To prepare interns to demonstrate entry level, effective, and appropriate care of youth with special needs.

As an accredited internship program, as of January 1, 2017, our program emphasizes promotion of profession-wide competencies as articulated by the Standards of Accreditation. Clinical and non-clinical training activities are designed to promote attainment of profession-wide competencies within the context of our specific program aims. We strive to ensure that interns move toward independence to be ready for entry to practice in all profession-wide competencies by the end of their internship year (recognizing that in many jurisdictions additional post-doctoral training and supervision is required before independent practice).

Emphasis of internship training within the IDD Division of Psychology is on the development of profession-wide competencies specifically within the context serving youth with special health needs and their families, and in functioning as a psychologist within a hospital-based setting. Training elements emphasize knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes necessary to function as a psychologist ready for entry to practice broadly, with particular emphasis on this patient population and professional context. Training includes the full spectrum of professional activities that may be pursued by a doctoral level psychologists (e.g., assessment, intervention, consultation, research, program development). Note, our internship program does not define any program-specific competencies. Rather, we accomplish our aim by attending to the required profession-wide competencies within the training activities and context.

Vision

Customer Service: Customer service is the corner stone of the Division of Psychology in that both internal and external customers are critical aspects of all that is done within the division and by division faculty. Providing excellence in customer service hinges on the development and nurturing of relationships with individuals within the medical center and outside of the medical center regardless of professional status.

Collaboration: Division faculty establish collaborative relationships within the division, within the CDRC, within the Dept. of Pediatrics, and across the medical center in the development and maintenance of both clinical care and research endeavors.

Training: Grounded in the scientist-practitioner model, the division's training program emphasizes the development of skills to prepare future psychologist and other health care professionals to provide effective services to youth with special health care needs. All faculty contribute to the training program. The training vision encompasses both attention to trainees and their development and also ensuring that trainers (i.e., faculty) continually evaluate themselves and the training program to ensure best practices are promoted. Trainees include, but are not limited to practicum students, doctoral interns, post-doctoral fellows, medical students, and medical residents. In addition, the training program will move towards financial independence and long-term sustainability.

Scholarship: Faculty are involved in scholarship on many levels. At the broadest level of scholarship, faculty will work from an evidence-supported framework regardless of activity (i.e., clinical care, training, or research), while other faculty will have independent lines of research. In addition, all faculty will be involved in some aspect of scientific discovery from providing psychological assessment or treatment on a funded research project to conducting an independent line of research.

Sustainable Activities: Collectively, the faculty of the Division of Psychology work to involve themselves in sustainable activities and seek out opportunities and develop ideas that result in sustainability.

Innovation:  Innovation in clinical care, scholarship, and training is a defining characteristic of "how" we approach our work activities.  Through an openness to learning, incorporation of creativity in the workplace, and willingness to take calculated risks, we will maintain a future-oriented vision.   Incorporating this cultural value into practice will greatly increase our probability promoting our Division's health and growth.

Our values

The IDD Division of Psychology recognizes shared essential values. These represent the overarching principles that guide and shape decision making, individual and division-wide activities pursued, interactions among members of the division and beyond, and education of new members of the division. They serve as a reference point for self-reflection and program enhancement for the internship program as well.

In no particular order, the Division's shared values are:

• We engage in work and service that is of the highest quality.
• We prioritize ongoing learning and growth.
• We create a positive work environment.
• We take time for ourselves, family, and fun.
• We value integrity and honesty.
• We are better when we work together.
• We promote equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• We value one another and lift each other up.

Although the amount of time spent in any activity within the internship experience will vary based on a variety of factors, the following represents an estimate of the percentage of time spent on each of the required clinical and training activities.

See an example schedule + clinical rotations outline

Supervision

The faculty take into account the intern's background and interests when developing a plan for the training year so that experiences are somewhat individually tailored. Multiple members of the psychology faculty serve as supervisors, depending on the clinic, the type of case to which the intern is assigned, and an intern's research and placement. Psychology interns may receive additional supervision by a faculty member of any of the disciplines represented at the IDD, particularly in the interdisciplinary clinics.  

The Child Development and Rehabilitation Center and the Doernbecher Children's Hospital were built expressly for teaching purposes and many clinic rooms are fitted with one-way mirrors. Some rooms have two-way communication systems and many have videotaping capabilities. Throughout the year supervisors observe the clinical activities of the interns and then meet with them later for supervisory discussion. Supervisors attend clinical staffings and parent feedback sessions with interns. At any one time, an intern may have two to four supervisors, depending on clinical activities, and receive an average of four to ten hours of observation and discussion from supervisors weekly.

In addition to individualized supervision, interns participate in weekly group supervision. Group supervision emphasizes several areas of professional competence including clinical, ethical, and legal decision-making; specific clinical and professional (e.g. oral presentation) skill development; and supervisory skill development.

Finally, each intern has a faculty research mentor who provides research supervision. The nature of this supervision is tailored to the background, needs, and goals of the intern.

Evaluation

Each supervisor evaluates interns in writing following completion of each rotation, who reviews that feedback with the intern. In addition, the training director meets with each intern to provide summary and cumulative feedback regarding intern progress toward completion. Procedures whereby the interns evaluate the faculty supervisors and the program are also used. Detailed written summary of intern activity and progress are sent to the Director of Clinical Training at the intern's graduate program at least twice during the internship year, approximately mid-year and at completion. Additional communication with an interns' home institution occurs if there is significant concern about problematic and/or incompetent performance.

∗ Please note that evaluation of intern performance is completed using the IDD Division of Psychology internship program's evaluation form, which is based on programmatic aims and profession-wide competencies articulated in the Standards of Accreditation. Our site is NOT able to use or complete home institution evaluation forms.

Required expectations

One of the goals of the Internship Program is to ensure that trainees are well versed in the link between science and practice. To that end, all trainees are engaged in research activity during the course of their training year to advance their training in scholarly inquiry. Each intern will plan, develop, and/or participate in a research project during the year. The specific focus of the research activity is tailored to the long-term goals of the trainee as is possible (e.g., trainees with plans for entering academia afforded greater opportunities to take substantial lead on research leading to authorship on publications). Interns are also expected to attend and possibly present at monthly Research In Progress meetings, attended by trainees at multiple levels and faculty. This is an opportunity to informally share research ideas, progress, and seek guidance from colleagues.

There are many ongoing clinical research projects in progress in which the interns may participate. An intern is also able to develop projects of his/her/their own, if a match between faculty expertise and trainee interest exists. However, interns are encouraged to join an existing project given the length of the training year and the amount of time available for research. Supervision by a core faculty member is provided for the planning and execution of the project; supervision by researchers beyond the Division of Psychology core faculty is possible at times based on intern interests and faculty availability. Presentation of the project and results at the end of the academic year on the LEND Research Day is expected; presentation of findings at conferences is encouraged with modest financial support available.

The IDD Psychology Faculty is actively involved in a variety of research activities in areas such as diagnosis of ASD versus other related disorders, behavioral phenotyping of metabolic conditions, behavioral pediatrics (e.g., sleep/bedtime problems, elimination disorders, intervention of common interventions), parenting practices, psychosocial interventions for youth with chronic medical conditions, health and health promotion for individuals with developmental and/or physical disabilities, and chronic pain development and intervention, to name a few. Faculty research activities include a blend of grant-supported projects (with funding from federal and nonfederal/private sources) as well as projects based on data obtained via clinical activities using standardized protocols. Please review information about the Division of Psychology faculty to learn more about areas of research interest.

Examples of recent intern research projects

Previous Years Examples:

• Develop post-evaluation follow up process for neurocritical care patients to evaluate recommendation access/utilization
• Evaluate persistence of autism screening and referrals in primary care, focus on Latinx families
• Multisite study to assess family vulnerability factors associated with difficulty managing T1DM
• Feasibility and acceptability of Bedtime Pass intervention in primary care
• Validation of the Pediatric Pain Screening Tool (PPST) in a neurocritical care sample
• Sleep patterns in youth with Cystic Fibrosis
• Neurocognitive sequelae among youth with temporal lobe tumors and youth with temporal lobe epilepsy
• Executive functioning in an acute pediatric neurocritical care population: exploring associations among parent report and individual performance measures
• The effects of tobacco and marijuana use on prescription opioid use in pediatric patients presenting for acute pain
• Demographic, functional, and psychological profiles of ADOS-2 false positives
• Phenotypes and evaluation measurements in children with Down Syndrome and Autism
• Depression and anxiety screening data in Doernbecher Gender Clinic
• Validation of the WRAML3 in a sample of youth with traumatic brain injury
• Examination of parent preferences for behavioral health intervention and information in primary care settings
• Psychological predictors of physical activity engagement in youth with new-onset musculoskeletal pain
• Child vulnerabilities and pain-related outcomes in a high-risk sample of school-aged children with mothers with chronic pain
• Behavioral research advancing individualized neuropsychology via virtual reality in Autism Spectrum Disorder (BRAIN-VR-ASD)

Additional opportunities

An intern may participate in additional, ongoing research projects as his/her/their interests and time dictate. Opportunities to work on grant projects and/or participate in the generation of new grant proposals are made available as appropriate. Further, opportunities to provide mentored guest reviews of manuscripts submitted to journals for possible publication exist. Opportunities to co-author review articles or book chapters are often available for interested trainees.

Journal Club

All psychology staff, interns, and post-doctoral fellows, meet monthly for discussion of relevant articles in various areas of interest and application to the science and practice of psychology and related fields. Interns both participate in and lead journal club meetings.

Seminars

These 1-hour weekly sessions are given for psychology interns by the psychology faculty and professionals from other disciplines at IDD and OHSU. They are generally organized by topics of child/pediatric psychology including foundational knowledge and skills (e.g., effective methods of giving feedback, inpatient consultation, ethics and legal issues), professional development (e.g., giving effective talks, job interviewing and negotiating, supervision provision), advanced clinical knowledge and skills (e.g., tic/habit disorders and their behavioral treatment, treatment of anxiety disorder, pediatric pain) and special topics (e.g., children's understanding of death, pediatric epilepsy), as well as other topics based on expertise and interest. Each intern also provides at least one seminar presentation.

Interdisciplinary leadership training curriculum

This is offered to LEND trainees of all disciplines. Psychology interns (regardless of track) participate in this interdisciplinary curriculum, which includes both experiential and didactic training activities. The goal is to provide training and experience in twelve areas resulting in leadership competence. Some content is presented within an Interdisciplinary Seminar, a weekly seminar during which experts from within and outside the IDD engage trainees in information based on their area of expertise. Additional content is addressed through participation in community engagement projects, offering community-based trainings, family mentorship experiences, and potentially serving on committees and state planning groups.

Additional didactic opportunities

Many opportunities are provided throughout campus for additional didactic experiences. These include all educational events presented by Oregon Health & Science University such as regularly scheduled colloquia, seminars, workshops, and grand rounds. Interns are strongly encouraged to attend Pediatric Grand Rounds. The training director distributes information on presentations and workshops occurring locally, regionally, and nationally.

The training program is supported through various sources, including federal training grants and internal or external partnerships. Interns are considered visiting students by OHSU and receive a stipend, rather than a salary. Stipend for the 2024-2025 training year is $34,000. Stipend for the 2025-2026 training year will be at least $34,000.

Learn more about receipt of a stipend vs. salary

Note: all interns are required to demonstrate that they have purchased medical insurance by the time of the start of the training year, and are required to maintain medical insurance for the entire training period. Additional support from the internship may be provided for the purchase of medical insurance (including dental, vision) up to approximately $6,229 for the year.

Additional benefits include:

• a pass for Trimet public transportation
• 20 days of leave (inclusive of personal time, sick time, and professional leave: e.g., dissertation defense, conferences, job interviews), and
• 8-10 days for holiday leave observed by OHSU
• funding support for conference registration and travel (during the internship year) is also available by application process
• discounts on local food, services, cultural events, sports tickets, etc.

If selected as an intern

1. OHSU provides professional liability insurance covering interns. However, OHSU requires "double coverage". Thus, professional liability insurance must also be provided by either the intern or his/her/their home institution. Coverage limits must be at least $1,000,000 per occurrence, and $3,000,000 aggregate. The Student Insurance provided through the American Psychological Association meets this requirement, should a trainee's home institution not provide coverage during internship.
2. Interns are required to provide proof of up-to-date vaccinations, and if the full panel required by OHSU is not current, then they will need to update vaccinations at their expense. Note, this will either be verified by the student's home university or provided directly to OHSU; details will be provided after the match. Current required vaccinations include: Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR);Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertusis (Tdap); and Varicella. COVID 19 Vaccination is required for all OHSU badge-holders, or a formal exemption through OHSU must be sought and obtained prior to engaging in any activities. Additionally, Hepatitis B and Polio vaccination are encouraged, but not required. For more information about required vaccinations, please contact Nicole Valdivia Nava.
3. Interns are required to provide proof of personal medical insurance coverage prior to starting training, and must maintain that coverage over the course of the training period. Additional financial support is added to the stipend to assist with obtaining insurance (see Stipend/Benefits); additionally, the program provides a "guidance sheet" for seeking insurance via the Healthcare Exchange once someone matches to the program.
4. The trainee's home university must provide proof of the trainee having successfully passed a criminal background screening, in a format requested by OHSU (note, this will be sought after the match, and the program will provide specific instructions on how this is to be verified). Note, prior conviction does not necessarily disqualify an applicant. As appropriate, a risk assessment will be made that considers the conviction relative to the essential functions as an intern, the time frame in which the offense occurs, and any mitigating circumstances. Applicants concerned about potential issues are welcome and encouraged to contact the site early in the application review and selection process.
5. A Training Affiliation Agreement between Oregon Health &Science University and the trainee's home institution must be executed prior to initiating training. This is managed by administrative personnel and is not the responsibility of the trainee to address.
6. Interns will be expected to complete required tuberculosis screening prior to any patient contact (to be completed onsite). Additionally, interns will be expected to obtain an influenza vaccination (at their expense) at the time that OHSU Infectious Disease deems as "infection season" or to formally opt out; if a trainee opts out, then protective gear (e.g., mask) must be worn during patient contact throughout the entire time period designated by OHSU's Infectious Disease.
7. OHSU reserves the right to require (at the trainee's or his/her/their home institution's expense) a 10-panel urine substance abuse screen from a reputable vender. Note, while use of marijuana is legal in the state of Oregon, identification of this substance in one's system will result in a failed screen for OHSU purposes. At this time, it is not standard practice to request this screen; information provided serves as notification of the possibility.
8. Please check back to this webpage for updated information regarding these and related issues.

Any interested applicant with questions about these requirements is encouraged to contact the program to seek additional information or clarification.