and how to administer and interpret psychological tests used in forensic evaluations.

6. Under the mentorship of departmental faculty, the Fellow will participate in ongoing research projects pertaining to services for individuals with serious mental illness and take the lead to write and submit manuscripts (chapters or journal articles) for publication.

Site Resources and Work Allocation

East Central Georgia Regional Hospital (ECGRH): 80% work effort.

ECGRH is a state, non-profit, psychiatric hospital in Augusta, Georgia. ECGRH serves consumers with disabilities including: mental illnesses, substance abuse, and mental retardation. The Augusta of Campus of East Central Georgia Regional Hospital (ECRH) consists of three primary inpatient units that provide services for 1800-2000 patients per year: Adult Mental Health, General Mental Health, and Forensics. The Adult Mental Health unit is a short-term, crisis-stabilization unit for both adult males and females that serves approximately 45-50 patients at a time. The General Mental Health unit serves approximately 35 patients at a time and provides longer term psychiatric care for individuals with treatment-resistant conditions. The Forensics unit is a 60-bed facility that serves patients who are determined to be Incompetent to Stand Trial (IST) or Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity (NGRI). The primary goal of treatment for the Forensics unit is to restore competency; however, patients who receive care under NGRI status are considered for eventual community placement in settings deemed appropriate by the courts and professional treatment teams. Each unit has an interdisciplinary team consisting of psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, psych techs, and social workers that provide assessment, psychotropic treatment, group therapies, and community/discharge planning.

Georgia Health Sciences University Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic: 20% Work Effort

The Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic serves approximately 3500 to 4000 patients each year, approximately 35 percent of the patients are children and adolescents and 64 percent are adults. Eighty percent of patient contacts have been with Caucasian patients, 20 percent have been with African American patients, and 1 percent have been Hispanic. The clinic serves a high proportion of indigent patients with 30-40 percent Medicaid supported and 10-15 percent with self-supported or no pay status. Clinical services are organized under three interdisciplinary teams of care with the Fellow providing services within the Schizophrenia and Mood Disorders (SAM) Program: SAM specializes in treating the most severe and debilitating forms of mental illness.