title: Doctoral clinical geropsychology training in a primary care setting.
abstract: Most older adults diagnosed with a mental disorder receive treatment in primary care settings that lack personnel skilled in geropsychological diagnosis and treatment. The Ferkauf Older Adult Program of Yeshiva University endeavors to bridge this gap by providing training in geriatric psychology, through coursework and diverse clinical practica, to clinical psychology doctoral students within a large urban professional psychology program. In an innovative effort to provide the most disadvantaged elderly with comprehensive mental health treatment and maximize trainee exposure to an interdisciplinary treatment model, the program also pairs selected doctoral psychology trainees with medical residents to optimize integrated mental health service delivery for primary care elderly. The program has the following core objectives: (1) Infuse the mental health and aging knowledge base into the regular graduate curriculum; (2) Provide interdisciplinary training in geropsychological diagnostic and consultative services within an urban primary care setting; (3) Provide interdisciplinary training in the practice of psychological and neuropsychological evaluation of elderly; (4) Provide training in geropsychological psychotherapeutic intervention, including individual, couples/family, and brief/psycho-educational therapies with outpatient older adults. These objectives are achieved by pooling the resources of a graduate school of psychology, a local public hospital, and an academic medical center to achieve educational and clinical service goals.
authors.affiliation: Ferkauf Older Adult Program, Yeshiva University, 1300 Morris Park Ave, Bronx, NY 10461, USA.
authors.forename: Richard A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Zweig
authors.forename: Lawrence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Siegel
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hahn
authors.forename: Gail
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kuslansky
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Byrne
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fyffe
authors.forename: Vicki
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Passman
authors.forename: Douglas
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.forename: Gregory A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Hinrichsen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum; D004503:Education, Medical, Graduate; D005852:Geriatric Psychiatry / Q000193:education*; D005853:Geriatrics / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D001523:Mental Disorders; D017145:Models, Educational; D009519:New York City; D011320:Primary Health Care; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011586:Psychology, Clinical / Q000193:education*