Curriculum

Fellowship Program 101

Hurley Medical Center (HMC), in partnership with Genesee Health System, accepts applications for two full-time postdoctoral fellowship positions in Pediatric Psychology annually. Each one-year position has unique and shared clinical elements, along with many shared program activities. See Apply for eligibility requirements and application instructions.

Want a quick summary of the fellow program requirements? Scroll to the bottom of this page!

Clinical Care

Clinical care provides advanced learning experiences in culturally-informed and evidence-based targeted assessment, intervention, and interviewing. In these ways, clinical experiences during fellowship ensure graduates can effectively treat pediatric patients in interprofessional healthcare settings. Clinical care assignments are longitudinal & occur concurrently. To ensure adequate learning opportunity, fellows are generally expected to maintain either an average clinical caseload or average number of clinical hours, depending on the practice setting (e.g., integrated primary care versus outpatient psychotherapy versus inpatient consultation-liaison services). The average clinical caseload and clinical hours vary based on fellows’ clinical experience and learning needs. In many instances, fellows collaborate with their supervisors to choose cases that enhance their knowledge and ensure a wide range of learning experiences.

Clinical Care by Fellowship Position.

  • Fellow Position 1 Clinical Care Services: Inpatient pediatric psychology consultation-liaison | Outpatient-based neurodevelopmental assessment | Pediatric psychology outpatient services (evaluation & psychotherapy in a private practice-like setting)
  • Fellow Position 2 Clinical Care Services: Pediatric integrated primary care | Outpatient-based neurodevelopmental assessment | Pediatric psychology outpatient services (evaluation & psychotherapy in a private practice-like setting)

For both fellow positions, presenting issues are broad. Within inpatient medical units and integrated primary care, presenting problems span the domains of clinical health psychology and child/adolescent clinical psychology. Within the outpatient behavioral health setting, presenting problems are specific to pediatric clinical health psychology. Examples include somatic symptom disorder, nocturnal enuresis, adaptation to chronic illness(es), and psychological or behavioral factors impacting a medical condition. Within the outpatient neurodevelopmental assessment setting, presenting problems may include fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, autism spectrum disorders and neurodevelopmental assessment as it pertains to lead exposure. Clinical services are provided with a level of supervision commensurate with fellow’s comfort and ability, with increasing autonomy provided to ensure readiness for independent practice by fellowship completion. Across all clinical activities, patients and families served reflect a myriad of multicultural identities.

COVID-19 Adaptations

To promote safety and ensure maximum accessibility, services may vary in delivery method over time (e.g., entirely in-person, entirely virtual, a combination of telehealth and in-person). All settings of clinical practice are equipped to accommodate a variety of delivery methods. Fellows are also provided with a high quality webcam to be used as needed throughout their training year.

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Accessible faculty

Supervision

Fellows receive extensive supervision during the 12-month fellowship program, including 2 hours of face-to-face supervision weekly, as well as case- and activity-based supervision. All clinical documentation must be co-signed by a clinical supervisor who ultimately holds legal responsibility for the fellow’s work. Fellows are expected to precept (review) clinical cases within supervision. Additionally, pediatric physicians, nurses, social workers, and case managers are available to provide consultation to fellows in their respective areas of expertise as needed.

  • Individual face-to-face supervision occurs at least two hours per week with a doctoral level, advanced practice psychologist. At the outset, fellows and formal individual supervision faculty will clarify the roles & expectations of the supervisor and supervisee, and collaboratively determine the optimal approach to supervision. In general, supervisors adopt a developmental approach to supervision that evolves based on the supervisees’ skill & comfort level with various tasks/activities. Learners should expect the following topics to be routine aspects of 1:1 supervision: wellness, exploration of their multicultural identity in relation to others around them, progress toward readiness for independent practice.
  • Clinical (informal, case-based) supervision occurs on a daily basis and is provided by doctoral level psychologists.

During normal working hours, supervisors are generally available in-person and virtually. Supervisors engage in clinical care experiences on the same services as the fellows, allowing for frequent contact throughout the workday. Additionally, faculty offices are located in the same buildings as fellow offices. Supervisor presence and close proximity of offices allow for easy access to consultation and supervision. In addition to the designated supervisor at any given time, fellows have access to other fellowship faculty along with their contact information.

Continuing Education

Didactics & Instructional Training

A significant portion of training time is devoted to continuing education. Methods of teaching include, but are not limited to, formal classroom-like instruction, case-based discussion, question and answer, video review and analysis, flipped classroom, coffee (or tea!) conversations, fact finding, dyad- and small group breakouts, and fellow-facilitated discussion.

To ensure curriculum quality, all didactics are supervised &/or pre-reviewed by a program faculty member; anonymous evaluations are completed for each didactic by all in attendance; and the curriculum at-large is reviewed annually during the corresponding Pediatric Psychology Fellowship Program meeting. Didactics span a variety of topics central to the program aims and domains of competence, and include the following structured learning activities:

  • Diversity Committee
  • Flint-based Postdoctoral Fellowship Programs Wellness Retreats (2-3 times annually)
  • Pediatric Psychology Curriculum (weekly): includes topics pertaining to advanced clinical practice, professional development, multicultural awareness and humility, wellness, career readiness, and non-professional roles of pediatric psychologists
  • Pediatric Residency Program case conference

Other didactic experiences are available electively based on fellow interest. Fellows are encouraged to discuss additional continuing education opportunities within their formal supervision time.

Teaching and Learner Supervision

Fellows receive training in a variety of non-clinical roles for psychologists within medical education. If fellows have an interest in deeper knowledge and skill development related to the teaching and supervisory activities listed below, they are encouraged to discuss their interests within formal individual supervision early in their training experience.

  • Lectures. The Pediatric Residency Program at Hurley Medical Center provides didactics to learners and program faculty. Pediatric psychology fellows are required to provide at least one resident/faculty lectures per year as part of the broader residency curriculum (large group format; at least one lecture). Topics are assigned by the Program Director. Feedback related to performance including strengths and areas for growth, with strategies for improvement will be provided verbally and in writing after completion of each presentation.
  • Resident Shadowing. Fellows may accompany (“shadow”) residents during resident clinical encounters. When shadowing, the role of fellows will be clarified up front. Fellows may shadow residents in order to directly observe resident performance on skills in which fellows have expertise (e.g., mental health screening; psychosocial history taking; interpersonal & communication skills). When this occurs, fellows will be expected to provide verbal feedback on strengths, areas for growth, and strategies to improve. Fellows may also shadow residents in order to enhance their knowledge and understanding of medical encounters, various clinical presentations, and/or the roles of physicians.
  • Supervision. Fellows at Hurley Medical Center have the opportunity to supervise residents during their Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Rotation on activities relevant to fellow’s training (e.g., obtaining a psychosocial history; screening for mental health difficulties). Opportunities to supervise psychology learners at the practicum or predoctoral internship level may also be available at the Center for Children's Integrated Services.
  • Curriculum Development. Knowing how to develop and/or evaluate a curriculum is a valuable role for psychologists within medical education. The fellowship program encourages development of related knowledge, skills, and attributes through involving fellows in medical education activities, and delivering didactics on relevant topics. Fellows also have the opportunity to participate in curriculum development and evaluation alongside program faculty.
  • Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Rotation. The Pediatric Residency at Hurley Medical Center provides a one-month rotation in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, where fellows can participate in training medical learners. Participation may include providing didactics, precepting and shadowing medical learners during clinical encounters, and having medical learners observe their work in various clinical settings.

Professional Development

Through participation in relevant departmental and hospital meetings, formal and informal supervision, didactics, mentorship, and leadership-promoting activities, fellows are provided with extensive support and encouragement to grow professionally throughout the fellowship experience.

  • Mentorship: Mentorship is vital across ones’ career to support ongoing growth and development. As such, fellows are matched with one or more mentors within the first month of fellowship. To maximize the mentoring benefit, fellows are expected to identify where mentorship would best support their professional growth during the 12-month fellowship year. Selected for their expertise, professionalism, and ability to provide exceptional support and advisement on broad range of topics, our mentoring panel includes six individuals who are not affiliated with the fellowship program, all of whom represent excellence in their respective areas of practice and who reflect a myriad of multicultural identities.
  • National Examination for Practice in Professional Psychology (EPPP). Fellows are required to pass the National Examination for Practice in Professional Psychology (EPPP) prior to fellowship graduation. Fellows are encouraged to check with the Program Coordinator as money and/or resources may be available to support preparation. Certificates of fellowship completion will not be awarded to any fellow who does not complete this requirement. For those who pass the EPPP after their 12th month of the fellowship, a certificate of fellowship completion will be awarded upon review of supporting documentation by the Program Director. Fellows are provided with an EPPP informational session, usually within the first few months of fellowship in order to support fellow’s preparation for this exam. Following the informational session, fellows are encouraged to develop EPPP study groups; faculty can assist upon request.
  • National Conferences. Fellows are encouraged, but not required, to attend a regional or national conference(s) relevant to their specific career interests. Fellows are encouraged to check with the Program Coordinator as continuing education money may be available to support conference related fees. Conferences most commonly attended by fellows include the Society of Pediatric Psychology Annual Conference, DREAM IPC, and the Society for Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Annual Meeting.

Community-Based Activity

Developing partnerships with local organizations and others sharing an interest in child welfare is critical to maximizing the outcomes of our pediatric psychology practices.

  • Community-Based Activity. Fellows can electively choose to complete one or more community-based activities during the 12-month fellowship program. Activities can span community-based outreach, advocacy, research, & intergroup program participation. Examples of community service and outreach activities include informing behavioral aspects of community-based cooking and health classes, teaching anti-bullying strategies to paraprofessionals within the local YWCA, providing a didactic on child development to teachers and support staff of a Flint-Based early enrichment preschool, advocating on behalf of a child welfare issue at the State Capital (East Lansing), completing adolescent health screenings as part of a school-based health fair, participating in career days for middle and high school aged students, and educational activities for members of support groups, community agencies, and places of worship.

If selected as one of the program-required activities, fellows are expected to lead the identification, development, and execution of their community-based activity with the oversight and support of an appointed fellowship program faculty member. All activities must be overseen by the appointed faculty member, and cannot occur prior to review and expressed approval of said faculty member.

Dissemination of Scholarly Activity

  • Regional, State, or National Presentation. Fellows can collaboratively prepare and submit scholarly work for peer-reviewed regional and national meetings on topics of interest. Organizations relevant to pediatric psychologists include the following (in alphabetical order): American Academy of Pediatrics (Michigan Chapter), American Psychological Association, Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers, Michigan Psychological Association, Society for Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, and the Society of Pediatric Psychology. Additional associations may be indicated based on the populations and specific medical learners served.
  • Peer-Reviewed Publication. Fellows can also collaboratively prepare and submit scholarly work for peer-reviewed publication. Historically, fellows have co-authored publications in the following journals (in alphabetical order): Journal of Child and Family Studies; Journal of Clinical Pediatrics; Journal of Pediatric Psychology; Professional Psychology: Research and Practice.
Academic Approach

Scholarly Opportunities

Scholarly Activity

The fellowship ensures a scholarly approach to pediatric psychology practice through an educational curriculum, fellow participation and facilitation of journal club, faculty modeling, and an evidence-informed approach to all fellowship activities.

For those with more interest in research activity, a variety of opportunities are available, with considerable support provided from fellowship faculty, an on-site library, and a dedicated research department at Hurley Medical Center. If fellows have an interest in deeper knowledge and skill development related to research activity, they are encouraged to discuss this within formal individual supervision.

Journal Club

The primary goal of Journal Club is to deepen knowledge, skills, and attitudes relevant to practicing evidence based medicine, including critical reflection on scientific methodology, awareness of various research methods, and the application of science to clinical practice. Fellows are required to actively participate in journal club, which may include journal club facilitation. Articles and the date of journal club facilitation will be assigned early in the fellowship experience.

Research Activities Available to Interested Fellows

  • Research participation as the principle investigator or a collaborator
  • Formal quality improvement projects
  • Program evaluation
  • Curriculum development or evaluation
  • Participation and eventual authorship of peer-reviewed works including posters, oral presentations, book chapters, & journal articles

Summary of Fellowship Program Requirements

Successful completion of the Pediatric Psychology Fellowship Program requires that fellows fulfill the following program requirements:

  • 12-months of full-time engagement in the fellowship (barring allotted personal, sick, and conference time-off)
  • Participation in 2 hours of weekly 1:1 supervision
  • Attendance and active participation in all didactics (barring excused absences). Active participation may involve facilitation of any of the following:
    • Journal Club
    • Differential diagnosis (complex case) presentation
    • Flipped classroom didactic
    • Group supervision
    • Ethics group session
  • Diversity Committee membership and facilitation of 1 session
  • Passage of the National Examination for Professional Practice in Pediatric Psychology.
  • Performance meeting program expectations as measured by the 12-month Faculty Evaluation of Fellow Performance Evaluation Form
  • Completion of three activities, each aligning with one of the following nonclinical, professional roles (NOTE: Activity selection should occur in collaboration with the Program Director and align with learner interests, training gaps, and/or professional needs):
    • Community-Based Activity
    • Medical education activity (1 required)
    • Data analysis and submission for dissemination in a national or international peer-reviewed context (acceptance not required)
    • Formal, data-driven quality-improvement project

Additional information pertaining to community-based activities, medical education, and scholarly activity opportunities can be found above.