Acceptance and Mindfulness-Based Partial Hospital Program – Rhode Island Hospital

Faculty Supervisor(s): Rachel Ojserkis, PhD (primary supervisor); Russell Marks, PhD; Hannah Herc, PhD (faculty appointment pending)

Additional supervisors: Sarah Zimage, LMHC (faculty appointment pending); Sarah Schmidhofer, M.D.; Christina Mele, Psy.D.; Alex Brake, Ph.D.; Dana Morris, Ph.D.; Rachel Depner, Ph.D.; Joseph Donahue, Ph.D.; Katherine Visser, Ph.D.; Helen Day, Ph.D. (faculty appointment pending); Laura Fischer, Ph.D. (faculty appointment pending); Kristy Dalrymple, Ph.D.

The Acceptance and Mindfulness-Based Partial Hospitalization Program at Rhode Island Hospital (RIH PHP) serves adults aged 18 years and older who present with a range of psychological problems, including mood, anxiety, PTSD, and personality disorders.  The primary treatment model is based in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), although other empirically supported behavior therapies, including Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and ACT-enhanced exposure therapies are also integrated as indicated.

The partial hospital runs from 8:00 AM to 2:00PM Monday through Friday, and the average length of stay for patients is 2-3 weeks.  Patients attend 3 groups per day, providing them with skills in: values and goals clarification, greater acceptance towards difficult feelings and thoughts while engaging in meaningful behaviors, improving interpersonal relationships, and increasing mindfulness and other coping behaviors.  Patients also receive individual therapy and medication management sessions on a daily basis. Three specialty treatment tracks are currently available tailoring ACT for (1) trauma/PTSD, (2) young adult issues, and 3) borderline personality disorder/emotion regulation difficulties. Currently, the program is operating virtually with some minor schedule modifications due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alcohol and Drug Treatment Services Program - Butler Hospital

Faculty Supervisor(s): Deb Herman, PhD & Morganne Kraines, PhD

The Alcohol and Drug Partial Hospital Program (ADP) is a treatment program for people who have already completed detoxification.  It is located in the Day Hospital and involves the treatment of a maximum of 25 patients.  Patients attend Monday through Friday from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., depending on individual needs and group participation.  The program involves daily group behavior therapy that focuses on a functional analysis of drinking and drug use and associated problem behaviors, implementation of self-control procedures, relapse prevention strategies, cognitive-behavioral group meetings, and family education.  Patients receive individual counseling with a therapist and meet with a psychiatrist each day.  The program also includes goal setting meetings, introduction to 12-step programs, and individualized discharge planning. The average patient stay is 5-10 days.

Collaborative Addiction Recovery Services - Providence VA Medical Center

Faculty Supervisor(s): Jayne Kurkjian, PhD, Robert Tilton, PsyD, & Corinne Bart, PhD 

The Collaborative Addiction Recovery Services (CARS) rotation at the Providence VA Medical Center is designed to allow the clinical psychology resident to develop skills in the psychological assessment and treatment of substance use disorders with a focus on acquisition of group therapy skills, taking into account the special needs for holistic, integrated care in this population. 

Organized within the Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Service of the Providence VA Medical Center, CARS is a multifaceted program that provides, via its interdisciplinary treatment team, services that encompass the entire continuum of care in the treatment of addictive behaviors. CARS either directly provides or has access (via in-house referral, referral to other VAMCs in the region, or referral to private sector treatment resources) to the following services: comprehensive intake assessment, treatment planning and case disposition; CARS Consultation-Liaison Clinic (servicing the medical/surgical areas of the Medical Center); outpatient motivational drop-in group; inpatient detoxification; inpatient substance abuse rehabilitation; CARS Intensive Outpatient Treatment Program; evidence-based individual and group outpatient psychotherapy including CBT groups for Relapse Prevention, Anger Management Group, ACT Group, SUD/Depression Group and other groups focused on coping skills training; outpatient psychiatric and medication management services; Aftercare Group Program; and Opioid Treatment Program. Some services are offered via the VA's telehealth platform. 

Patients serviced by CARS present with a wide range of DSM-5 Substance-Related Disorders (usually severe and long-term in nature), often carry multiple DSM diagnoses, and typically have concomitant physical conditions that directly relate to their Substance-Related Disorder (e.g., chronic pain). CARS strives to provide addiction treatment that is well-integrated with patients' concurrent primary medical care (typically also provided in the Medical Center). 

Intensive Outpatient Program for OCD and Anxiety Disorders - Butler Hospital

Faculty Supervisor(s): Aaron Kaiser, PhD

The OCD and Anxiety Disorders Intensive Outpatient Program is a specialized program designed to help adults experiencing persistent obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), intense fears (phobias), panic disorder, health anxiety, and social anxiety. Grounded in an exposure-based CBT model of treatment, the program is geared towards patients who have not responded to traditional outpatient treatment. Treatment takes place Monday through Thursday (1:45pm – 5pm), over an average 7 week period. Patients in this program receive individual therapy, daily group therapy, as well as home-based ERP, family consultations, and expert psychiatric medication consultation. Clinical psychology residents will participate and receive supervision in all aspects of program procedures.  Treatment services are delivered in-person.

Inpatient and Family Therapy Program – Rhode Island Hospital

Faculty Supervisor(s):  Rebecca Troeger, PhD, Tanya Tran, PhD, Katherine Visser, PhD, Jeniimarie Febres, PhD, & Gabor Keitner, MD

The Inpatient and Family Therapy Program at Rhode Island Hospital provides intensive psychiatric treatment for outpatients and inpatients with a special emphasis on involving families in treatment and a biopsychosocial approach. Each inpatient is treated by a multidisciplinary team, which formulates a treatment plan that is tailored to the specific needs and problems of the patient. Treatment is multidimensional and may involve combinations of individual psychotherapy, group therapy, family therapy, and psychopharmacological treatments. Clinical psychology residents sit in on daily rounds with the treatment team, in addition to having their own caseload of individual patients and groups. On-site inpatient supervision is provided by Dr. Gabor Keitner, and individual therapy cases are supervised by Tanya Tran, PhD.  Residents also run groups on the inpatient unit, supervised by Katherine Visser.   One afternoon a week, clinical psychology residents also participate in the outpatient family therapy clinic in the Inpatient and Family Therapy Program.  Supervised by Abigail Mansfield, PhD, Jeniimarie Febres, PhD and Rebecca Troeger, PhD, the clinic uses the McMaster approach to assess and treat families and couples using a co-therapy model.  Residents sit in on sessions and become more active in co-therapy as the rotation progresses. As part of clinical psychology residents’ experience on the inpatient unit, weekend coverage is included, which provides an opportunity to see a much broader range of patient problems. The frequency of the weekend coverage varies depending on how many medical students and clinical psychology residents there are (e.g. one in three weeks to one in six weeks).

Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders Day Hospital & Intensive Outpatient Programs – Women & Infants Hospital

Faculty Supervisor(s): Virtue Sankoh, PhD & Maggie Allen, PhD

The Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders rotation at Women and Infants Hospital is designed to introduce the clinical psychology resident to the recognition and treatment of perinatal psychiatric disorders.  To this end, the clinical psychology resident/fellow will function as a member of a multi-disciplinary treatment team in partial and intensive outpatient hospital settings.  Our mission is to provide timely, comprehensive and exceptional healthcare to birthing people suffering from psychiatric disorders during both pregnancy and the postpartum period. We also provide essential support to families in crisis during this time period. We currently offer two programs: partial hospital level of care for a wide range of perinatal psychiatric disorders called Day Hospital and a specialized Perinatal OCD and Anxiety Disorders Intensive Outpatient Program. These programs are designed to keep patient caregivers and their infants together during treatment so that 1) the critical bonding period between caregiver and baby is not disrupted, 2) breastfeeding among nursing caregivers in not interrupted and 3) we can directly observe how a caregiver’s illness affects interaction with their infant, in order to facilitate improved early relational patterns and impact attachment security overall. The resident will be involved in all aspects of the treatment, providing group therapy, carrying individual psychotherapy caseload, conducting intake evaluations, family meetings, and treatment planning.  

Trauma Recovery Services (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) Rotation - Providence VA Medical Center

Faculty Supervisor(s): Lauren Reeves, PhD, Caroline Holman, PhD, & Samantha Collum, PhD

In the Trauma Recovery Services (TRS) rotation, the clinical psychology resident learns, through direct participation, how to manage individuals suffering from trauma-related disorders, including PTSD, as well as other acute psychiatric and substance abuse problems. The TRS clinic at the Providence VA Medical Center is an outpatient treatment program for Veterans suffering from PTSD symptoms related to their military service as well as non-military traumas. The program primarily serves Veterans from the war in Vietnam, the Persian Gulf Conflict, and Veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Veterans receive a comprehensive diagnostic assessment and then engage in a treatment program with an emphasis on evidence-based interventions. Clinical psychology residents will participate and receive supervision in all aspects of program procedures. We offer individual psychotherapy, couples therapy (when cases are available), and group psychotherapy. Veterans in the program also present with many difficulties related to PTSD such as substance abuse and depression. Staff participate in several research projects and clinical psychology residents may have an opportunity to learn about ongoing research protocols. Additional involvement in research is completely optional and is discussed on an individual basis.

Acute Psychiatric Care (APC) Program Rotation - Butler Hospital

Faculty Supervisor(s): Ana Abrantes, PhD, Yael Schonbrun, PhD, Patrick Schule, MD, Angela Wang, DO, Linda Carpenter, MD, Andrew Fukuda, MD

The Acute Psychiatric Care (APC) rotation is comprised of multiple settings at Butler Hospital.  The APC rotation is focused on short-term psychological, psychiatric, and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) treatment of adults with significant mental health concerns. On the psychiatric inpatient unit, clinical psychology residents will attend team meetings and rounds, lead groups, conduct individual psychotherapy, and attend family meetings as applicable. At the Inpatient Assessment Center (IAC; psychiatric emergency room), residents will observe and conduct intake evaluations and discuss disposition considerations with the attending physician and IAC clinicians. At the TMS Clinic, the resident will observe intakes and TMS sessions, and meet individually with TMS patients for brief psychotherapy and psychoeducation as needed.