Fellows also may have the opportunity to work with our Medical Stabilization of Eating Disorders Service at CHOC at Mission Hospital. This setting is a “hospital in a hospital” which is a pediatric inpatient medical setting. Fellows work closely with the attending psychologists, hospitalists, nutritionists, child life specialists, psychiatry, and adolescent medicine specialists. Patients are admitted with a variety of eating disorder presentations that require medical stabilization (e.g., Anorexia Nervosa, ARFID, Bulimia). Fellows receive training in a Family-based Treatment (FBT) approach and implement adapted FBT principles and interventions into a busy inpatient medical stabilization setting to empower parents and equip them with the education necessary to restore their child back to health. Fellows provide diagnostic evaluations, parent and patient psychoeducation, individual and family interventions, and facilitate group meals and group therapy. 

Fellows may have the opportunity to provide education and support to the medical residents and fellows in both informal and formal presentations. 

In addition to the experiences working with the medical teams described above, the fellow will participate in a range of other pediatric psychology experiences described below in the section, “Activities Common to All Tracks.” 

II. Pediatric Psychology Project HEALTH Medical and Mental Health Program Track (3 positions):

Three fellowship positions are within our Pediatric Psychology Project HEALTH Medical and Mental Health Program Track, specializing in providing outpatient therapy to patients with co-occurring medical and mental health diagnoses. Our pediatric psychology Project HEALTH (Harnessing Every Ability for Lifelong Total Health) program provides intensive intervention services for children, adolescents, and young adults (ages 3-21 years) with both medical and mental health conditions who need additional services beyond weekly therapy. Our Project HEALTH team highly values serving patients and families from a range of cultural and linguistic backgrounds, as well as gender diverse youth. Project HEALTH is a collaborative program between CHOC and Orange County Behavioral Health. As such, fellows will be working within the Department of Mental Health county system documentation guidelines.

All three positions will have a primary focus on the provision of outpatient mental health services (psychotherapy, coordination of care, and case management) to children and families with a broad range of complex medical and co-occurring psychological/ psychiatric diagnoses (e.g., oncology, genetic disorders, diabetes and other endocrine disorders, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, and complex trauma). Fellows have the opportunity to provide long-term therapy with patients and families and collaborate work with multidisciplinary team members including Personal Service Coordinators (PSC), psychiatrists, medical and other allied healthcare professionals, and schools. Fellows will also have the opportunity to participate in workshops and evidence-based trainings provided by Orange County Behavioral Health. 

Project HEALTH Oncology Specialization 

In addition to providing outpatient therapy services, one-two positions will include a year-long rotation within Oncology (inpatient and outpatient services). The Oncology rotation involves working with infants, children, adolescents and young adults with various types of cancer to conduct universal psychosocial screening and provide mental health support throughout their medical treatment and frequently beyond. Psychology has an important role in CHOC’s Oncology Program and supports patients and families across the care continuum. Often psychosocial services begin at, or shortly after diagnosis, and are available to patients and families as they navigate the unique challenges when receiving a cancer diagnosis, throughout active treatment, during long-term post treatment care, and during survivorship. Patients are seen across both inpatient (e.g., medical floors and intensive care units) and outpatient settings (e.g., outpatient infusion center, oncology medical clinics, outpatient psychology) to provide continuity of care throughout their medical treatment. Fellows will also work closely with the multidisciplinary medical team of oncologists, medical fellows/residents, nurse practitioners, nurses, and oncology psychosocial team (social work, child life, spiritual care, art therapy, music therapy, pet therapy) as a consultant and liaison to coordinate care. 

The Oncology team at CHOC is involved in many cutting-edge research endeavors. Psychology Fellows will have the opportunity to engage in research and/or clinical projects, and take a leadership role in program development. These projects are supported by primary psychology mentors within the psychology oncology team. Current ongoing endeavors include sibling and parent group therapy opportunities, expanded support in medical clinics and unique needs of patients in remission and their families, and school-based psychoeducational services. 

Project HEALTH Additional Specialization Areas 

One interested fellow may have the opportunity to work with our Medical Stabilization of Eating Disorders Service at CHOC at Mission Hospital and/or CHOC Orange campus. Patients are admitted to CHOC for medical stabilization of a range of eating disorders (e.g., Anorexia Nervosa, ARFID, Bulimia). The Medical Stabilization of Eating Disorders program uses a modified Family-Based Treatment (FBT) approach for an inpatient setting. Fellows would be involved in providing consultation-liaison services, conducting comprehensive diagnostic interviews, providing parent and patient psychoeducation, and conducting warm hand-offs and linking to outpatient care as part of the disposition planning. Fellows may have the opportunity to provide inpatient brief, targeted individual and family intervention and meal coaching.

One fellow may have the opportunity to work within CHOC’s Gender, Puberty, and Sex Development (GPS) clinic, a multidisciplinary medical clinic for transgender and gender diverse youth. Fellows would conduct assessments and brief interventions with gender diverse youth and families from a range of cultural, linguistic, and religious communities; coordinate closely with the multidisciplinary medical team; and provide short-term therapy to gender-diverse youth. Depending on their interests and training goals, fellows in GPS clinic will also have opportunities to cultivate relationships with community agencies (e.g., the LGBTQ Center of Orange County), develop training materials for medical and mental health providers, and participate in program development and evaluation.

In addition to the experiences working with medical teams described above, the fellows will also participate in a range of other pediatric psychology experiences described below in the section, “Activities Common to All Tracks.” 

III. Pediatric Neuropsychology Track (1 position, 2-year fellowship designed to meet Division 40 Houston Conference Guidelines):

In this track we have 1 first year and 1 second year fellow position. The fellowship offers a major area of study in clinical neuropsychology which adheres to the Houston Conference Guidelines for specialty training. Fellows will work closely with our 6 board-certified and board-certified eligible neuropsychologists in performing pediatric neuropsychological assessments for a wide range of populations, with a focus on pre-surgery epilepsy evaluations, oncology brain tumor and long-term cancer survivorship evaluations, cardiac neurodevelopmental evaluations, and neuro-metabolic conditions. CHOC has a Level IV Epilepsy Center with a busy EEG monitoring program and also conducts epilepsy surgeries. Additionally, CHOC’s Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Program is a member of the Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Outcome Collaborative and participates in national multi-site clinical and research initiatives. First-year fellows also participate in our unique Multidisciplinary Concussion Clinic. 

Educational training experiences include our biweekly Advanced Neuropsychology Seminar which includes both fellows and faculty neuropsychologists and focuses on neuropsychological populations, neuroanatomy, case conceptualization, and literature, in addition to biweekly preparation for board certification (e.g., fact finding). Fellows also serve as lecturers and teaching assistants for the weekly Child and Adolescent Seminar and work with a faculty mentor to develop competencies in designing didactic series for psychology trainees, formal presentation skills, ways to facilitate meaningful discussion, and how to elicit seminar feedback from participants. Additional weekly seminars focused on professional development, supervision, and ethics are offered through the broader CHOC psychology fellowship. Fellows will also have the opportunity to deliver presentations on neuropsychology related topics within our training program seminars, hospital, and/or community. 

In addition to the experiences working with medical teams described above, the fellows will also participate in a range of other pediatric psychology experiences described below in the section, “Activities Common to All Tracks.”

IV. Acute Mental Health Services Track (2 positions):

Two fellows will work with CHOC spectrum of acute mental health services over the course of the training year. This fellowship will provide the trainee with the opportunity for an immersive training experience in 3 acute mental health settings with multidisciplinary teams, including inpatient psychiatric services (on the Mental Health Inpatient Center), emergency room psychiatric evaluations (in the CHOC Emergency Department, Mental Health Emergency Services team) and an intensive outpatient program for adolescents. Presenting problems range from suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, non-suicidal self-injury, psychosis, aggressive behavior/danger to others, altered mental status, and severe psychopathology. In each setting, patients and families are experiencing some degree of a mental health crisis and the fellow will deliver evidence-based services to the family with the goal of reducing risk and alleviating distress. Activities in each setting are detailed below. Fellows will participate in a variety of seminars over the course of the training year. Fellows will have the opportunity to practice supervision competencies with doctoral practicum students and/or doctoral interns. 

Mental Health Inpatient Center (MHIC)

The fellow will engage in training opportunities at MHIC with children and adolescents (ages 3-17) experiencing acute psychiatric crises that warrant hospitalization, such as suicidality, non-suicidal self-harm, aggression, and psychosis. Clinical training opportunities include following individual cases, co-facilitating group therapy, and conducting brief psychological assessments. Individual cases involve conducting brief, targeted individual and family therapy, safety planning, and discharge planning with the goal of increasing safety and linkage to appropriate aftercare services. Fellow will become proficient in following areas: developing targeted treatment plans to address acute psychiatric presentation, developing patient- and family-centered aftercare plans, assessing for appropriate level of care post-discharge, working in tandem with psychiatrists and nurses, and conducting psychological testing with children/adolescents presenting with wide range of mental health concerns.

Must be available for multidisciplinary rounds Monday through Friday at 9:30am when not in conflict with seminars required by Psychology Training program. 

Mental Health Emergency Service (MHES)

The fellow will engage in a training opportunity with the MHES with children and adolescents who present to the emergency department due to concern for suicidal ideation and all suicide attempts, violent behavior and/or injury to self or others, marked changes in behavior, and psychosis or altered mental status. Training opportunities include conducting mental health evaluations, using evidence-based measures (e.g., Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale [C-SSRS]), using evidence-based crisis intervention (Family Based Crisis Intervention [FBCI]), completing safety and coping planning with patients and families, and linking patients to appropriate services.

Must be available for MHES weekly meeting on Tuesday at 9:00am when not in conflict with seminars required by Psychology Training program. 

CHOC Intensive Outpatient Program

The fellow will engage in training opportunity with CHOC’s IOP for high school students. The IOP is an 8-week structured curriculum based on a DBT framework and serves teens experiencing suicidal ideation, non-suicidal self-injury, significant impairments in daily functioning, and/or emotional, behavioral, and interpersonal dysregulation. Teens attend program 4 days per week for 3 hours each afternoon and parents attend two one-hour groups. The IOP is DBT-adherent. Fellow will co-facilitate skills groups, lead mindfulness exercises, coach active skill use throughout group programming, conduct individual, family, and parent skills coaching as needed, conduct risk assessments, and complete safety plans. Additionally, fellow will participate in Treatment Team and Consult Team, components of DBT to address patient care, clinician care, and adherence to the DBT model. Fellow will become proficient in the following areas: DBT skills training, functional analysis of self-harm and other risk-related behaviors, use of mindfulness to adaptively regulate emotions in treatment, determine appropriate level of care for high risk teens, and managing effective self-care to promote clinician well-being and delivery of optimal services.

Must work 10:30am-7:00pm Monday through Friday while on IOP rotation when not in conflict with seminars required by Psychology Training program. 

Top candidates will have clinical experience with children and adolescents, fluent knowledge of risk and protective factors for suicide in children and adolescents, strong grasp of severe psychopathology as it presents in children and adolescents, and training in fast-paced settings requiring flexible response. Experience with evidence-based therapies is heavily preferred; training in DBT is not required. 

In addition to the experiences described above, the fellows will also participate in a range of other child/adolescent psychology experiences described below in the section, “Activities Common to All Tracks.”

V. Autism Spectrum Disorders Track (2 positions):

The Autism Spectrum Disorders fellow at the Thompson Autism Center at CHOC will gain experience and skills in providing psychodiagnostic assessments and treatment for patients with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other mental health needs. During the assessment rotation, the fellow will conduct psychological assessment and testing for diagnostic purposes, including test administration, scoring, and comprehensive report writing. During the intervention rotation, the fellow will identify preliminary issues for treatment focus, develop treatment plans under supervision, and deliver individual and/or group therapy in multiple settings including the center, the home, and/or community. The fellow will gain experience in providing care to patients and their families in a multidisciplinary setting and will coordinate closely with the medical team and other members of the team (e.g., social work, behavioral analysts, occupational therapist, physical therapists).

Duration: 6 months in assessment and 6 months in intervention. 

In addition to the experiences described above, the fellow(s) will also participate in a range of other child/adolescent psychology experiences described below in the section, “Activities Common to All Tracks.” 

Activities Common to All Tracks: 

Postdoctoral Fellowship Project

All fellows will have the opportunity to generate a postdoctoral fellowship project that is clinical or research oriented. Projects have included formal research questions, quality improvement initiatives, needs assessments, generation of individual or group manualized treatments, and development of psychoeducational materials. In addition to the core pediatric psychology faculty listed below, many of whom have ongoing programs of clinical research. Upon completion of the postdoctoral fellowship project, fellows will have an opportunity to present their results as presentations, posters, and/or papers within local, regional, and national forums, or to use the results to build upon in future programs or research development. 

Supervision Experiences

Postdoctoral fellows will be provided with an opportunity to supervise interns and/or practicum students. Training in the provision of supervision will be provided. Supervision and responsibility for the patients will ultimately be the responsibility of a licensed clinical psychologist on staff. Depending on the specialty track, fellows will either supervise therapy cases, assessments, or inpatient consult cases.

Supervision

Fellows receive a combination of individual and group supervision (a minimum of four hours) per week. Supervision occurs on an individual basis, during group rounds, within clinic settings, and within the Training Program seminars. All supervision is performed by departmental staff who meet the California Board of Psychology requirements and CHOC Medical Staff qualifications. 

Fellows are offered at least two hours of individual supervision per week for ongoing therapy cases, assessment cases, and rotational experiences. Supervision of consults is handled with both individual supervision and via group supervision (rounds). Rounds are co-led by a board- certified child and adolescent psychiatrist/pediatrician and a licensed psychologist. 

Presentations

Fellows will have the opportunity to deliver presentations on mental health topics within our training program seminars, hospital, and/or community. They will observe faculty members’ presentations and generate feedback on presentation style, content, and achievement of objectives. Then, fellows will work with our supervisors, faculty mentors, and/or community education team to develop presentations, which may include the psychology training program, hospital teams, schools, parent groups, pediatricians, and other community organizations. 

Teaching Assistantship/Department Committee Representative

Fellows have the opportunity to serve as a teaching assistant for a seminar or rounds or serve as the representative for the training program on a department committee during the training year. Teaching assistantship/department committee assignments are determined based on fellowship track and fellow interests. As a teaching assistant, fellows will work with a faculty mentor to develop competencies in designing didactic series for psychology trainees, formal presentation skills, ways to facilitate meaningful discussion, and how to elicit seminar feedback from participants. As a department committee representative, fellows will attend department committee meetings as scheduled, serve as a liaison between the committee and the training class, illicit feedback from the training class and present to the committee, and provide feedback back to the training class regarding relevant issues raised at committee meetings.  

Training Program Seminars

Postdoctoral Fellowship Seminar (once weekly for 1 hour, year-long)

Professional Practice Seminar (once-twice monthly for 2 hours, year-long): includes Diversity & Ethics Seminars

Advanced Neuropsychology Seminar (twice monthly for 1 hour, year-long): required for neuropsychology fellow(s), optional for other fellows 

CHiSPA (twice monthly for 1 hour): required for students who are proficient in Spanish 

Training Opportunities for Spanish Speaking Fellows
Our fellowship is dedicated to providing training opportunities for fellows who speak Spanish. These experiences include the ability to conduct evaluations, consultations, and treatment in Spanish. 

In addition, interns who speak Spanish have the opportunity to participate in a monthly seminar, CHiSPA, led by several bilingual faculty and staff members The seminar is designed to help increase skills in and comfort with conducting psychological interventions and assessments in Spanish. Activities include working on psychological vocabulary, practice in discussing cases, case conceptualizations in Spanish, and cultural modifications of interventions for Spanish speaking populations. The goal of the seminar is to provide support and build on participants’ individual strengths. You will have the opportunity to attend seminar twice monthly, as well as have individual supervision in Spanish with a Spanish speaking faculty member. 

Benefits 

Fellowship Location 

CHOC is located in central Orange County, placing it less than an hour drive from the City of Los Angeles and about 30 minutes from the Pacific Ocean. Mountain resorts and the California desert are less than two hours away. The Southern California climate is very moderate all year round. Housing costs in Orange County tend to be on the average to high average side, but are often more affordable than in other major metropolitan areas. Orange County offers training experiences working with youth and families from a range of cultural, linguistic, and religious communities. 

Salary and Benefits 

Fellows: $71,614/year

Medical and Dental Insurance (after first full month of employment)

Paid time off (total of 21 days) for educational/vacation/sick leave (11-13 days) and departmental holidays (8-10 days) 

Paid sick leave (total of 3 days per fiscal year)

An additional 3 days of educational leave (for conferences or licensure classes) 

Medical leave consistent with the Family Medical Leave Act and California Family Rights Act
Each fellow is assigned a desktop or laptop computer

Embedded video cameras are available on site to enhance the supervision experience, including facilitating supervision of more challenging cases

Postdoctoral Fellows receive free parking at CHOC 

A selection of professional books, journals, and audiovisual materials are available through the Psychology/Neuropsychology Training Program library and through the Burlew Medical Library, located on the CHOC/St. Joseph Hospital Campus 

Application Procedure

The application deadline for fellows is December 1, 2023, to begin training on August 26, 2024. 

Please email all application materials to Marni Nagel, Ph.D., Manager Psychology Training Program, Senior Psychologist at Psychology_Training@choc.org. Please have letters of recommendation sent directly by recommenders to Dr. Nagel at Psychology_Training@choc.org. Please include the following in your application: 

• Letter of interest indicating which track(s) you would like to be considered for, and your perceived fit with the program
• Curriculum vitae
• Graduate school transcripts
• Three letters of recommendations from graduate faculty and/or clinical supervisors – 1 letter from your graduate program, 1 letter from your internship site, and 1 additional letter from a supervisor of your choice
• Completed psychological test report on a child or adolescent (with identifying information removed) for Autism Spectrum Disorders and Neuropsychology Tracks only

Selection Procedures

Virtual interviews will be held in December and January and are by invitation only in order to minimize the significant financial and time burden for applicants. On-site tours of CHOC can be arranged for any interested applicants and is not a requirement. The interview process includes a semi-structured interview. This format allows all applicants the same opportunity to show all of the skills and knowledge they have gained over the course of their graduate training. It also ensures that we ask you about all important areas. Time is also scheduled for more open-ended discussions where you can ask questions about our fellowship site. We also schedule time for you to talk to with current fellows. With applicants’ permission, we would like to take a picture at the interview in order to assist the memory of the selection committee. This is a totally voluntary process, and all applicants are welcome to opt out of the photograph. In the past we have had applicants bring a camera and take pictures of us as well. We invite you to do the same as we know how helpful that can be as a memory aide. We do ask that you respect the privacy of our patients and not take pictures that would include them.

We will be following the 2024 APPIC Postdoctoral Selection Guidelines, which include a common hold date for postdoctoral fellowships, however, clinical neuropsychology programs are not expected to follow the Standards and CHD. As such, we will be making offers following the completion of interviews; applicants can then accept, decline, or hold an offer until the designated CHD date of Monday, February 26, 2024. 

The pediatric neuropsychology fellowship does not participate in the APPCN match and will be making offers on a rolling basis prior to the APPCN match date. 

Applicants offered positions with our program should understand that prior to beginning the fellowship they will be required to successfully pass a required brief medical examination, which includes a drug test. Applicants will also undergo a required background test which CHOC requires of all employees in order to ensure the safety of our pediatric patients. 

Application Requirements

Admission requirements for fellows include a doctoral degree in psychology from an APA accredited program; anticipated completion of a 1-year clinical APA accredited internship; one year of experience providing clinical services to children, preferably in a medical setting; a background in basic psychological testing measures (e.g. IQ, achievement, objective and projective personality measures); and finally, exposure to and interest in pediatric health psychology, pediatric neuropsychology, and/or child and adolescent psychology through coursework, clinical placement, or research. Postdoctoral fellows are required to complete their doctoral degree requirements prior to the start of the postdoctoral training year. 

Questions

For additional information, please access our website at https://www.choc.org/wp/careers/residency-training-programs/psychology-postdoctoral-fellowship/ 

Programmatic Questions: Please email or call with any questions about the program. Please direct any questions about programmatic issues to: 

Marni Nagel, Ph.D., Manager Psychology Training Program, Senior Psychologist

Department of Pediatric Psychology

CHOC Hospital in Orange
1201 W La Veta Ave
Orange, CA 92868-3874

Phone: (714) 509-8481

Fax: (714) 509-8756
Email: Psychology_Training@choc.org 

Questions about application status: If you have questions regarding the status of your application (e.g. is it complete or what is missing), please email Andrea Samson at Psychology_Training@choc.org or call (714) 509-8299 and ask for Andrea.