Brown Clinical Psychology Training Consortium
Fellowship in
Clinical Neuropsychology (APA Approved)
Site:
Rhode Island Hospital
Supervisor(s):
Geoffrey Tremont, Ph.D., ABPP-CN (Primary Supervisor)
Holly Westervelt, Ph.D.r
Jennifer Davis, Ph.D.
Description of Site:
Rhode Island Hospital (RIH) is a private, 719-bed, not-for-profit, acute care hospital and academic medical center founded in 1863. It is the largest of the state's general acute care hospitals, providing comprehensive health services, and serving as a primary teaching hospital for Brown Medical School. Rhode Island Hospital is the largest trauma center in the region and has extensive neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry departments. In addition to a comprehensive epilepsy center, the hospital has an Alzheimer’s and Memory Disorders Center.
The RIH Neuropsychology Program includes a very active inpatient neuropsychological consultation service and a busy outpatient program. Inpatient referrals come from all medical and surgical specialties across the medical center, with referral questions including issues of competence, differential diagnosis, rehabilitation, and disposition. The outpatient program receives referrals predominantly from internists and neurologists, with questions of differential diagnosis and treatment planning for a wide range of patients, including those with dementia, stroke, TBI, multiple sclerosis, brain tumor, and neuropsychiatric disorders. In addition, we participate in multi-disciplinary memory disorders center, in which cases are discussed in a group format. Patients are also referred for pre and post epilepsy surgery evaluations, along with intracarotid amytal procedures (i.e., Wada testing) and cortical mapping. A major focus of the evaluation process is the follow-up, feedback appointment, at which time the patient and family/caregivers are provided with both written and oral summaries of the examination, along with detailed recommendations.
Clinical Responsibilities:
The fellow is expected to engage in four days of clinical activities, which may include inpatient or outpatient consultation. Outpatient evaluations include conducting history interview, administering and scoring tests, writing reports and patient summaries, and assisting in follow-up, feedback sessions. Inpatient consultation includes chart review, bedside interview and examination of the patient, and rapid turn-around of report. Additional clinical experience is gained through participation in Wada testing and cortical brain mapping procedures. Ongoing, active supervision by Drs. Tremont, Westervelt, and Davis is an important aspect of the fellowship. Fellows are individually supervised on a case-by-case basis, with at least two hours of supervision provided each week. Finally, the fellow is expected to serve as a supervisor of graduate students (from clinical doctoral programs at the University of Rhode Island, Suffolk University, and others) doing clinical practicum work on-site. Supervision for this supervision is regularly provided. Although the fellowship is primarily focused on adults, there are opportunities to gain experience in pediatric neuropsychology. There are also optional experiences available in forensic evaluations and in correctional settings.
Research Program:
The RIH Neuropsychology Program has an active research component with several ongoing investigations. Examples of funded projects include: telephone intervention for caregivers of dementia patients; olfaction impairments in dementia;; clinicopathologic correlation in dementia, a longitudinal study of driving and dementia; impact of executive dysfunction on depression in epilepsy; screening for mild cognitive impairment; and the use of cognitive enhancing medication in multiple sclerosis. Funding for these projects comes from federal (NIH), foundation (e.g., Epilepsy Foundation), Association (e.g., NAN), hospital, and pharmaceutical company sources. The program also maintains a large, comprehensive clinical database which allows for retrospective research to be easily conducted. The fellow has one full day of protected research time each week. It is expected that the fellow will play an active role in the research program, and will submit abstracts, manuscripts, and possibly a grant, throughout the fellowship.
Didactics/Clinics:
The fellow is expected to attend a variety of didactic seminars, rounds, and clinical meetings, with time set aside from other activities to attend these important training opportunities. Among these didactics are: weekly Brown-wide activities (including Neuropsychology Rounds, Neuropsychology Seminar, Grant Writing), weekly Neurology Grand Rounds and Neuropathology Rounds at RIH, monthly Clinical Psychology Post-Doctoral Seminar, and monthly Brown Psychiatry Grand Rounds. Fellows also attend weekly memory clinic meetings and monthly comprehensive epilepsy case conferences. We also offer a Journal Club and ABPP oral exam preparation sessions throughout the fellowship year. The fellows are expected to make presentations at several of these conferences.
Starting Date:
The appointment begins July 1, 2007, although in some cases, a September 1, 2007 start-up is acceptable. Specific start-up dates are to be discussed and arranged individually. The fellowship is typically for a period of two years. Decisions regarding the second year of fellowship will be made approximately half-way through the first year.
Available Resources:
The Neuropsychology Program is located in a large suite in the Physicians Office Building on the RIH campus. Free parking is available. Fellows are each provided with a computer and printer. In addition to routine office suite software applications, up-to-date statistics and database software are also available. All computers are networked, with high speed internet access. Multiple literature search engines are available (e.g., Medline, Psychlit) and both the Brown Science Library and the RIH Medical Library are easily accessible. As part of the Brown Neuropsychology Training Program, the fellow has access to numerous potential collaborators across the system. In addition, because of the active research program, several research assistants, graduate students, and undergraduates are available to assist on research and other appropriate activities.