Internship Training Manual

I Introduction and Mission

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) was formed in 1979 after an extensive study by the university. CAPS resulted from the merger of the university counseling center (established in the 1950s) and the Student Health Center ‘psychiatry unit’ (established in 1964). At the time of the merger, CAPS was charged with continuing all the clinical and counseling functions of the prior units. Since the merger, the agency’s history has been to address both the clinical and developmental needs of the student population. CAPS utilizes the strengths of clinical and counseling psychologists, social workers, sexual assault crisis counselors, licensed mental health counselors, and psychiatrists in its provision of services to the Indiana University student population. This integrative, multidisciplinary philosophy is reflected in the staff composition, services offered, and the variety of training experiences available to the doctoral psychology interns.

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is the mental health unit of the Indiana University Student Health Center. The multidisciplinary and multicultural staff members employ a variety of psychotherapeutic approaches and techniques, including time-limited psychodynamic psychotherapy, behavioral and cognitive-behavioral therapy, group psychotherapy, couples therapy, and psychopharmacological interventions. In addition to providing the typical services of individual, conjoint, and group therapy, the CAPS staff is actively involved in consultation, developmental programming, training, and evaluation. Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) supports the educational goal of Indiana University by providing professional counseling and psychiatric services to students and by offering outreach and consultation services to the entire university community. Services for students are designed to facilitate adjustment to the university and larger social environment, to support academic persistence, and to contribute toward personal development and maturation.

The four elements of CAPS mission are:

  • To provide direct services to students who present or are referred for evaluation and intervention centering on the emotional and/or behavioral problems that interfere with their ability to be successful in their academic work and to function in other spheres at levels consistent with their individual interests and abilities
  • To offer informational and skill building programming to the campus community on topics relevant to emotional health and successful functioning
  • To collaborate with members of the campus community to create and sustain an environment that allows students to fully partake of opportunities for academic and personal growth
  • To provide formal professional training experiences for advanced students in the mental health disciplines
  • To contribute to the accumulated body of professional knowledge about the attitudes and behavior of university students as well as that which more specifically relates to their mental health problems

The mission of CAPS is to provide professional counseling and consultation services to the university community that support students to help them attain their educational goals. A multidisciplinary and multicultural staff provides a broad range of mental health services to students including assessment, crisis intervention, counseling, psychiatric services, and referral. Additional CAPS programming emphasizes preventive and developmental services that help all students benefit from their education experiences. Consultation with faculty, staff, students, and families help maximize opportunities for students to pursue their education in a supportive environment. CAPS senior staff supervise on-site training of advanced students in conjunction with the Graduate School of Social Work, the Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology in the School of Education, the IU School of Medicine, and other esteemed counselor education programs in the geographic area. CAPS staff engages in research of clinical and administrative concerns contributing to the accumulated body of professional knowledge concerning mental health and college students.

IU CAPS is committed to diversity. As such, in giving careful attention to the diverse cultures represented in our staff and the IU student body, and the atmosphere of acceptance in our center, we strongly endorse the IU Diversity Statement approved by the Bloomington Faculty Council on January 17, 2017:

Diversity is a central component of our academic mission at Indiana University Bloomington; our teaching, learning, scholarship, research, and creativity are immeasurably enriched by students, faculty, and staff with diverse experiences. We at Indiana University Bloomington understand diversity as the experiences, values, practices, and worldviews stemming from varied cultures and circumstances (including, but not limited to, those from historically underrepresented groups). Furthermore, in our educational mission to enrich understandings of community, citizenship, nationhood, and global relationships, we also believe it is important to recognize and remedy historic imbalances in allocation of resources to teaching, research, service, and campus culture. In doing so, we strive to teach our students to value the inclusion of people from groups that experience discrimination and underrepresentation and, ultimately, to respect, explore, and celebrate differences. This endeavor prepares our students to participate in national and global communities that require them to embrace and understand differences in order to foster fruitful relationships. Indiana University Bloomington’s educational mission and its status as an international institution mandate the centrality of diversity to our campus.

To retain its leadership role within the educational community, our campus must do more than merely promote policies of nondiscrimination as articulated in the Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Policy of Indiana University. We must include all who comprise our university community and foster a campus climate in which diverse influences are respected and valued. Consequently, Indiana University Bloomington prohibits discrimination based on arbitrary consideration of such characteristics as age, citizenship, color, disability, ethnicity, familial obligations, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, national origin or ancestry, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, or veteran status. This campus is to remain a place of tolerance and respect for all, where diversity of opinions are civilly debated. Our pledge to diversity is an indispensable principle—vital to our goal of an inclusive campus community and governing all students, personnel, and arenas of campus engagement in pursuit of Indiana University Bloomington’s teaching, research, and service missions. This commitment to diversity extends beyond a set of ideas or nondiscrimination policies; we actively strive to promote diversity, expand access, create a safe and supportive environment, and foster a community that embraces and celebrates all groups.

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II Philosophy of Doctoral Internship in Professional Psychology

The American Psychological Association Commission of Accreditation has accredited our present internship since 1996 and we have been a member of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers since 1994. The educational model we employ subscribes to a practitioner-mentorship-developmental model for supervising and training doctoral psychology interns who desire to work with an adult outpatient or university student population. The practitioner focus of the program emphasizes the importance of applying existing knowledge and skills, including a thorough examination of empirically validated approaches to the provision of clinical services. The program’s mentorship focus stresses the primacy of the supervisor-supervisee relationships. The program’s philosophy posits that a psychologist’s development occurs in a matrix of didactic and interpersonal relationships; thus, the program offers rich supervision experiences in a variety of formats. Similarly, the program stresses the importance of collegial consultation. Clinical and supervisory experiences are the focus of the mentor–supervisor relationships. This relationship also addresses professional development.

Recognizing that interns follow a developmental trajectory, the program provides initial structure followed by increased autonomy as appropriate for interns’ developmental level. The program recognizes interns’ continued need for support so alongside of expected supervision with experienced clinical staff members, the internship at IU CAPS provides time every other week for peer support. We also match certain seminars to critical times during the internship. Additionally, we provide opportunities to learn and interact with interns from the other Indiana UCC internship programs. As the year progresses, interns are encouraged in self-directed development. Thus, we expose interns to multiple professional models to help them develop their own professional identity. An awareness of and respect for difference among professionals round out the developmental focus of the program.

If at any point an intern wishes to seek personal counseling, a confidential provision of such services can be arranged (XIV Personnel Policies sec. I).

The generalist nature of CAPS program prepares interns to work in university counseling centers and outpatient settings through exposure to clinical, supervision, and consultation/outreach experiences. While not subscribing to a single theoretical orientation, the program draws from empirically validated interpersonal-psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral perspectives to help interns conceptualize clinical problems and address a wide variety of clinical concerns. The overarching goal of the program is to recruit, select, and train qualified psychology interns whose career goals include providing clinical services to individuals and groups, supervising psychologists-in-training, and engaging in consultation and outreach.

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III Specific Training Goals for Internship

The training committee has identified a number of goals for doctoral psychology interns. The training staff work with interns to develop skills in these areas, as appropriate to each interns’ developmental level. The ultimate goal of the internship is to demonstrate competence in each of these areas at an intermediate skill level equivalent to beginning psychologists. Moreover, we teach interns that becoming a seasoned psychologist is a lifelong process.

A. Assessment

Goal: To demonstrate competence at an intermediate skill level equivalent to beginning psychologists in ethically and efficiently completing a full clinical assessment at intake and ongoing assessment throughout the duration of treatment. Assessments include administering, integrating, interpreting, and applying the results of measurement instruments frequently used in college mental health in a multiculturally informed manner. Interns will be trained in the use of pre- and post-session instruments of clinical change (currently the CelestHealth Solutions Behavioral Health Measure) to assess clinical effectiveness of treatments. There will be many opportunities to learn to use the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and the Drug Use Disorders Identification Test (DUDIT) which are part of the agency’s protocol for assessing clients presenting with substance abuse concerns. The interns will assess clients presenting with concentration difficulties by writing comprehensive summaries of the ADHD protocol. This protocol includes several objective psychological assessment instruments: the Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS) which is an ADHD self-report instrument; the Conners’ Adult ADHD Rating Scales (CAARS), which is a parental report of childhood behavior; the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI); the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI); earlier school records; and a clinical interview. Occasionally, depending on clinical need, interns may have the opportunity to conduct instrument-based assessments (the MMPI II is the most commonly used) in response to assessment questions posed by staff or growing from the interns’ caseloads.

Included in this goal is the development of interns’ ability to integrate:

  • Observation of clinical interviews
  • Psychodynamic/interpersonal and cognitive behavior formulations of clients
  • Information from formal assessments (discussed above), other practitioners (e.g., psychiatrists, prior clinicians, other medical providers), and family or others from the client’s environment

and to communicate orally and in written documents the findings and implications of assessments in an accurate, effective, and concise manner, sensitive to a range of audiences, in a timely manner, in order to: 1) formulate a concise conceptualization based on a DSM5 diagnosis; 2) make treatment recommendations that are most likely to reduce clinical symptoms and are readily understood by other mental health professionals; 3) identify when further assessment is indicated; and 4) refer to additional resources (e.g., physicians, dietitians, other campus/public resources).

B. Clinical Interventions

Goal: To refine individual intervention skills along the domains of alliance building, problem definition, symptom reduction, problem amelioration or resolution, and termination of psychotherapy with special emphasis on skill development in the areas of interpersonal brief dynamic psychotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. By the end of internship interns will, in a multiculturally informed manner, be able to:

  • Utilize psychotherapeutic skills leading to effective clinical alliances with clients with a variety of presenting problems, diagnoses, ethnic backgrounds, developmental concerns, underlying personality structures, sexual orientations, gender identities, and environmental supports
  • Help clients define presenting problems and focal concerns specifically enough to generate a treatment plan
  • Draw from a repertoire of clinical interventions, particularly those drawn from the empirically supported cognitive and brief interpersonal dynamic traditions
  • Match clinical interventions with presenting problems and personality configurations in order to reduce symptomatology or resolve problems
  • Assess, as appropriate, the need for psychiatric referral
  • Improve their sensitivity in timing clinical interventions in order obtain maximum efficacy
  • Provide accurate diagnoses using the DSM5
  • Employ interventions that lead to productive termination of clinical work (e.g., summarizing progress, examining client attributions as sources of gain, and exploring medication adherence issues), and
  • Complete progress notes that are appropriately informative in a timely manner

There will be opportunities to develop clinical skills in working with couples. However, couples counseling is NOT a requirement of the internship.

C. Crisis Intervention

At the end of the internship, interns are expected to function at an intermediate to superior level as a crisis counselor in a university counseling center. Including demonstrated mastery at a basic and intermediate skill level, associated with responding to students in crisis, calming them, consulting appropriately when needed, arranging for appropriate follow-up which might include an appointment within a couple of days, psychiatric assessment, involvement with campus police, hospitalization, and/or consultation with parents or the university community.

D. Cultural and Individual Differences

The terminal goal is that interns acquire and demonstrate understanding and competence in the area of cultural and individual differences and recognize that maintaining competence is a lifelong process. Interns will:

  • Develop increasing awareness of how human differences—including but not limited to those involving ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, gender identification, and socioeconomic status may influence all elements of professional psychology
  • Have greater understanding and knowledge of how the intern’s own cultural background influences her/his work
  • Seek consultation and/or use supervision if cultural bias or values interfere with expected responsibilities
  • Understand that sensitivity to individual and group differences must be maintained and enhanced throughout their careers
  • Demonstrate awareness and reflection about social justice and social advocacy roles

E. Professional Values, Attitudes, and Behavior

Interns will demonstrate an understanding of professional psychology by: effectively utilizing supervision through being prepared for and fully engage in all supervisory opportunities; staying abreast of developments in the research of clinical services; engaging in self-reflection regarding personal and professional functioning; and behaving in ways that reflect the values of professional psychologists. It is expected that interns will develop professional relationship-building skills including being cooperative and collegial, and demonstrating an openness and respect for colleagues of all personal and professional backgrounds including all support staff. Interns will fully function within a professional organization, including: maintain a professional demeanor in dress, office decor, and relationships with clients, CAPS, IU Student Health Center, and Indiana University personnel. Interns will demonstrate an understanding that these professional values, attitudes, and behaviors are to continue over the course of their careers.

F. Ethical and Legal Standards

The terminal goal of the training program with regard to ethical and legal behavior is to produce entry-level psychologists who:

  • Are familiar with APA ethical guidelines and related state law
  • Are able to apply basic ethical principles to clinical practice
  • Are aware of the need for and capable of consultation with other professionals regarding clinical issues and ethical dilemmas
  • Understand the importance of continued education in order to keep abreast of professional and ethical standards and relevant case law, and
  • Behave ethically; for example, formulate and write timely intake reports, assessment reports, progress notes, and letters for students or other professionals consistent with professional and ethical standards of care, maintaining clinical boundaries and respect for confidentiality

G. Supervision Skills

Interns will be able to provide primary supervision for practicum clinicians at least at the intermediate skill level. Interns will have provided competent supervision to a clinician in training.

H. Group Therapy Skills

By the end of the year, interns will have demonstrated an understanding of group process, the use of group dynamics to facilitate change in group members, and the skills to facilitate the development of a group culture that is conducive to therapeutic growth. Interns will have provided at least one semester of process-oriented group therapy.

I. Outreach and Consultation (O&C)

The terminal goal of the O&C Training Module is for interns to possess an intermediate skill competency in the areas of outreach and consultation. Intermediate skill competency is defined as having the ability to design, implement, and evaluate an effective outreach presentation or program and understand how to assess university needs and facilitate consultation within the university setting.

J. Research

By the end of the internship, interns will be able to critically evaluate scholarly articles and apply this information to clinical contexts. Interns are also expected to plan and execute a research project focused on the concerns of university counseling centers. Effectively communicating the results of this project to staff is an essential aim of this goal.

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IV Recruitment and Selection of Interns

Indiana University CAPS is committed to being open and accessible to clients, staff, and trainees from all ethnic, racial, and personal backgrounds. CAPS and the doctoral psychology internship fully abide by Indiana University’s Non-Discrimination/Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action policy statement, which reads:

Indiana University pledges itself to continue its commitment to the achievement of equal opportunity within the University and throughout American society as a whole. In this regard, Indiana University will recruit, hire, promote, educate, and provide services to persons based upon their individual qualifications. Indiana University prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, color, disability, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

As required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Indiana University does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its educational programs and activities, including employment and admission. Questions specific to Title IX may be referred to the Office for Civil Rights or the University Title IX Coordinator.

Indiana University shall take affirmative action, positive and extraordinary, to overcome the discriminatory effects of traditional policies and procedures with regard to the disabled, minorities, women, and veterans.

This policy was first approved by the IU Board of Trustees on November 21, 1969, and was most recently amended on June 15, 2018.

CAPS staff support and appreciate trainees engaging in their own counseling/therapy work, and we will be pleased to make referrals for students who are interested in such work. However, due to dual role conflicts, any master’s-level or doctoral student who has used IU CAPS services beyond an intake appointment since April 15, 2010, is not eligible for training opportunities at CAPS.

The internship is a member of and follows the recruiting practices outlined by the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC). In order to be considered for an internship, candidates must fulfill the following qualifications:

  • Are enrolled in a doctoral program in counseling or clinical psychology
  • Are able to submit departmental documentation that all formal course work, practica, comprehensive examinations, and dissertation proposal defense will have been successfully completed by the time internship begins in mid-July
  • Completed a minimum of three years of graduate training
  • Completed a minimum of 800 practica hours, of which at least 450 were in direct provision of clinical services
  • Note: Due to dual role conflicts, anyone who has accessed IU CAPS services, beyond an initial intake, during their doctoral career is not eligible for an internship at IU CAPS

Applications must include:

  • A completed online APPIC Application for Psychology Internships (AAPI-online), including a Verification of Internship Eligibility and Readiness
  • Official transcripts of all graduate work
  • A curriculum vitae
  • Three letters of reference, including two from current or former clinical supervisors commenting on the applicant’s clinical practice, and
  • A cover letter describing interest and fit with our program

The Director of Training first reviews candidates’ applications and eliminates applicants based on their experience and fit with our internship. The remaining candidates’ applications are divided among the training committee and current interns who are interested in participating in this process. Interns who chose to participate in this process must agree to maintain confidentiality about all information regarding the application and our screening/selection process. They are invited to recuse themselves and/or share information about applicants as their conscience dictates. The training committee and interns evaluate applicants on the strength of their clinical experience, academic background, letters of recommendation, and personal statements. This group meets and decides whom to interview. Applicants are notified about our intention to interview by December 15. Staff psychologists conduct a standardized telephone interview of selected applicants. On occasion, current interns participate in the telephone interviews. After the interviews, the Director of Training contacts the applicants in order to answer additional questions or concerns. The interviewees are also encouraged to contact current interns to discuss the internship, IU, Bloomington, or any other concern they may have. The applicants selected for telephone interviews are invited to an open house at CAPS. This opportunity is optional, but it does provide applicants a chance to see the facility firsthand and allows the reviewers and entire staff more exposure to the applicants. After the open house, the training committee psychologists and interns who are involved in this process meet to rank candidates.

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V Internship Structure

The internship is administratively designed and run by the training committee which consists of the Director of Training; the psychology staff, including the coordinator of the doctoral psychology practicum; and the coordinator of the social work practicum. The training committee meets regularly throughout the year to discuss trainees’ progress, potential problems, and to address programmatic issues. Various components of the internship are evaluated throughout the year to ensure the continued high quality of the program. The Director of Training is charged with overseeing the day-to-day operation of the training program.

The doctoral psychology internship comprises a number of components, which are described below. Some of the time elements vary throughout the year in response to clinical demands:

A. Individual Assessment

Interns have up to four sessions each week dedicated to initial intake appointments. Interns typically continue with these clients, but have the option (in consultation with their supervisor) to refer them for other services.

B. Individual Counseling

Interns meet with individual clients (and/or couples) approximately 16 hours each week.

C. Emergency Walk-in Coverage

Interns cover daytime crisis service 4 hours each week. They assess students presenting in crisis, work with students to manage the crisis, consult via telephone or in person with concerned others, and collaborate with their supervisors and CAPS psychiatric staff to facilitate hospitalizations as needed. Collegial consultation is strongly encouraged and fostered. Senior staff members are available for backup.

D. HSPP Primary Supervision

Using a mentorship-developmental model, interns are supervised by a licensed psychologist throughout the year. A total of 2 hours each week are devoted to supervision meetings. Initially, all clinical services are expected to be recorded. As the internship continues, discussions with primary supervisors may result in easing the recording expectation. Interns are expected to notify their supervisor of any emergent issues related to clients including possible ethical issues, threat to self or others, hospitalizations, or psychosis. Supervision includes review of recorded intakes, follow-up, and emergency sessions, as well as in-depth discussions of intern’s clinical work. Written reports, progress notes, letters, referrals, and other work related to client contact are reviewed. Interns are expected to develop a self-reflective stance in exploring their clinical work and professional relationships with an aim toward developing better clinical skills and a stronger professional identity.

Primary supervision dyads are established for six months. Interns submit a rank order list of their choice for primary supervisor from the psychologists who are available to supervise. Interns are made aware that any information discussed in supervision may be shared with the Director of Training and/or the Training Committee.

E. Group Counseling

Using a mentorship model, interns typically co-facilitate (with senior staff) two weekly, 1.5-hour, interpersonally focused or support groups over the course of the academic year. There are opportunities for interns to co-facilitate groups with other interns later in the internship. There are also possible opportunities to facilitate more psychoeducative group experiences for CAPS clientele as well.

F. Group Counseling Supervision

Interns are provided three forms of supervision of their group counseling:

  1. Interns meet weekly with their senior staff co-facilitator for thirty minutes of debriefing and supervision around each group session.
  2. Every other week, interns meet together with the Group Program Coordinator for one hour to discuss Yalom’s The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy text and process their clinical group work including reviewing recorded group therapy sessions.
  3. On the opposite week, interns participate in “Group Team” with all senior staff who facilitate group therapy to process group issues, review facilitators’ group therapy work, and review selected recordings of any facilitator’s group therapy work.

G. Provision of Primary Supervision

Predoctoral psychology practicum clinicians (usually from IU’s Department of Counseling Psychology) are onsite for the fall and spring academic semesters. Each practicum clinician is individually supervised by a CAPS intern for 1.5 hours each week. Each of these supervision sessions is video recorded. Interns complete a one-page critique of each supervision session. The Coordinator of the Predoctoral Psychology Practicum provides interns with 1.5 hours of group supervision of their supervision. The Coordinator of the Predoctoral Psychology Practicum signs off on practicum clinician notes (i.e., intake reports, progress notes, correspondences etc.) after the supervising intern has reviewed and supervised the practicum clinician in editing their notes. The practicum clinicians also receive 1.5 hours of group supervision per week with the Coordinator of the Predoctoral Psychology Practicum.

H. Progress Notes

Interns are expected to dictate notes for all sessions, daily. These notes, any consultation notes, and supervisee notes need to be addressed and forwarded to appropriate supervisors within two working days of receipt.

I. Outreach and Consultation

Consistent with our program’s developmental focus, interns initially “shadow” senior staff on outreach programs. Interns eventually develop outreach programs in line with their own interests and in consultation with the coordinator for consultation and outreach. Each intern is expected to individually facilitate a minimum of three outreach programs per semester (in addition to other group projects in which interns are involved). Each intern also co-chairs with a senior staff member one large-scale outreach program, such as a national screening and awareness day.

J. Clinical Concentrations

See appendices 1, 2, and 3 (dependent on current staff and program availability).

CAPS offers three separate yearlong concentrations:

  1. Sexual Assault Counseling Service (SACS) is focused on treatment of survivors of sexual violence
  2. Coalition for Overcoming Problem Eating/Exercise (COPE) is a multidisciplinary approach to treatment of disordered eating/exercise and body image issues
  3. Diversity Outreach focuses on reaching out to underserved populations through various university diversity-themed student centers.

After a thorough orientation to all three concentrations, interns will submit a ranked list of the three options. The training committee will then appoint each intern to one of the concentrations. Concentrations are supervised conjointly by specialized staff in the area of concentration and by intern’s primary HSPP supervisor. These concentrations are meant to offer the interns an opportunity to perform in the role of adjunct service provider to the overall CAPS mission. Previous interns have commented that being able to speak of such experiences, regardless of their assigned concentration, has prepared them for interviewing at counseling centers with similar adjunct services.

K. Seminar Series

1. Specialized seminars
  1. Time-Limited Interpersonal Psychodynamic Therapy—during the fall semester, a 2 hour per week seminar is conducted by a senior psychologist.
  2. Cognitive/Behavioral Therapy—during the spring semester, a 2 hour per week seminar is conducted by a senior psychologist.
  3. Couples Therapy—a 1.5 hour per week seminar is conducted by a senior psychologist for approximately 6 weeks.
  4. Diversity Issues—Twice monthly, throughout the internship year, an hour-long seminar focused on issues of diversity is presented by senior staff.
  5. Research Seminar—Scheduled during the summer months with the CAPS’ coordinator of research
2. Topical seminars

During the academic year, interns meet weekly for either a 1.5 hour topical seminar or a 1 hour journal study. Topical seminars consist of topics relevant to university counseling are presented primarily by members of CAPS senior staff or by psychologists from the community.

3. Journal study

Journal study is facilitated by a senior staff psychologist and is alternated with topical seminars throughout the internship year. The journal study focuses on recent (within the past 5 years) articles on a range of topics related to university counseling.

L. Intern Clinical Approach Presentation

This presentation is a required year-end experience in which interns present their approach to providing individual therapy/counseling. In some ways, this experience should mirror job interview clinical presentations. Client clinical information is used merely as an illustration of how the intern clinically conceptualizes and intervenes in most cases. The presentation is given to the entire clinical staff. The psychology staff and other clinical staff members submit evaluations. Information from these evaluations are submitted to the Director of Training who then forwards it to the intern’s individual supervisor to give feedback to the intern. The core components of the Intern Clinical Approach presentation are:

  • Clarity and theoretical soundness of the conceptualization
  • Thoroughness and accuracy of assessment and diagnosis
  • Appropriateness of intervention strategies
  • Awareness of and use of self with regard to case conceptualization, treatment planning, and intervention
  • Appropriateness of goals for counseling
  • Commitment to, and concern for, client’s welfare
  • Willingness and ability to take risks
  • Integration of diversity issues with regard to case conceptualization, treatment planning, and intervention
  • Professional quality

M. Multidisciplinary Clinical Team Meeting

Small interdisciplinary teams of CAPS staff and trainees meet weekly for one hour. Teams set their own agendas and formats that typically involve case discussion.

N. Staff Meeting

CAPS full-time staff and interns meet for 1 hour weekly. Staff meetings are chaired and run by the Director of CAPS and involve administration business, campus networking, diversity presentations, and, at the end of the internship, intern formal clinical approach presentations.

O. Administrative Time

Interns have approximately 5 hours each week for dictation, paperwork, and other administrative tasks relevant to their clinical, supervisory, and outreach/consultation responsibilities.

P. Research Activities

During summer months, interns plan and complete a research project that is related to CAPS’ or the university’s mission. The coordinator of evaluation and research supervises this project as a part of the Research Seminar. CAPS is pleased to encourage interns to present their research at professional conferences.

Q. Intern Support Group

Interns add half an hour to a regularly scheduled 1 hour lunch every other week for a self-led support group.

R. Director of Training Lunch

Interns meet with the Director of Training every other week for 1.5 hours over lunch to discuss issues relevant to interns’ training.

S. Indiana Statewide University Counseling Center Training Opportunities

Interns meet with the Directors of Training and doctoral psychology interns from other in-state APA accredited university counseling center internship sites: Butler University, Purdue University, Ball State University, the University of Notre Dame, and IUPUI. These meetings occur up to five times a year and focus on various topics relevant to university counseling centers. At the end of the year there is an overnight retreat to process the internship experience.

T. Required Internship Hours

It is expected that interns will complete 2000 internship hours, including at least 500 direct service hours. Direct service hours are the sum of client contact and clinical contact hours. Client contact hours are time spent in face-to-face counseling contact with clients (i.e., individual, group, couples, or crisis counseling). Clinical contact hours include time spent providing outreach/liaison services and supervision. Internship hours are the sum of all hours spent in service to CAPS’ clinical and training missions (i.e., providing clinical services, attending and preparing for various training experiences, attending all meetings as scheduled, completing paperwork, and other clinical responsibilities) plus approved job-related time off from CAPS (i.e., paid IU holiday time, time for job interviewing, time presenting at approved conferences, and time for dissertation defense). Therefore, vacation and sick time do not count toward internship hours. Time spent in the service to CAPS clinical mission and training outside the expected 40 hours a week is not subject to remuneration but can apply to internship hours. In order to keep track of accumulated hours, monthly hours logs (Ginny forms) will be submitted to Director of Training. Time sheets for financial remuneration will be completed daily and submitted to the Director of Training every other week.

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VI Summary table of internship activities
ExperiencePeriods of low clinical activityPeriods of high clinical activity
Intakes4.02.0–3.0
Follow-up availability11.010.0–13.0
Emergency walk-in coverage4.04.0
Primary supervision2.02.0
Group and group supv.3.05.0
Provision of primary supervision0.01.5
Group supv. of supv.0.01.5
Outreach and consultationtbdtbd
Internship Concentrations2.02.0–4.0
Seminars and Journal Study2.03.5
Clinical team and staff meetings2.02.0
Administrative5.05.0
Researchtbd0.0
Intern support/DoT lunches.5.5

Total

35.5

42.0–43.0

VII Intern Evaluation

Processing and exchanging feedback is the primary purpose of evaluation. The process of evaluation clarifies the trainee’s relative strengths and weaknesses, identifies areas of potential growth, and informs trainees regarding their progress in the program. Evaluation forms generate discussion and provide trainees, their home institution, and our program with a written record of the trainees’ performances. Interns are clearly informed of the expectation to meet our minimum level of competency (Likert score of 3 or better) on each of the goals is required for successful completion of the internship. Senior staff complete evaluation forms and discuss them with interns. Interns have an opportunity to respond to the evaluation in writing before the evaluator and intern sign the document. These forms are scored on a five-point Likert scale (see Appendix 4 for details).

We have demonstrated that our learning objectives and evaluation forms are acceptable to the American Psychological Association’s Commission on Accreditation. Additional details regarding our internship’s goals and evaluation forms are available upon request. However, requests to complete additional evaluations from students’ home departments are redundant and not an appropriate use of our training staffs’ time. Therefore, we respectfully decline to respond to such requests.

A. Intern Self-Assessment

Interns are required to complete a self-assessment of the ten major internship goals prior to arriving on site. The self-assessment helps guide the goal setting process.

B. Fundamental Counseling Skills Assessment

Completing the Fundamental Counseling Skills Assessment form establishes baseline skills that facilitate forming goals. Interns select a therapy session, review the recording and rate themselves on each skill area. The intern’s HSPP supervisor views the same session and rates the intern in each domain. The intern and supervisor meet to discuss the video, the skill areas, and associated learning domains, in order to identify training goals. This first critique is for training purposes only. This assessment is due by October 1 of the internship year.

C. Primary Supervisor (HSPP) Evaluation

Supervisors complete Primary Supervisor Evaluations two times a year: in January at the end of the first semester and in July at the end of the internship. Supervision dyad rotations occurs at the end of the winter break. The first six internship goals are covered in these evaluations: 1) Assessment, 2) Clinical Interventions, 3) Crisis interventions, 4) Cultural and Individual Differences, 5) Professional Values, Attitudes, and Behaviors, 6) Ethical and Legal Standards. The supervisor and intern review the Primary Supervisor Evaluation. Supervisors are expected to offer formative evaluation and give feedback to the intern as the semesters progress. If the formative evaluation is in hardcopy form, it is kept between the supervisor and the intern and not placed in the intern’s official file.

D. Provision of Supervision Skills

At the end of each academic semester, the Coordinator of the Pre-doctoral Psychology Practicum evaluates interns’ supervision skills, internship goal #7, using the Supervisor Skills Form. End of the semester evaluations include a critique of a faux letter of recommendation that interns write for their practicum supervisee.

E. Group Therapy Skills Evaluation

The senior staff co-facilitating the group with the intern evaluates intern’s group skills, internship goal #8. The Group Program Coordinator also offers narrative evaluation of each intern. This evaluation is done using the Group Skills Evaluation form. The evaluation is completed each semester (fall, spring and/or summer) and is discussed by the intern and the evaluator of record.

F. Outreach and Consultation Skills

The Coordinator of Outreach and Consultation evaluates interns’ outreach and consultation skills, internship goal #9, at the mid-point and end of the internship. Interns get feedback completed by audience members at each of their outreach programs and the O/C coordinator completes the Outreach Evaluation form to provide feedback to the interns.

G. Research

The Coordinator of Research and Quality Improvement is responsible for supervising the interns’ annual research project and conducting the research seminar. This psychologist will also complete the Research Skills evaluation form on each intern for goal #10.

H. Clinical Concentrations

Interns’ concentration areas (Coalition for Overcoming Problem Eating/Exercise [COPE], Diversity Outreach and Liaison, and Sexual Assault Counseling Service [SACS]) will be evaluated each semester by their concentration supervisor using the respective concentration evaluation forms.

I. Intern Clinical Approach Presentations

This presentation is a required year-end experience in which interns present their approach to individual therapy. Client clinical information is used to illustrate how interns conceptualize and intervene with most clients. The presentation is given to the entire clinical staff. Clinical staff are invited to submit evaluations. The Director of Training receives these evaluations and forwards the forms and a summary form of the scores from all the staff’s evaluations to each intern’s individual supervisor for feedback and discussion.

J. Use of Evaluations

Evaluations inform discussions in the Training Committee regarding intern progress. Corrective actions or recommendations to enhance the training experience may be proposed. Mid-way through the internship the DoT sends a letter to interns’ academic programs that reviews the intern’s progress.

Serious deficiencies in an intern’s skill development or professional progress are communicated to the trainee orally and in writing as soon as deficiencies come to the attention of the training staff. The intern’s academic program is notified of the problem(s). The Director of Training, supervisors, academic program, and trainee establish a plan for remediation of deficiencies. (See Progressive Discipline and Due Process.)

The Director of Training sends a letter to the intern’s academic program near the midpoint of the internship and at completion of the internship. This letter gives specific feedback about the intern’s progress and accomplishments during the year and acknowledges successful completion of the internship.

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VIII Internship Completion Criteria

In compliance with APA Accreditation Guidelines the program has developed internship completion criteria. Criteria are as follows:

  • Completion of 2000 internship hours.
  • Completion of a minimum of 500 direct service hours.
  • Facilitating a minimum of two counseling groups.
  • Outreach and consultation: minimal participation in agency activities as set by coordinator of outreach and consultation at the beginning of the year, including co-chairing one awareness/screening event.
  • Minimum rating of “3,” showing intermediate skill acquisition, on every “overall goal rating” on the ten internship goals evaluation forms.
  • Satisfactory completion of the Clinical Approach presentation.
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IX Communication with Academic Programs

During the intern selection process, verification of intern candidates’ readiness for internship is required in writing from the director of their academic programs. Following a candidate’s oral acceptance of CAPS’ formal offer of internship on or after national selection day, an offer letter is sent to the candidate and copied to the academic program training coordinator. It is expected that selected interns formally accept the offer of the internship position with a hard copy letter of acceptance.

During the internship, informal telephone contacts or formal letters are initiated by the Director of Training with the academic program as needed. After formal evaluations in February, the Director of Training sends a letter to the training coordinators of interns’ academic programs outlining progress, any CAPS concerns, and future training goals and plans. Final letters are sent by the Director of Training to the academic programs near the conclusion of the internship year detailing interns’ competencies and summarizing interns’ participation in our training program.

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X Program Evaluation

The training program is evaluated throughout the year:

  • Ongoing informal verbal feedback about the interns’ experience of the training program is gathered every other week at the Director of Training lunch and ad hoc as needed throughout the year.

More formal evaluations of the various components of the internship program are done with the following evaluation forms:

  • Evaluation of Orientation Activities—Interns evaluate the activities of orientation including administrative, clinical, ethics, and information technologies orientations. Interns also travel to various student services during orientation and asked to evaluate those experiences. There are also various didactic trainings the interns attend, and the interns are required to evaluate these experiences as well.
  • Evaluation of Supervisor—Interns evaluate their primary supervisors (changed once during the year) at the end of the supervision rotation. Quality of supervision is discussed with the primary supervisor and the evaluation form is signed by the intern and supervisor then submitted to Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Group Therapy—Interns complete an evaluation of group supervision form and discuss it with their group supervisor. This form is signed by the intern, the Coordinator of Group Program, and group supervisor. The form is submitted to Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Supervision Training—Interns complete a supervision of training evaluation form and discuss it with the Coordinator of Psychology Practicum, who provides supervision for interns’ provision of supervision. This form is signed by the intern and Coordinator of Psychology Practicum and submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Outreach and Consultation—Interns complete the Outreach Evaluation Form and discuss it with the Coordinator of Outreach. The form is signed by the intern and the Coordinator of Outreach and submitted to Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Clinical Concentrations—Interns evaluate the concentration (SACS, COPE, Diversity Outreach and Liaison) to which they have been appointed using the appropriate form for each experience. This evaluation is discussed by the intern and the supervising staff member(s), signed, and submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Topical Seminars and Journal Study—Each semester (fall, spring, and summer), interns anonymously evaluate each training seminar using the Topical Seminar Evaluation form, which is submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Specialized Seminars—Interns anonymously evaluate specialized seminars (interpersonal psychotherapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and couples therapy) using the appropriate form at the conclusion of each seminar. These forms are submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Diversity Seminar—Twice monthly diversity seminars are evaluated anonymously at the end of the internship year. These forms are submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Evaluation of Director of Training—At the conclusion of the internship an anonymous evaluation of the Director of Training is submitted to the Director of CAPS.
  • Evaluation of Internship—Interns anonymously complete the Evaluation of Internship by Intern form at the end of the internship year. This information is de-identified and submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Post Internship Evaluation—This evaluation is sent to all alumni who have completed the IU internship approximately one year after completing the internship. The information is de-identified and submitted to the Director of Training.
  • Recruitment Evaluation—Between May and August each year, an online survey is sent to our top 15 ranked applicants asking for information regarding our recruitment and selection process. This information is de-identified and submitted to the Director of Training.

The interns are encouraged to complete and submit these evaluations anonymously. The Coordinator of Research compiles the results of these evaluations, and submit the results and completed evaluations to the Director of Training. The results of these evaluations are presented to the training committee and staff involved in that year’s internship training. Revisions to the training program are made on the basis of this feedback.

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XI Ethics

A major focus of the internship training program is to produce ethical and competent psychologists. Seminars focus on the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, and federal and state law pertaining to the practice of psychology. Training helps interns to identify and resolve ethical dilemmas common to clinical settings. Interns consult with supervisors, the Director of Training, or their clinical team for assistance with the ongoing application of ethical principles to their clinical work.

CAPS training staff is committed to helping interns recognize and grapple with ethical dilemmas related to their work. Throughout the year seminars focus on ethical issues and Indiana statutes. During these sessions principles and standards are carefully reviewed and applied to counseling situations. Supervisors review ethical principles applicable to trainees’ caseloads. Concerns most frequently reviewed include confidentiality and informed consent, crisis intervention, client needs, and duty to warn.

In addition to orientation, seminars, and supervision, interns participate in multidisciplinary clinical teams where legal and ethical concerns are openly discussed. Group discussion of ethical and legal issues help interns to consider different perspectives and generate creative and defensible solutions to ethical dilemmas.

An IU Student Health Center Research Committee and the University Human Subjects Committee must approve research conducted at CAPS involving human subjects. Each project is subject to the Director of Training and CAPS approval. The study must meet APA and Indiana state ethical guidelines.

Interns are expected to:

  1. Develop an awareness and understanding of the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct
  2. Develop an awareness of the following statutes and legal decisions:
  3. Review CAPS disclosure and consent to record statements with clients during intake sessions and provide appropriate additional disclosures
  4. Demonstrate appropriate concern and advocacy for client and community welfare
  5. Conduct themselves in an ethical manner at all times
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XII Client Records

Client records shall be maintained in accordance with Indiana Title 868. The supervising clinician shall read and sign all intake and psychological testing reports, progress notes, and correspondence. A record of the identity of the supervising clinician shall be kept in the client file.

All confidential information must be handled in accordance with standards for confidentiality. All client identified material must be kept on site at all times. If there is a need to remove such material, the Director of Training must be consulted. Client identified paperwork kept in personal offices must be kept to an as needed basis, otherwise such material should be returned to front desk to assure it is scanned into electronic files or destroyed. All client identified material must be removed from interns’ desks and offices at the end of internship.

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XIII Interns’ Records

Intern records will be maintained at CAPS by the Director of Training in both hard copy and electronic file forms and include, at minimum:

  • Materials submitted by or on behalf of the intern in support of his/her application for internship
  • Intern evaluations that are signed by the intern and supervisor
  • Copies of correspondence with the intern’s academic program coordinator
  • Copies of written records generated under Progressive Discipline and Due Process

Copies of letters of recommendation submitted by CAPS staff on behalf of interns are kept by individuals who are asked to submit such letters.

At the discretion of the Director of Training, interns’ records may also include other information relevant to the intern’s performance, interaction with staff and other trainees, and professional conduct. Intern files will be maintained indefinitely.

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XIV Personnel Policies

A. Salary

The annualized salary for psychology interns for 2017–18 is $25,792. Each intern position is formally titled “Doctoral Psychology Intern,” and has a university rank of “SA11.” Intern positions are full-time (40 hours per week).

B. Paid Time Off (PTO)

Interns accrue 20 hours of “paid time off” (PTO) each month. PTO can be used for vacation, sick leave, job interviews, dissertation defense, and other reasons. Interns are also granted the same IU holiday time off as senior staff. Interns must discuss leave requests with their primary supervisor, and submit written leave requests to the Director of Training for approval. PTO, with the exception of job interviewing and time for dissertation defense, is not considered time worked for calculating the total hours of the internship.

C. Insurance

Interns may enroll in one of the university’s medical/dental plans with the same coverage as other full-time staff members. The cost to the intern is dependent on the plan benefits and number of family members covered. Interns are covered by the university’s group term life insurance. Up-to-date details about the university’s benefit plans can be found at the Benefits at Indiana University web page.

D. Use of CAPS Resources

CAPS resources are to be used for purposes consistent with the agency’s goals and mission. Use of CAPS resources (computer and video equipment, copying equipment, fax, long-distance telephone, etc.) for personal objectives and purposes is forbidden. Examples would include communication with the trainee’s home department about dissertation issues, copying materials for dissertation or research purposes unrelated to CAPS, making long-distance calls to prospective employers, and making long-distance calls to significant others. If the trainee is in doubt about the appropriateness of his/her use of CAPS resources, she/he should contact the administrative assistant.

It is EXTREMELY important that interns abide by all expectations of maintaining the privacy of CAPS clients. This includes but is not limited to: keeping conversations (telephone, in-person, and any written communication) confidential and out of sight or hearing of non-CAPS personnel; minimizing any confidential information stored in your office or desk; and cleaning out your office and desk of all client information at the end of internship.

E. Non—IU CAPS Employment

The internship at IU CAPS is a rigorous full-time experience that requires a 40-hour-per-week commitment and occasionally more during certain times of the year. Therefore, we do not support interns having employment in addition to the internship. In some situations, such as when extenuating financial circumstances necessitate additional income, a case-by-case consultation with the Director of Training is necessary. A final decision will be made through consultation with the Training Committee. Outside employment may not interfere with the intern’s ability to perform required duties, nor may it conflict with the requirements and schedule of the training program. No second employment can be performed during the regular business hours of IU CAPS, which are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and after-hours requirements such as crisis coverage or outreach/consultation.

F. Hiring of Current Interns to Permanent Staff Positions

In order to avoid disruption of the internship experience that may arise when interns are competing for a staff position at their internship site, it is CAPS policy to exclude current interns from consideration for full-time professional staff positions. CAPS further recognizes that the agency’s needs are often best served by recruiting staff members with experience or training at other counseling centers or agencies. At the discretion of the agency, CAPS may employ former interns on a part-time or temporary basis.

G. Social Media

Interns’ engagement with social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) must be based on thoughtful professional judgment. By virtue of their role as professional staff, interns represent IU CAPS and SACS even when they are not on site. Thus, their engagement on social media must necessarily take into account the potential for dual/multiple relationships with users of social media, including but not limited to former, current, and potential clients, prospective employers, and colleagues, both within and outside CAPS. Interns are encouraged to maintain the strictest privacy settings so as to deter multiple relationships. Interns are also encouraged to use their professional judgment when posting on social media especially when it comes to issues that may be a reflection of their personal values and beliefs, or issues that may be controversial and/or highly charged. Issues regarding interns’ use of or posting on any social media platform may be discussed among the TC including the DoT resulting in possible consequences for interns.

H. Intern Termination

Termination of an intern from the training program can be recommended by the Director of Training in extreme circumstances. Examples include acts of aggression against a staff member or client, or serious ethical misconduct. Termination can also be recommended by an Advisory Review Panel (see Progressive Discipline and Due Process) if the Advisory Review Panel concludes that problematic behavior (defined in section A of Progressive Discipline and Due Process) is both serious and resistant to change. After the intern is notified in writing of a recommendation to terminate from the internship, s/he may choose to appeal the decision to an IU Health Center Appeals Committee (see section H of Progressive Discipline and Due Process).

I. Miscellaneous

Indiana University is self-insured with respect to professional malpractice; interns do not need to carry additional professional liability insurance. Each full-time intern has his/her own office, furnished similarly to the offices of the professional staff. Offices contain a desk, desk chair, bookcases, telephone, side chairs, and other typical office accessories. Intern offices are equipped with web-based video/audio recording equipment. All recordings made on these systems are stored on a secure in-house server available to only select members of CAPS staff. As interns complete their internship, all saved recorded material is destroyed. Intern offices are further equipped with Windows-based personal computers that are connected via Ethernet to the university’s computing system. CAPS uses state-of-the-art electronic medical records, scheduling system, and dictation system; all interns will receive training on these during orientation. A fax machine is available for CAPS-related use. A refrigerator, microwave oven, and coffee machine are available. The Herman B Wells library has a cafeteria; there are a number of restaurants within walking distance. CAPS currently employs an administrative assistant and three support staff. The receptionists typically schedule intakes and appointments for staff and interns.

Cathy Batka, Ph.D. (812-871-4018), is a local psychologist, and former IU CAPS internship training member, with whom interns can consult about obtaining personal therapy. Dr. Batka works with the understanding that these consultations are confidential and not to be shared with CAPS staff.

Convenient parking is available to interns through the office of Parking Operations. Interns have unlimited access to the university’s extensive library system, with over 5,000,000 holdings. The Herman B Wells Library, IU Bloomington’s main library, is located across the street from the Student Health Center. PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO and many information retrieval systems are available at CAPS via Ethernet. Indiana University’s extensive recreational sports facilities including exercise rooms, swimming pools, squash and racquetball courts, basketball courts, and tennis courts, are available for use. Nonstudents are required to pay a per-use fee for some facilities and/or purchase a recreational sports pass.

In order to promote the health and well-being of employees, students, and other constituents, all Indiana University campuses are tobacco-free.

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XV Administration of the Internship

All policies and procedures are established by the Director of Training (DoT) in consultation with the Director of Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and Sexual Assault Crisis Services (SACS) informed by discussions with members of the training committee (TC). The policies of the Internship Program adhere to the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct of the American Psychological Association (2002), as well as the most current applicable statutes and rules of the Indiana State Psychology Board.

A. Training Committee

The training committee is comprised of the psychologists directly involved in the training of our interns and the coordinator of the social work internship. One of these psychologists also serves as the coordinator of our predoctoral psychology advanced practicum program. The Director of Training and TC meet monthly throughout the academic year and every other week during the summer months to review policies and procedures, develop or revise policies and procedures, set standards for the selection and evaluation of trainees, participate in the selection and evaluation of trainees, establish expectations of and goals for the training programs, and plan specific components of the program. Additionally, the TC assists the DoT in monitoring the effectiveness of the diverse components of the program through formal feedback from interns’ evaluations of the various components of our training program and informal feedback from interns through conversations of their experience of our training program and through TC’s own self-examination. The TC reviews the feedback provided by interns through annual evaluations of our training program. These evaluations include evaluations of: our internship orientation, each HSPP supervisor, interns’ experience with provision of group therapy and supervision services, all seminars (including the topical seminar series, specialized seminars—Time-Limited Dynamic Psychotherapy, Diversity, Cognitive/Behavioral Therapy, Couples Therapy and Journal study) and the interns’ concentration experience. The TC uses feedback from evaluations to discuss and implement changes to the training programs as necessary.

B. Supervision

All primary supervisors of the interns are licensed Health Service Providers in Psychology (HSPP) and have read and discussed “Guidelines for Clinical Supervision in Health Service Psychology,” American Psychologist, January 2015, pp33–46. Primary supervisors are responsible for overseeing the entire nonconcentration caseload, as well as monitoring the overall training experience, of their supervisees. Interns may have secondary supervisors for facilitation of group therapy, outreach, and concentration activities. Secondary supervisors are licensed senior CAPS /and SACS professional staff, but may not necessarily be HSPP licensed. Concentration supervisors are secondary supervisors who are responsible for the clinical caseload of interns’ concentration work. Some of the interns’ supervision is conducted in groups, such as supervision of group facilitation and supervision of interns’ provision of supervision for practicum clinicians.

At the beginning of the internship, interns are assigned a primary supervisor from the licensed psychologists on the TC. Assignments are the responsibility of the DoT, in consultation with the TC. The assignment of primary HSPP supervisors is made after careful consideration of several factors: the Self-Assessment completed by each intern prior to arrival; specific training goals set for the year; the expressed interests of the interns; and TC members’ areas of expertise. The primary HSPP supervisor provides two hours of individual supervision per week to monitor interns’ caseloads, integrate feedback from other staff, guide and promote development of interns’ clinical theories and techniques, and help interns develop their professional identity. HSPP supervisors also assist interns with post-internship job search and their Clinical Approach presentation. Interns can expect their supervisors to maintain the highest ethical standards. This includes maintaining appropriate personal boundaries, maintaining appropriate time boundaries around supervision meetings, providing clear and timely feedback on written materials, and providing clear formative and summative evaluations throughout the interns’ experience. Interns are paired with a different supervisor for each half of the year. These second assignments take into account intern preferences for specific supervisors. Changing supervisors takes place at the beginning of the spring semester.

The HSPP primary supervisor is one of two main contact persons at IU counseling center for trainees, the other being the DoT. The primary supervisor coordinates all training experiences for each intern in conjunction with the Training Director. In general, questions and concerns regarding clinical practice should be addressed to the supervisor. Questions involving policies and procedures should be taken up with the DoT. The DoT and clinical supervisor can back up each other in either domain (practice or policies/procedures) if the relevant staff member is not available when a question or concern arises.

A subset of the TC, known as the “supervisors’ group” (SG), is made up of the HSPP individual supervisors of the interns, and the coordinators of the social work internship and predoctoral psychology practicum. This group meets with the DoT every other week during the academic year. The SG meetings focus on intern and practicum student development. SG meetings are also designed for consultation, support and professional development of our supervisors.

Secondary supervisors are assigned to interns involved in the following activities: co-leading a group or workshop; providing outreach/consultation services; providing supervision for predoctoral psychology practicum clinicians and for concentration experiences. The secondary supervisor will supervise only the particular activity indicated. The DoT will provide backup supervision as needed. Secondary supervisors are invited to SG meetings at least once each semester for formal consultation with the DoT and interns’ HSPP supervisors. Informal consultation among various supervisors may occur outside the SG meetings.

The basis of the supervisory relationship is an apprenticeship/mentorship model. The supervisor has the final and legal responsibility for all cases carried by the intern. Therefore, major therapeutic decisions by interns, including selection of cases, type and frequency of treatment, referrals, transfers and termination issues, crisis intervention, and communication with third parties require advance approval of the appropriate supervisor before they are carried out. The intern has immediate responsibility for the implementation of treatment plans for his/her cases and for keeping her/his supervisor informed about all facets of each case. It is intended that over the course of the training year, interns will develop relatively more competency and autonomy in the exercise of clinical judgment within the supervisory relationship. Mentoring may also serve career and/or psychosocial functions. Career functions center on a mentee’s career development, enhancement, and preparation for advancement; these may include coaching, advocacy, opportunities to complete challenging assignments, and modeling and teaching of professional ethics. Psychosocial functions contribute to a mentee’s (career-related) personal and social development and include role modeling, acceptance, confirmation, and when appropriate suggestions for personal counseling. Members of the TC are dedicated to maintaining an internship program that is consistent with standard 7.04 of APA’s 2002 Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Interns are not required to disclose personal information in program-related activities with an exception. The exception involves cases where personal information is necessary to evaluate or obtain assistance for interns whose personal problems may prevent them from fulfilling their training or professional activities in a competent manner or may pose a threat to IU CAPS’ or SACS’ clients or others. Interns are, however, encouraged to discuss and explore their personal characteristics as these relate to their work. Consistent with the research literature, we believe that the therapeutic relationship is essential to the effective practice of psychotherapy. To that end, supervision addresses and attends to the person of the therapist to understand and enhance clinical interactions, conceptualizations, and interventions. Supervisors are expected to assist interns with self-exploration and identifying how their personal characteristics facilitate or hinder their successful performance. Interns are made aware that supervisors may bring personal information shared in the course of any supervision to the TC in the service of furthering intern growth and/or protecting clients served by CAPS/SACS. Supervisors, and the entire training staff, strive to be sensitive to interns’ desire for privacy concerning their personal. While professional staff seek to respect an interns’ privacy, interns’ communications to staff cannot be considered confidential. All supervisors must use their best judgment (with a focus on what is perceived to be best for the center and the center’s clients, the intern’s training and development, the intern cohort, and the integrity of the training program) in deciding whether to share interns’ personal information.

C. Concentrations

The internship at IU CAPS offers three distinct concentrations. Details of each of the concentrations are found in the appendix of the Training Manual. Participation in these concentrations is not required of interns. Assignment to these concentrations are made for the entire internship year. There will not be an opportunity to change concentration assignments once they have been made. The purpose of the concentrations is to help interns to develop the skills required to participate in offering adjunctive University Counseling Center services. The TC encourages intern cohorts to decide on their concentrations amongst themselves. In the event that intern cohorts are unable to compromise around making such assignments among themselves, the DoT in consultation with the TC and concentration coordinators will make these assignments.

D. Seminars

The internship at IU CAPS offers a series of specialized seminars each year. The subject matter of these specialized seminars are: 1) Diversity, 2) Time-Limited Psychodynamic Therapy, 3) Cognitive/Behavioral Therapy, and 4) Couples Therapy. The DoT in consultation with the TC assigns responsibility for each of these seminars to a psychologist from the TC. Subject matter for weekly topical seminars is discussed with TC members. A schedule for these weekly seminars is developed by the DoT. Responsibility for facilitating these seminars is shared among the entire CAPS staff and mental health professionals from outside CAPS. The DoT makes these assignments. Journal study is an opportunity for interns to research recent literature and share articles related to University Counseling Center work with each other. A psychologist from the TC facilitates discussion of these articles with the intern cohort. Interns’ are expected prepare for and participate in the seminar experiences.

E. Roles and Relationships among Professional Staff and Interns

The relationships between interns and professional staff are multifaceted. As a Center, staff members strive to integrate interns as full members of our clinical staff, not just “trainees.” At the same time, professional staff recognize that interns are ‘trainees’ with the single-most important objective of completing their degree requirements and preparing to function as independent psychologists. This duality has the potential to create uncertainty and confusion concerning relationships and behavior. The following are guidelines and suggestions designed to help interns and staff navigate these complex relationships:

  • All CAPS and SACS staff are in a position to provide evaluative feedback concerning interns. This necessarily means that professional staff in particular must remain conscious of the inherent power differential between themselves and interns.
  • Relationships between interns and all counseling center staff, including support staff, must first and foremost be based along professional lines. While professional, collegial relationships between interns and staff are necessary for a healthy work environment, friendships are forbidden. Interns and all staff should carefully consider and remain cognizant of the potentially complicating implications of any relationship with each other (e.g., potential effects on the intern, the intern cohort, and the integrity of the training and evaluation experience).
  • Socializing between any staff and interns should be restricted to situations to which all interns are invited.
  • According to the APA Ethical Principles for Psychologist and Code of Conduct (2002) 19 7.07: Sexual Relationships with Students and Supervisees: “Psychologists do not engage in sexual relationships with students or supervisees in training who are in their department or over whom the psychologist has or is likely to have evaluative authority.” Since all professional (including office support) staff are considered to have some “evaluative authority” over interns, sexual/romantic relationships between staff and interns are considered unethical and will lead to disciplinary action and/or dismissal from the program.
  • For a variety of reasons, an intern may identify a particular staff member with whom they would like to establish a mentorship relationship. In such an instance, the mentor and mentee are encouraged to carefully consider the potential impact of a more exclusive mentoring relationship with each other (e.g., potential effects on the intern, the intern cohort, and the integrity of the training and evaluation experience). Consistent with our perspective of multiple relationships between staff and interns, the focus of a mentorship should be solely on the professional development of the intern.

Interns and all CAPS and SACS professional staff are expected to consult with members of the Training Committee and/or the Director of Training when faced with decisions related to potentially complicated multiple relationships with interns.

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XVI Progressive Discipline and Due Process

Interns make significant developmental transitions during the internship year. Part of the training process involves the identification of growth and/or problem areas with the intern. Clinical supervisors often identify these and deal with them in supervision. Problem areas or impairment may sometimes require more formalized intervention. This section provides general guidelines for identifying problem areas and impairment and offers proposed structures within which these and other concerns may be addressed.

A. Definition of Problem

Lamb et al. described a problem as a behavior, attitude, or other characteristic that, although causing concern, is not excessive or outside the domain of expected behaviors for professionals in training (Lamb, Presser, Pfost, Baum, Jackson, & Jarvis, 1987). Problems are typically amenable to management procedures, supervision, or education. The formal procedures described in Section E may be utilized if management procedures, supervision, or education do not result in improvement of the problem.

B. Definition of Impairment

It is a professional judgment as to when an intern’s behavior becomes impaired rather than problematic. Impairment can be defined broadly as interference in professional functioning that is reflected in one or more of the following ways:

  • An inability or unwillingness to acquire and integrate professional standards into one’s repertoire of professional behaviors
  • An inability to acquire professional skills in order to reach an acceptable level of competency, and/or
  • An inability to control personal stress, psychological dysfunction, and/or strong emotional reactions that interfere with professional functioning

Specific criteria that link this definition of impairment to particular professional behaviors are incorporated in the evaluation forms completed by supervisors.

C. Characteristics of Impairment

Impairments may include one or more of the following characteristics:

The intern consistently fails to meet CAPS expectations of interns (see Intern Rights and Responsibilities).

  • The intern does not acknowledge, understand, or address the problem when it is identified.
  • The problem is not merely a reflection of a skill deficit that can be rectified by academic or didactic training.
  • The quality of services delivered by the intern is negatively affected.
  • The problem is not restricted only to one area of professional functioning.
  • A disproportionate amount of attention by training staff is required.
  • The intern’s behavior does not change as a function of feedback, remediation efforts, and/or time.

D. General Guidelines for Due Process

Psychology interns occupy a unique position at Indiana University. They are professional staff members and are thus subject to the policies and procedures applicable to professional staff. Interns are also graduate students who are completing a psychology internship to fulfill an academic requirement of their home institution. All CAPS trainees, including psychology interns, may have multiple supervisors and reporting lines. It is therefore necessary to define a due process procedure that takes into account the university’s personnel policies, the multiple lines of authority over trainees, the duality of trainees’ status, and published professional standards. Indiana University’s Personnel Policies for Professional Staff provides general guidelines for correction of staff behavior (see IU Human Resources webpage—Corrective Action). The following procedures clarify how Progressive Discipline shall be applied to trainees.

General due process guidelines include:

  • Presenting to trainees, in writing, the program’s expectations with regard to professional functioning at the outset of training
  • Stipulating the procedures for evaluation, including when, how, and by whom evaluations will be conducted
  • Using input from multiple professional sources when making decisions or recommendations regarding the trainee’s performance
  • Articulating the procedures involved in making decisions regarding impairment
  • Communicating early and often with graduate programs about any suspected difficulties with trainees
  • Instituting, with the input and knowledge of the trainee’s graduate program, a remediation plan for identified inadequacies, including a time frame for expected remediation and consequences of not rectifying the inadequacies
  • Providing the trainee with a written statement of procedural policy describing how the trainee may appeal the program’s actions or decisions
  • Ensuring that trainees have a reasonable amount of time to respond to any action(s) taken by the program
  • Documenting, in writing and to all relevant parties (e.g. the trainee’s academic advisor or training coordinator, supervisors, etc.) the action(s) taken by the program and the rationale for those actions

E. Procedures for Identifying and Evaluating Problems/Impairment

The following procedures shall be followed in implementing the university’s Progressive Discipline policy as it applies to psychology interns:

1. A problem is recognized

A problem affecting intern performance may be identified either through formal evaluation procedures or through the interactions of supervisors and other training staff working with the intern. Such problems can usually be categorized as issues of (1) competence/skill deficit, (2) professional/ethical behavior, and/or (3) psychological maladjustment affecting the intern’s ability to meet the intern’s responsibilities (see Intern Rights and Responsibilities).

2. Informal resolution is attempted

The staff member or supervisor(s) who has identified the problem provides the intern with feedback regarding the problem. The parties involved attempt to reach a satisfactory resolution. The staff member or supervisor(s) may seek consultation with members of the Training Committee, or the Committee as a whole, about appropriate informal methods to resolve the problem.

3. The problem is brought to the attention of the Director of Training

If the Director of Training does not already have knowledge of the intern’s problem or impairment as a result of evaluation procedures, the staff member(s) recognizing the problem will bring it to the attention of the Director of Training. The staff member(s) will provide a written description, in as behavioral terms as possible, of the nature of the problem or impairment and the attempts that have been made to resolve it.

4. The intern is notified and given opportunity to respond

Within three working days of receipt of the written description of the problem or impairment and previous attempts to resolve it, the Director of Training will notify the intern in writing that a problem has been identified, and that it will be reviewed by the Director of Training. The intern will also be given a copy of the staff member’s statement. The Director of Training will meet with the intern to receive any information or statements from the intern related to the identified concern. The intern has 5 working days from receipt of the staff member’s statement to prepare his/her written response, which should be written in as behavioral terms as possible.

5. Director of Training may attempt a mediated solution

The Director of Training, at his/her discretion, may choose to assist the parties in coming to a mediated solution. If a mediated solution is successful, no further action is taken. The complaint and the intern’s response are placed in the intern’s file with a description of the mediated solution. If, within 5 working days of receipt of the intern’s written response, a mediated solution is not achieved, the period of mediation may be extended an additional 5 working days by agreement of the Director of Training, the staff member(s) making the complaint, and the intern. If the problem is not resolved within 10 working days of receipt of the intern’s written response, the Director of Training will convene an Advisory Review Panel.

6. The problem is brought to the Advisory Review Panel

If attempts at a mediated solution fail, or if at his/her discretion the Director of Training chooses to bypass an attempt at a mediated solution, the Director of Training will bring the concerns about the intern to the attention of the Advisory Review Panel for consultation. The Advisory Review Panel will be composed of two CAPS staff members excluding the Director of Training and the staff member(s) that initiated the complaint.

7. The Advisory Review Panel reviews and defines the problem

The Advisory Review Panel will work with the Director of Training to define the intern’s problem as concretely and behaviorally as possible. They will also interview the intern to ascertain her/his understanding of the problems and why attempts for informal resolution have not resolved the problem. The Advisory Review Panel will discuss the problem, decide on its severity, and assess the potential for remediation. Based on these discussions, within 5 working days of its appointment, the Advisory Review Panel will (in decreasing order of severity):

  • Recommend termination of the intern from the training program.
  • Place the intern on probationary status with a remediation plan.
  • Develop a remediation plan without probation, or
  • Determine that the problem is not severe enough to warrant remediation, in which case no further action is taken.
8. Contact with intern’s academic department

If the problem is deemed severe enough to require remediation, either with or without probation, the Director of Training will contact the intern’s home department. The Director of Training will discuss the problem with the intern’s training coordinator and discuss the remediation plans.

F. Advisory Review Panel Recommendations

Possible recommended courses of action from the Advisory Review Panel, in decreasing order of severity, are as follows:

1. Termination

Termination would be recommended at this point if the Advisory Review Panel concluded that problematic behavior it is both serious and resistant to change. After the intern is notified in writing of the Advisory Review Panel’s recommendations, s/he may choose to appeal the decision to an IU Student Health Center Appeals Committee (see Section H).

2. Probation with a remediation plan

As used in this section, “probation” means the intern is actively and systematically monitored by supervisors, the Director of Training, and other staff as required for a specific length of time. Attention is paid to the necessary and expected changes in the problematic behavior. The intern is given a written statement notifying him/her of the probationary status and specifying:

  • The behaviors that need to be changed
  • The recommendations for remediating the problem
  • The time period of probation during which the problem is expected to be ameliorated, and
  • The procedures designed to ascertain whether or not the problem has been appropriately rectified

Following the intern’s notification of his/her probationary status, the Director of Training will meet with the intern to review the probationary conditions. The intern may then choose to accept the conditions of the probation or to appeal the actions. If the action is not challenged by the intern, the remediation plan is put into action, and the remediation plan is placed in the intern’s file. Copies of the remediation plan are given to the intern, his/her home academic department, CAPS director, and to IU Human Resources Management.

A remediation plan may include several, and perhaps concurrent, courses of action designed to remediate deficiencies or impairments. Such courses of action may include, but are not limited to:

  • Increasing supervision or changing primary supervisor
  • Changing the format, emphasis, and/or focus of supervision
  • Recommending personal therapy
  • Reducing or limiting the type of direct client contact or other internship or practicum responsibilities
  • Requiring specific academic coursework, and/or
  • Recommending a leave of absence or a second internship
3. Remediation plan without probation

If the Advisory Review Panel determines that termination or probation would not be appropriate; the Panel may elect to develop a remediation plan without probation. This plan will be given to the intern in writing. Remediation without probation would not involve the same degree of supervision and monitoring as probation, nor would it entail notifying the intern’s department of the remediation recommendations; however, it would specify a time period during which change should occur. If the intern does not challenge the remediation plan, it is put into action. A copy of the remediation plan is placed in the intern’s file and copies are given to the intern and other relevant individuals.

G. Implementation of Remediation

The intern’s supervisor(s) and the Director of Training work with the intern through the remediation plan to facilitate and monitor change. Those monitoring the intern should communicate frequently with the Director of Training throughout the remediation/probationary period. At the end of this period, the following outcomes may result:

1. Both the monitors and the Advisory Review Panel are satisfied that sufficient positive change has taken place.

The intern is formally notified, in writing, that satisfactory change has been accomplished and that the period of remediation or probation is ended. At the end of the probationary period, the intern’s academic program will be notified by telephone and/or in writing that satisfactory change has taken place and the probationary status has been lifted.

2. Both the monitors and the Advisory Review Panel determine that sufficient positive change has not taken place.

The Advisory Review Panel then reviews the situation and may recommend one of the following:

a. Remediation/probation extended

The period of remediation or probation is extended with a new time period specified. The intern may challenge this recommendation or may accept the new conditions of the previous remediation plan.

b. Second remediation plan

The Advisory Review Panel does not feel that a recommendation of termination is appropriate at this time. A new plan for remediation is generated in another effort to promote change. This plan would likely include suggesting psychological/psychiatric treatment, careful screening of clients, closer and more intensive supervision, suspension of certain activities, etc. This plan is to be instituted in accordance with Sections F.2 or F.3 and Section G. The intern may challenge this recommendation or may accept the new remediation plan (See Section E).

c. Termination

If the Advisory Review Panel, after reviewing the situation, concludes that change is not sufficient and the behavior continues to be serious and resistant to change, it can recommend termination of the intern from the training program. The intern may choose to challenge the decision according to the appeal procedures outlined in Procedures for Appeal (see Section H).

3. If, at the end of a second probationary period, the monitors and the Advisory Review Panel determine that sufficient positive change has not taken place.

The Advisory Review Panel then reviews the situation and may recommend one of the following:

  • Give the intern a limited endorsement that includes specification of settings and conditions in which the intern can function adequately and those that should be avoided.
  • Communicate to the intern and his/her academic program that the internship has not been successfully completed, and recommending a leave of absence or a second internship at a later date.
  • Recommend a career change for the intern, and/or
  • Terminate the intern from the training program.

All of the above actions will be documented appropriately and implemented in a manner consistent with due process procedures. The intern is notified of the final decision and may appeal the decision. If the intern accepts the decision, his/her academic program, IU Human Resources Management, and other appropriate individuals are notified. If the intern chooses to appeal these entities will be notified of the final decision at the conclusion of the appeal process.

H. Procedures for Appeal

An intern may appeal within five working days after receiving written notice of:

  • A remediation plan
  • Probationary status
  • Termination, or
  • Recommendation of limited practice, career change, second internship, or leave of absence

To initiate an appeal, the intern must submit a letter requesting an appeal to the Director of Training.

1. Grounds for appeal

An appeal may be requested on one or both of the following grounds:

  • Denial of due process (as described) during any part of the evaluation procedures, or
  • Denial of the opportunity to present data fairly in order to refute criticism found in the evaluation

Within five working days of the receipt of the appeal request, the Director of Training will request that CAPS Director convene an Appeals Committee, consisting of one CAPS staff and one IU Student Health Center (non-CAPS) staff. The Director of Training and the Advisory Review Panel members who made the recommendations will be excluded from the Appeals Committee.

2. Procedures for appeal

The intern and his/her supervisor(s) or the staff member(s) involved will be notified that a special review meeting will be held.

  • The Appeals Committee may request personal interviews and/or written statements from individuals, as it deems appropriate.
  • The intern may submit to the Appeals Committee any written statements he/she believes to be appropriate, may request a personal interview, and/or may request that the Appeals Committee interview other individuals who might have relevant information. The supervisor or staff members involved will also be afforded the same privilege.
  • The Appeals Committee will meet with CAPS staff members or interns as requested by the appellant, or by staff members. The Appeals Committee may choose, at its discretion, to meet with individuals who are not CAPS staff members or interns, but is not under obligation to do so.
  • The Appeals Committee will complete its fact-finding review within two weeks of the Director of Training’s receipt of the intern’s request. If the Appeals Committee cannot complete its review within a two-week period, it will notify in writing the Director of Training, the supervisor(s) involved, and the intern; the committee will provide an anticipated completion date.

Within two working days of the conclusion of the fact-finding review, CAPS’ Director will communicate to the Director of Training a summary of the Appeals Committee’s findings and recommendations. The Appeals Committee may choose to sustain previous actions taken or may implement a new course of action. The decision of the Appeals Committee will be final.

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XVII Intern Grievance Procedures

Interns are expected to attempt to resolve problems informally. For purposes of intern grievance procedures, the term “supervisor” refers to individuals having administrative authority over the person who is the object of the complaint. The Director of Training and CAPS Director will act jointly as supervisor with regard to all grievances brought by interns, except (1) those that involve complaints against the Director of Training, in which case the CAPS Director will hear the grievance, and (2) those that involve complaints against the CAPS Director, in which case the Director of the Health Center will hear the grievance.

If the grievance is of a highly sensitive nature, such as alleged harassment, the intern may bring the issue directly to the supervisor without attempting informal resolution.

The intern is strongly encouraged to give the supervisor a written description, in as behavioral terms as possible, of the nature of the problem and attempts that have been made to resolve it. Within three working days, the supervisor will provide written notification to the person(s) who is (are) the object(s) of the complaint.

The university does not currently have a grievance procedure that applies to students acting in a professional capacity (i.e., practicum students). If an intern has a grievance against a practicum student, the intern should attempt informal resolution. If they cannot achieve an informal resolution, the intern should bring the grievance to the Director of Training and/or CAPS Director.

If the intern believes s/he has been discriminated against based on arbitrary considerations such as age, color, disability, ethnicity, gender, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status, s/he may consult with the campus Office of Affirmative Action.

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Intern Rights and Responsibilities

The Rights of Intern Include:

  • The right to work in a setting conducive to the acquisition of skills and knowledge required for a training professional.
  • The right to a clear statement of general rights and responsibilities upon entry into the training program, including a clear statement of goals of the training experience.
  • The right to clear statements of standards upon which the intern is to be evaluated.
  • The right to be trained by professionals who adhere to APA ethical guidelines.
  • The right and privilege to be treated with professional respect.
  • The right to be recognized for training and experience attained prior to participation in CAPS’ program.
  • The right to ongoing evaluation that is specific, respectful, and pertinent.
  • The right to engage in an ongoing evaluation of the training experience.
  • The right to initiate an informal resolution of problems with individual(s) concerned, the Director of Training, and/or the training staff.
  • The right to due process after an attempt to solve the problem informally has failed
  • The right to due process to determine when rights have been infringed upon (see Intern Grievance Procedures).
  • The right of interns to request assistance in job search and application.
  • The right to privacy and respect for one’s personal life.
  • The right to request accommodations in order to attempt to meet special training needs.

The Responsibilities of Intern include:

  • Act in accordance with the guidelines established by the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, or the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers.
  • Act in accordance with the laws and regulations of the state of Indiana.
  • Conduct oneself professionally: congruent with the standards and expectations of CAPS and the IU Health Center; integrate these standards into one’s repertoire of behavior; be aware of the impact of one’s behaviors upon colleagues.
  • Meet training expectations responsibly by developing competencies in the skill areas outlined under in “Specific Training Goals.”
  • Make appropriate use of supervision and other training formats (e.g., seminars): arrive on time; be prepared for discussion or tape review; maintain openness to learning; accept and use constructive feedback effectively, as evidenced by appropriate changes in clinical or professional behavior.
  • Manage personal stress, to keep work productivity at an acceptable level, according to training and agency norms. Stress management includes tending to personal needs and recognizing the possible need for professional help. Be open to feedback regarding stress management.
  • Give professionally appropriate feedback to peers and training staff regarding the impact of their behaviors, and to the training program regarding the impact of the training experience.
  • Participating actively in the training, service, and overall activities of CAPS, with the end goal of being able to provide services across a range of clinical activities.
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Appendix 1. Sexual Assault Crisis Services (SACS) Concentration

The Indiana University Counseling and Psychological Services’ Doctoral Psychology Internship is pleased to offer a one-year clinical and outreach concentration in the Sexual Assault Crisis Services (SACS) unit. This concentration is designed to increase the intern’s knowledge of how such a unit serves the mission and population (students, faculty, and staff) of Indiana University. This concentration continues the developmental–mentorship model of the overall internship. The intern appointed to this concentration will be mentored by the two SACS dedicated staff members and by her/his primary HSPP supervisor. Over the course of the yearlong experience the intern will increase her/his participation in all aspects of the SACS unit.

The first semester begins with the SACS intern shadowing multiple outreach programs that the SACS staff annually provides for various departments of the university. It is important that the SACS intern meet other important people on campus that work with SACS, such as members of the IU Police Department and the staffs of the Office of Student Ethics and the Student Advocate’s Office to get a sense of how these offices interact with SACS. Over time, the SACS intern will co-plan and coordinate at least one outreach program each semester. The amount of time spent providing SACS’ outreach needs to be coordinated with the Coordinator of Outreach as some SACS’ outreach may be counted towards the SACS intern’s outreach requirements.

Supervision will be one hour a week with the SACS staff. Supervision will begin with the expectation that the SACS intern will familiarize her/himself with relevant written material about the SACS and other campus programs, and with various readings regarding the experience and clinical treatment of sexual assault. Final supervisory responsibility is with the primary HSPP supervisor. Any clinical paperwork (intakes, case/progress notes, correspondences, etc.) will be reviewed and signed by the SACS supervisory staff member and then by the SACS intern’s primary HSPP supervisor. All notes about the SACS intern’s SACS caseload will be identified as ‘SACS note’ in dictation.

The clinical work will begin in the fall semester with the SACS intern shadowing emergent clients with whom the SACS staff begin working. In early supervision sessions, the SACS intern and SACS staff will be discussing the SACS intern’s interest and experience in working with survivors of sexual assault. Crisis and new cases to SACS as well as any ongoing SACS cases may also be discussed as a means of educating the SACS intern in the treatment of sexual assault survivors. Over the course of the semester, as the supervisory team determines the SACS intern is prepared, she/he will be assigned up to five ‘SACS clients’ per semester.

These clients will be SACS clients and as such are not charged for services and

therefore will check out for billing purposes and schedule subsequent appointments at the SACS/CAPS receptionists window. In order to provide ‘SACS clients’ the most effective treatment, the expectation that interns web-tape their counseling sessions is suspended for ‘SACS clients.’

During the second semester, the SACS intern will be invited to co-facilitate one of the SACS support groups. This experience will count towards the SACS intern’s group therapy requirements. Supervision of this experience will mirror the group therapy model. That is, individual supervision with the co-facilitator for one half-hour after group, biweekly group supervision of group with the other interns and the Group Program Coordinator, and biweekly group team with all other group facilitating staff. The SACS intern’s group notes will be reviewed and signed by the co-facilitator and the Groups Program Coordinator. Towards the end of the spring semester, the SACS intern will be invited to increase involvement in after-hours coverage. Consistent with our mentor-developmental model, this will begin with shadowing with current SACS staff, leading to increased autonomy as the SACS intern’s competency improves and as conditions permit.

The SACS intern will be evaluated by the SACS staff at the end of each semester. The evaluation will be discussed in a supervision session and the intern will be encouraged to provide written feedback. The form will be signed by the intern, a SACS staff member and then submitted to the Director of Training. This evaluation becomes part of the intern’s file, and the information therein will be used in mid-internship and final internship letters to the intern’s academic department. As the yearlong concentration concludes, the SACS intern will complete an evaluation of the SACS concentration that will be submitted to and discussed with the Director of Training.

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Appendix 2. Coalition for Overcoming Problem Eating/Exercise (C.O.P.E.) Concentration

The Indiana University Counseling and Psychological Services’ Doctoral Psychology Internship is pleased to offer a one-year clinical and outreach concentration with the Coalition for Overcoming Problem Eating/Exercise (C.O.P.E.) program. This concentration is designed to increase the intern’s knowledge of how such a program serves the mission and population (students, faculty, and staff) of Indiana University. This concentration continues the developmental–mentorship model of the overall internship. The intern appointed to this concentration will be mentored by two or more CAPS’ COPE coalition members and by her/his primary HSPP supervisor. Over the course of the yearlong experience the intern will increase her/his participation in all aspects of the COPE program.

The COPE intern will begin attending the monthly COPE meetings in July. In order to immerse the COPE intern in the COPE monthly meetings, it will be the COPE intern’s responsibility to take meeting minutes. These minutes will be submitted to your COPE supervisor, who will review and approve it, then you will distribute the minutes to the rest of the COPE members. The COPE meetings are also opportunities to meet other important people on campus who work in this area, for example, recreational sports, and Residential Programs and Services. Over time, the COPE intern will be given increased responsibility for representing the COPE program at various campus events. In the spring semester, the COPE intern will co-plan and coordinate the national screening and awareness day for body image and disordered eating known at IU as “Celebrate EveryBODY Week.” The amount of time spent providing COPE outreach needs will be coordinated with the Coordinator of Outreach as some COPE outreach may be counted towards the COPE intern’s outreach requirements.

Supervision will start with an expectation that the COPE intern familiarize her/himself with relevant written material about COPE and with various readings regarding the experience and clinical treatment of eating/body disorders. In early supervision sessions, the COPE intern and COPE supervisor will discuss the COPE intern’s interests and experience working with disordered eating/exercise or body image issue and supervision and assignment of clinical cases will be based on the COPE intern’s experience level. Crisis oriented and clients new to the COPE program as well as any ongoing cases of the COPE supervisor may be discussed as a means of educating the intern in the treatment of clients with disordered eating/exercise or body image issues.

During both fall and spring semester, the COPE intern will co-facilitate the body image/disordered eating process psychotherapy group, if it is offered. This experience will count towards the COPE intern’s group therapy requirements. Supervision of this experience will mirror the group therapy model. That is, individual supervision with the co-facilitator for one half-hour after group, biweekly group supervision of group with the other interns and the Group Program Coordinator, and biweekly group team with all other staff who are facilitating groups. COPE intern’s group notes will be reviewed and signed off by the group’s co-facilitator, and their HSPP primary supervisor if their COPE supervisor is not licensed as an HSPP psychologist.

The COPE intern will also be a Professional Staff member of the “Body Project,” an evidence-based, peer-led body-image improvement program. The COPE intern will attend a fall training for the Body Project, then oversee the implementation of the program in three to four IU sororities. The intern will assist in providing additional trainings for the Body Project in the fall and spring/summer semesters as needed. Additional duties of Professional Staff members include attending monthly meetings with the other Professional Staff members and at times, attending the monthly meetings of the peer leaders.

The COPE intern will be evaluated by the COPE staff at the end of each semester. The evaluation will be discussed in a supervision session and the intern will be encouraged to provide written feedback. The form will be signed by the intern, a COPE staff member and then submitted to the Director of Training. This evaluation becomes part of the intern’s file, and the information therein will be used in mid-internship and final internship letters to the intern’s academic department. As the yearlong concentration concludes, the COPE intern will complete an evaluation of the COPE concentration that will be submitted to and discussed with the Director of Training.

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Appendix 3. Diversity Outreach/Liaison Concentration

The Indiana University Counseling and Psychological Services’ Doctoral Psychology Internship is pleased to offer a one-year concentration focused on providing outreach and liaison services for clinically underserved populations. The Diversity Outreach/Liaison (DO) concentration is designed to increase the intern’s knowledge of how such a program serves the mission and population (students, faculty, and staff) of Indiana University. This concentration continues the developmental–mentorship model of the overall internship. The intern appointed to this concentration may share the responsibilities of this concentration with a predoctoral counseling psychology practicum student. The coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative will mentor them. Over the course of the year-long experience the intern will increase her/his participation in all aspects of the Diversity Outreach/Liaison program.

The first semester begins with the DO intern participating in multiple outreach programs that are oriented towards underserved populations. It is important that this intern meet other important people on campus that ought to be aware of the services that CAPS provides, for example, leaders of the various cultural support centers (the Neal-Marshall Black Cultural Center; La Casa, Latina Latino cultural center; the Asian Cultural Center (ACC); the First Nations Center (cultural center for students of Native American descent); the GLBTQ+ office (the cultural support office for students who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, questioning or allied with such students); international students office; the Office of Disabled student Services; the Office of Veterans’ Affairs; etc). Additionally it will be important for this intern to attend early cultural events and callout meetings such as Black Students orientation; Latino festival; IU Multicultural Fair; the ACC open house; La Casa/GLBTSSS combined open house; the Disability Awareness fair; the First Nations potluck; Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center and other such activities. It will also be important for this intern to network with various people on campus such as student leaders in various Greek organizations; selected IU faculty, graduate assistants, and staff; international student housing; selected student leaders, etc. This concentration allows for much creativity and initiative on the part of the DO intern to create a network of parties interested in increasing awareness of mental health services and decreasing the stigma attached to receiving such help among underserved populations of students. The amount of time spent providing this outreach needs to be coordinated with the Coordinator of Outreach as some of this outreach may be counted towards this intern’s outreach requirements.

Supervision will be one hour a week with the coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative. Supervision will begin with the expectation that the DO intern will familiarize her/himself with relevant written material about various CAPS services and campus programs relevant to underserved populations. In early supervision sessions, the DO intern and the coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative will discuss this intern’s interest and experience in working with underserved populations. Supervision with the coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative may also focus on professional development topics, such as how one’s own experience of diversity is affecting outreach, liaison, or even clinical work and the possible ethical considerations of balancing outreach/liaison work with clinical interventions.

The liaison work will begin with conducting informal needs assessments with the various interested parties/organizations early in the fall semester. Over the course of the semester, as the coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative determines the DO intern is prepared, she/he will be assigned to attend various liaison activities such as but not limited to: assist in supervising the “Let’s Talk Now” and diversity outreach practicum students; up to 1 hour a week facilitating a ‘talk circle’ at the ACC; offering cross-cultural activities hosted by La Casa such as monthly dinner preparation which includes culturally specific talks on decreasing stress through mind-body work, possibly with someone from the Health and Wellness Clinic; free yoga with a volunteer from the department of Public Health and Recreation; cross-cultural dating with someone from the counseling or clinical psychology programs, cross-cultural GLB issues; etc. This intern will also participate in the campus wide “Conversations on Race.” This program is designed to foster multicultural awareness and sensitivity on campus. In this role the intern will co-facilitate conversations among residence hall students who have chosen to participate in “Conversations on Race.”

The coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative will evaluate the DO intern at the end of each semester. The evaluation will be discussed in a supervision session and the intern will be encouraged to provide written feedback. The form will be signed by the intern and the coordinator of the CAPS multicultural initiative, then submitted to the Director of Training. This evaluation becomes part of the intern’s file, and the information therein will be used in mid-internship and final internship letters to the intern’s academic department. As the year-long concentration concludes, the DO intern will complete an evaluation of the Diversity/Liaison concentration that will be submitted to and discussed with the Director of Training.

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Appendix 4. Likert Score Descriptors for All Intern Evaluations

“3” is the minimal level of skill expected of an intern for all “Overall Ratings” in order to graduate the internship.

Likert scores
ScoreDescription
1

Intern’s performance in the area being evaluated is inadequate. Intern needs marked improvement (professional or personal) in the area being evaluated to continue progress in the internship. There is little confidence in the intern’s ability to perform in this area. Frequent and close supervision and monitoring of basic tasks is required.

2

Intern’s performance in the area being evaluated is at a basic skill and competency level and is below what is expected for this stage of professional development. There is limited confidence in the intern’s ability to perform in this area. Close supervision and monitoring are required as the intern performs basic and intermediate tasks in this area.

3

Intern’s performance in the area being evaluated is at an intermediate or expected skill and competency level for this stage of professional development. Intern has mastered basic and intermediate skills. The intern shows periodic and spontaneous demonstration of advanced skills. There is confidence in the intern’s ability to perform in this area. Ongoing and regular supervision is required for performance of intermediate and advanced skills.

4

Intern’s performance in the area being evaluated is at an advanced skill and competency level for this stage of professional development. The intern shows mastery of basic, intermediate, and most advanced tasks. There is a high level of confidence in the intern’s ability to perform in this area. Intern is beginning to demonstrate an ability to function independently but continues to benefit from supervision.

5

Intern’s performance in the area being evaluated is at the professional level. The intern has mastered the basic, intermediate, and advanced tasks and is able to function autonomously in this area. Intern can teach this skill to others. This skill level is typified by interns who are sought out by other staff members for consultation.

n/aNot applicable or not observed

About this manual

IU Student Health Center Counseling and Psychological Services

Accredited by American Psychological Association’s Commission on Accreditation

Indiana University
October 11, 2019

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