Student Faculty Collaborate

Medical College of Wisconsin Health Psychology Residency Clinical Rotations & Didactics

Adult Track Clinical Rotations

all
Cancer Psychology

Cancer Psychology: Lyndsey Wallace, PsyD, ABPP; Mackenzie Goertz, PhD

Cancer psychology is the practice of health psychology as it applies to those being treated with cancer and addresses issues of adjustment to illness, coping with chronic illness, adherence and behavioral management, and end-of-life care. Cancer psychologists work with patients and their family members to help cope with cancer as well as the impacts it has on functioning, emotional distress, mental health, and family relationships. Cancer psychologists work in both the inpatient and outpatient setting and as part of a multidisciplinary team.

Direct Services

Cancer psychology has areas of focus on coping and adjustment, management of psychological distress and disorder, and family functioning at times of illness.

  • Assessment – Pre-bone marrow transplant evaluation, biopsychosocial intake interviews (inpatient and outpatient) with medically ill patients, assessment for behavioral management
  • Behavior Therapy – Behavioral activation, adherence and compliance management
  • Health and Behavioral Intervention – Coping skills training, sleep hygiene, psychoeducation
  • Pain management – non-pharmacological treatment for acute and chronic pain
  • Inpatient/Outpatient Psychotherapy – Psychological disorder (depression, anxiety, PTSD), adjustment to illness (newly diagnosed patients, chronically ill patients, fostering Post Traumatic Growth, patients and families at end-of-life)
  • Co-facilitate an 8-week mindfulness based cancer recovery group that addresses issues of survivorship
  • Stress management – Mindfulness, relaxation strategies, cognitive restructuring

Integrated Behavioral Health

Cancer psychologists work as part of multidisciplinary teams, collaborating with physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs), nurses, social workers, medical residents, and medical fellows. The psychology resident will have opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines in the following ways:

  • Providing training on psychological issues with cancer patients to nursing staff
  • Attending weekly bone marrow transplant (BMT) multidisciplinary rounds
  • Providing consultation and behavioral management to nursing and medical staff for problematic patient behavior
  • Collaborating with inpatient treatment teams (primary APPs, resident physicians, and fellow physicians) on psychological contributions to patient’s care
  • Promoting effective patient-provider relationships
Inpatient Rehabilitation

Inpatient Rehabilitation: Rebeccah Manson, PhD; Amanda Dowling, PsyD

Rehabilitation Psychology promotes recovery, health, and quality of life with individuals experiencing significant injury, illness, and disability. Rehabilitation psychologists work to maximize independence and choice, functional abilities, and social role participation across the lifespan. We also work with other professionals to enhance their ability to provide even more effective care that incorporates the patient’s behavioral and mental health needs.

Health psychology residents function as part of an interdisciplinary rehabilitation team to provide integrated behavioral health services, working with patients, families, and other professionals. Froedtert Health operates four inpatient rehabilitation programs: General Rehabilitation, Spinal Cord Injury, Stroke, and Brain Injury. The inpatient rehabilitation program is fully accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).

Direct Services

Given the emphasis of rehabilitation on post-discharge success, health psychology interventions maximize rehabilitation potential and reduce barriers to successful adjustment.

  • Assessment – standardized screenings and clinical interviews
  • Behavior Therapy – behavioral activation, compliance skills, communications skills
  • Crisis Intervention –family conflict, medical emergency, patient aggression, self-harm
  • Health Behavior Intervention – diet & exercise, sleep, health care system skills
  • Pain Management – nonpharmacologic treatment for acute and chronic pain
  • Inpatient Psychotherapy – anxiety, depression, psychological trauma, substance use
  • Stress Management – locus of control, relaxation methods, time management

Integrated Behavioral Health

Psychological services in rehabilitation are provided within an integrated behavioral health (IBH) model. Rehabilitation psychologists and residents function as an integrated part of an interdisciplinary team which includes Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) physicians, nursing, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech and language pathologists, recreational therapists, rehabilitation counselors, vocational counselors, social workers, and case managers. Psychology residents collaborate with other rehabilitation disciplines in the following ways:

  • Co-treat with other disciplines to more effectively address mental or behavioral health concerns
  • Consult with staff regarding patients’ psychological functioning
  • Participate in weekly team conferences
  • Facilitate effective communication between patients and providers
  • Provide education and clinical training to the therapy and nursing teams
  • Offer guidance for staff to most effectively work with patients’ support systems
  • Build staff knowledge and skills regarding mental illness
  • Encourage teamwork among the staff
  • Collaborate with staff to promote community-building among patients in rehabilitation unit.
  • Help differentiate between normative and maladaptive adjustment reactions
  • Promote effective patient-provider relationships
  • Provide behavior management interventions to help staff effectively manage challenging behaviors while providing care
Transplant Psychology

Transplant Psychology: Stephanie C. Zanowski, PhD; Jenessa S. Price, PhD

The Transplant Mental Health Program consists of two Clinical Psychologists, three Social Workers, and one Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse (AODA) Counselor. Transplant Psychologists assess candidacy from a biopsychosocial perspective for patients in evaluation for solid organ transplant and provide both initial as well as ongoing psychosocial recommendations to patients and team members. In addition, Transplant Psychologists provide supportive therapy and empirically-based interventions to patients pre- and post-transplant on both an inpatient and outpatient basis; services include coping with chronic illness, adjusting to medical illness, mood management, adherence, and drug and alcohol relapse prevention. Outpatient services are provided both in-person and via telehealth depending on patient need. 

Direct Services

Transplant Psychology has areas of focus on assessment of psychosocial risk factors, psychological disorders, and cognition in addition to the implementation of interventions addressing coping and adjustment, management of psychological distress and disorder, management of adherence, and addiction:

  • Psychosocial/Psychological Assessment – Pre-transplant (kidney, liver, LVAD/heart, lung) psychosocial evaluation for transplant (typically outpatient); urgent inpatient psychosocial evaluation for transplant; general psychological evaluations (outpatient)
  • Inpatient/Outpatient Psychotherapy – Psychological disorder (depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder); adjustment to acute and chronic illness; CBT and nonpharmacologic treatment for pain
  • Health and Behavioral Intervention – Adherence management; implementation of cognitive compensatory strategies; coping skills/relaxation training; mindfulness; sleep hygiene; psychoeducation
  • Motivational Interviewing – Adherence management; drug and alcohol misuse/use disorders
  • Relapse Prevention – Group treatment for drug and alcohol use disorders (co-facilitate with AODA Coordinator)

Integrated Behavioral Health

Transplant Psychologists serve as integral members of multidisciplinary treatment teams, composed of other members of Transplant Mental Health (Social Workers, AODA Counselor) as well as surgeons, specialty physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs), nurses, and medical residents and fellows. The psychology resident will have opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines in the following ways:

  • Provide initial and ongoing recommendations for candidacy to patient coordinators and other treatment providers
  • Consultation with members of the Mental Health team, including Social Workers and the AODA Coordinator
  • Attend weekly Multidisciplinary Selection Committee meetings for kidney, liver, LVAD/heart and/or lung
  • Provide inpatient consultation and ongoing supportive therapy to patients and coordinate care with medical staff (APPs, resident physicians, and fellow physicians) during the patient’s stay
  • Promote effective patient-provider relationships
  • Provide education on the biopsychosocial perspective and training to other medical professionals, including nurses and medical residents
Trauma and Critical Care

Trauma and Critical Care: Terri deRoon-Cassini, PhD; Andrew Schramm, PhD; Timothy Geier, PhD; Sydney Timmer-Murillo, PhD

The trauma center at Froedtert Hospital/Medical College of Wisconsin is a Level 1 adult trauma center accredited by the American College of Surgeons’ Committee on Trauma. This trauma center serves 3,000 trauma activations per year, with just over 2,000 of those patients being admitted to the hospital. The most common mechanism of injuries are falls, motor vehicle collisions, and assaults (e.g., gunshot wounds). Embedded in the trauma center, our unique program includes psychologists focused on the psychological and behavioral health needs of the trauma population and patients receiving emergent surgery (on the Acute Care Surgery service). Psychological care is provided as a part of a multidisciplinary team of advanced practice providers, nurses, surgeons, emergency medicine physicians, case managers, social workers, and physical and occupational therapists. 

Direct Services

Health Psychology residents function as part of an interdisciplinary trauma/acute care surgery team to provide integrated behavioral health services. This includes working directly with patients and their families in addition to acting as a liaison with members of the surgery and nursing teams. This is a rich training setting with trainees across various levels of training, and residents have the opportunity to supervise practicum trainees and work with the trauma & health psychology postdoctoral fellow.

  • Assessment – clinical interviews in a fast-paced medical setting
  • Behavior Therapies – behavioral activation and motivational interviewing to promote adherence to medical and PT/OT recommendations
  • Health and Behavioral Intervention – psychoeducation and coping skills training, early prolonged exposure therapy for high PTSD risk
  • Interpersonal Intervention – family dynamics, discussion with family regarding medical decision making
  • Pain Management – non-pharmacologic treatment for acute and chronic pain
  • Inpatient Psychotherapy – adjustment to illness, functional limitations, anxiety, depression, PTSD, substance use, grief
  • Stress Management – relaxation training and mindfulness-based stress reduction 

Integrated Behavioral Health

Trauma and critical care psychologists work as a part of a multidisciplinary team, collaborating with advanced practice providers, physicians, nurses, social workers, medical residents and fellows, and physical and occupational therapists. Psychology residents collaborate with other rehabilitation disciplines in the following ways:

  • Provide training regarding psychological response to trauma and critical illness to other staff members and trainees
  • Attend clinical care rounds with other members of the multidisciplinary team
  • Consult with staff regarding patients’ psychological functioning
  • Facilitate effective communication between patients and providers
  • Help differentiate between normative and maladaptive adjustment reactions
  • Provide behavior management interventions to help staff effectively manage challenging behaviors while providing care
  • Facilitate resiliency by encouraging non-avoidance of trauma related triggers and educate staff regarding behaviors that will facilitate better psychological outcomes

Adult Track Continuity Clinic | Behavioral Medicine and Primary Care (BMPC) Psychology Clinic

Amber Craig, PhD; Larry Miller, PsyD

The Behavioral Medicine and Primary Care (BMPC) Psychology Clinic is a collaborative care clinic focusing on serving patients referred by primary care and medical subspecialty providers without integrated health psychology services in their clinics. The BMPC Clinic is housed in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine and is an outpatient, ambulatory clinic.

Patients referred to the BMPC clinic have a variety of presenting problems including adjustment, to physical health conditions and/or treatments, mental health concerns (e.g., depression, anxiety), or engaging in healthier habits (e.g., improved sleep, increasing physical activity, smoking cessation). Psychology residents will perform empirically informed health psychology assessments and brief interventions including but not limited to Problem Solving Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.

Direct Services

The goals of this clinic include optimizing patient health and quality of life through the assessment and management of their symptoms, barriers, and functional status.

  • Assessment – clinical biopsychosocial interviews and health psychology assessments.
  • Health & Behavior Intervention – healthy diet, exercise, sleep, reduction of substance misuse, stress management, behavioral pain management, medication adherence, and health-related communication skills.
  • Brief Psychotherapy– anxiety, depression, health-related traumatic responses, substance use, adjustment to life changes, and management of personality disorders in patients who are medically complicated.

Psychology residents will maintain a BMPC outpatient caseload throughout the entire training year. Psychology residents will also have the opportunity to carry one or more cases on a long-term basis where the presenting concern is managing chronic illness. The BMPC clinic operates on Thursdays and Fridays.  

Integrated Behavioral Health

Psychology residents will collaborate with multiple health professionals through the electronic medical record system, phone consultation, and collaborative practice. Psychology residents will become familiar with coordinating care across multiple treating providers in multiple locations. Activities include:

  • Co-treat with other disciplines to more effectively address mental or behavioral health concerns and communicate via medical record and other forms of technology.
  • Consult with staff regarding patients’ psychological functioning via electronic medical record.
  • Be available for behavioral health consultation from providers in the health enterprise as requested.
  • Consult on behavioral management interventions via medical record and/or phone to help medical providers effectively manage challenging behaviors while providing care.

Pediatric Track Clinical Rotations

all
Pediatric Consult Liaison Service

Pediatric Consult Liaison Service: Jennifer LeNoble, PhD; Patricia Marik, PsyD; Stephen Molitor, PhD

Consultation Liaison Psychology Residents work as part of an interdisciplinary team of providers on the inpatient medical units. These residents assess and provide services to address the psychosocial needs of patients and families during their inpatient admissions. Residents involved on this service will conduct patient and family biopsychosocial interviews, liaison with the multidisciplinary inpatient care team members, participate in care conferences, provide input into patient care plans, and implement empirically supported psychological interventions. On the inpatient units, psychological care is provided within a multidisciplinary team of physicians and advanced practice providers, nurses, hospitalists, psychiatrists, case managers, social workers, neuropsychologists, child life specialists, dietitians, and physical and occupational therapists. Common consult questions include medical trauma, adjustment to chronic illness/hospitalization, behavioral concerns interfering with medical care, pain management, somaticizing/functional disorders, procedural distress, family support, and difficulties with adherence to treatment regimens.

Direct Services

  • Biopsychosocial Assessments – These assessments are designed to address concerns brought by the interdisciplinary inpatient treatment team members. These assessments employ medical chart reviews, diagnostic interviews, and behavioral observations to generate psychological impressions and recommendations to be considered by the treatment team.
  • Cognitive Behavior Therapy which may include methods to promote adjustment to illness, behavioral activation, adherence to medical regimen, cognitive strategies to cope with hospitalization, and promote appropriate child/caregiver behaviors while hospitalized.
  • Pain and Stress management – Mindfulness, relaxation strategies, progressive muscle relaxation techniques, cognitive restructuring, nonpharmacologic interventions for acute and chronic pain or stress.
  • Motivational interviewing to address treatment adherence.
  • Family Focused Interventions – Caregiver support; family adjustment to illness, improving adherence to treatment plans, interpersonal interventions focused on family dynamics and support of medical treatment plans, and caregiver training to promote health plan transition to home. 

Integrated Behavioral Health

The psychologists on the Consultation/Liaison team collaborate regularly with a variety of other disciplines including physicians, advance practice providers, nurses, dietitians, physical/occupational therapists, medical trainees, neuropsychologists, social workers, and child life specialists. The psychology resident will have opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines in the following ways:

  • Attend rounds (multiple formats) with other members of the multidisciplinary team
  • Participate in care conferences/behavioral health huddles in support of patient care and staff support
  • Provide consultation with staff regarding patients’ psychological functioning
  • Facilitate effective communication between patients and providers
  • Provide suggestions for behavior management and help to develop care plans to facilitate staff effectively managing patient challenging behaviors
  • Assess normative vs. maladaptive adjustment reactions
Pediatric Gastroenterology

Pediatric Gastroenterology: Andrea Begotka, PhD; Alan Silverman, PhD; Meghan Wall, PhD

Psychology Residents working in this clinic will receive specialized training in diagnosis and empirically supported treatment of disorders commonly seen in gastroenterology. The Pediatric Gastroenterology clinics include the comprehensive feeding team, the constipation clinic, along with other experiences with common gastrointestinal disorders (e.g., recurrent abdominal pain, inflammatory bowel disease, liver disease, rumination, and cyclic vomiting). Residents involved in the gastroenterology clinics will learn to conduct a biopsychosocial evaluation; develop a collaborative treatment plan; implement behavioral and cognitive-behavioral interventions; and to communicate with multiple health care professionals.

  • Assessment – Interdisciplinary intake evaluations will be conducted with gastroenterologists and other allied health care professionals to identify etiologies of psychological concerns within a medically complex set of patients
  • Behavior Therapy – Behavioral activation, compliance management, exposure therapy
  • Health and Behavioral Intervention – Caregiver training, psychoeducation
  • Inpatient/Outpatient Psychotherapy – Psychological disorder (pediatric feeding disorder, elimination disorders, functional pain disorders, and adjustment to illness
  • Stress management – Mindfulness, relaxation strategies, cognitive restructuring, and support to caregivers
  • Group Therapy – Constipation and encopresis group therapy with simultaneous caregiver and child therapy groups

Integrated Behavioral Health

Pediatric psychologists work as part of multidisciplinary teams, collaborating with physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs), nurses, dietitians, speech and language pathologists, social workers, medical residents, and medical fellows. The psychology resident will have opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines in the following ways:

  • Providing training on psychological issues with gastroenterology patients to gastroenterology fellows and staff
  • Attending weekly feeding team interdisciplinary rounds
  • Providing consultation and behavioral management to nursing and medical staff for problematic patient behavior
  • Collaborating with inpatient treatment teams (primary APPs, resident physicians, and fellow physicians) on psychological contributions to patient’s care
  • Promoting effective patient-provider relationships
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology

Pediatrics Hematology/Oncology/BMT Psychology: Jennifer Hoag, PhD; Jeffrey Karst, PhD

Hem/Onc/BMT psychology is the practice of health psychology as it applies to those being treated with cancer and blood disorders addresses issues of adjustment to illness, coping with chronic illness, adherence and behavioral management, and end-of-life care. Hem/Onc/BMT psychologists work with pediatric, adolescent, and young adult (AYA) patients and their family members to help cope with cancer and blood disorders as well as the impact it has on functioning, emotional distress, mental health, and family relationships. Hem/Onc/BMT psychologists work in the inpatient, outpatient, and day hospital settings and as part of a multidisciplinary team.

Direct Services

Hem/Onc/BMT psychology has areas of focus on coping and adjustment, management of psychological distress and disorder, and family functioning at times of illness.

  • Assessment – Pre-bone marrow transplant evaluation, biopsychosocial intake interviews (inpatient and outpatient) with medically ill patients, assessment for behavioral management, neurocognitive screening for pediatric and adolescent patients with sickle cell disease, neurocognitive testing for cognitive late effects of cancer treatment
  • Behavior Therapy – Behavioral activation, adherence and compliance management
  • Health and Behavioral Intervention – Coping skills training, sleep hygiene, psychoeducation
  • Pain management – non-pharmacological treatment for acute and chronic pain
  • Inpatient/Outpatient Psychotherapy – Psychological disorder (depression, anxiety, PTSD), adjustment to illness (newly diagnosed patients, chronically ill patients, fostering Post Traumatic Growth, patients and families at end-of-life)
  • Stress management – Mindfulness, relaxation strategies, cognitive restructuring

Integrated Behavioral Health

Hem/Onc/BMT psychologists work as part of multidisciplinary teams, collaborating with physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs), nurses, social workers, medical residents, and medical fellows. The psychology resident will have opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines in the following ways:

  • Providing psychological assessment and consultation in multidisciplinary clinics such as survivorship, sickle cell, and hemophilia clinics
  • Providing training on psychological issues with pediatric and AYA cancer and other blood disorder patients to nursing staff
  • Attending weekly Hem/Onc/BMT multidisciplinary rounds
  • Providing consultation and behavioral management to nursing and medical staff for problematic patient behavior
  • Collaborating with inpatient treatment teams (primary APPs, resident physicians, and fellow physicians) on psychological contributions to patient’s care
  • Promoting effective patient-provider relationships
Neonatal NICU/CICU

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and Cardiac ICU (CICU) Early Childhood Mental Health: Vanessa Aguilera Snyder, PsyD; Elizabeth Fischer, PhD

This unique training experience will expose trainees to the pediatric clinical care in two inpatient settings (NICU and CICU) and the cardiology outpatient setting.

The psychosocial programs in these areas offer a multilayered training experience encompassing both inpatient critical care consultation and ongoing outpatient follow up care of infants, young children, and families. Consistent with the growing national interest in early childhood mental health and family support, trainees will gain experience providing psychological care to families and parent-child dyads in support of long-term family and patient outcomes.

Direct Services

  • Inpatient Consultation-Liaison (NICU and CICU) - Providing Health & Behavioral Assessment and Intervention to support and care for parents experiencing the critical illness of their infant or very young child. This includes coping with hospitalization and managing stress, anxiety, sadness, grief, and end of life care.
  • Outpatient Behavioral Health Treatment - Follow families discharged from the CICU in outpatient cardiology clinic and conduct clinical interviews, administer behavioral health screenings, provide developmentally appropriate anticipatory guidance, and provide treatment for concerns about behavioral and emotional adjustment in infants, toddlers, and preschool-aged children. Trainees may also gain experience observing in NICU follow up clinics.
  • Assessment - Conduct clinical biopsychosocial interviews and parent and child screenings in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Respond to postpartum screening evaluations in the NICU and CICU. Trainees will learn to conduct psychological pre- heart transplant evaluations.

Integrated Behavioral Health

Pediatric psychology is fully integrated into the NICU, NICU follow up clinics, CICU, and outpatient heart transplant clinic settings. This allows for ample interdisciplinary work alongside our neonatology team, cardiology and heart transplant teams, and a variety of subspecialty physicians, fellows, residents, speech therapists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, and nurses. Our psychosocial team is also interdisciplinary in nature and includes chaplains, social work, child life, music therapy, and the March of Dimes staff member. Interdisciplinary activities include:

  • Collaborative inpatient consultation and care
  • Attendance at care conferences
  • NICU Psychosocial Rounds (weekly attendance)
  • Medical rounds
  • Heart Failure & transplant Psychosocial Rounds (weekly attendance)
  • Providing psychoeducational seminars to medical and psychology trainees
  • Participating in a national quality improvement collaborative for single ventricle patients with congenital heart disease (NPC-QIC)

Pediatric Track Continuity Clinic | Pediatric Behavioral Medicine and Primary Care (PBMPC) Clinic

Jacqueline Kawa, PhD; Jacquelyn Smith, PhD

The Pediatric Behavioral Medicine and Primary Care Psychology (PBMPC) clinic is a collaborative care clinic focusing on serving patients referred by primary care pediatrics and pediatric subspecialty providers without integrated health psychology services in their clinics. The PBMPC Clinic is housed in the Department of Pediatrics at Children’s Wisconsin and is an outpatient, ambulatory clinic.

Patients referred to the PBMPC clinic have a variety of presenting problems including adjustment to physical health conditions and/or treatments, mental health concerns (e.g., depression, anxiety), or engaging in healthier habits (e.g., adherence to medical regimen, increasing physical activity). Psychology residents will perform empirically informed health psychology assessments and brief interventions including but not limited to Caregiver Training, Behavior Management, Cognitive Therapy, and Family Systems.

Direct Services

The goals of this clinic include optimizing patient health and quality of life through the assessment and management of their symptoms, barriers, coping, and functional status.

  • Assessment – Clinical biopsychosocial interviews and health psychology assessments
  • Health & Behavior Interventions – healthy lifestyle promotion, sleep training, procedural anxiety management, coping with chronic health conditions, pain management, and medication adherence
  • Brief Psychotherapy – anxiety, depression, health-related traumatic responses, ADHD, and adjustment to life changes. Therapeutic interventions utilized include but are not limited to Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), Parent Management Training (PMT), Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), Behavioral therapy (BA), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

Psychology residents will maintain a PBMPC outpatient caseload throughout the entire training year. Psychology residents will also have the opportunity to carry one or more cases on a long-term basis where the presenting concern is managing chronic illness. The PBMPC clinic operates on Thursdays and Fridays.

Integrated Behavioral Health

Psychology residents will collaborate with multiple health professionals through the electronic medical record system, phone consultation, care conferences, and other collaborative practice. Psychology residents will become familiar with coordinating care across multiple treating providers in multiple locations. Activities include:

  • Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary treatment to more effectively address mental or behavioral health concerns and communicate via medical record and other forms of technology
  • Consult with staff regarding patients’ psychological functioning via electronic medical record
  • Be available for behavioral health consultation from providers in the health enterprise as requested
  • Consult on behavioral management interventions via medical record and/or phone to help medical providers effectively manage challenging behaviors while providing care to patients

Didactics and Group Supervision Calendar

Model Rotation Schedule for Psychology Resident

View Didactics and Group Supervision Calendar (PDF)

Health Psychology Residency Didactic Schedule