DSH - Patton: Psychology Practicum Program

Welcome to the DSH-Patton Psychology Practicum Page. Our program provides training to local doctoral students in APA accredited clinical psychology programs. It is an advanced, pre-internship training experience designed to help our trainees prepare for full-time predoctoral internships. The large majority of our former practicum students have gone on to acquire APA-accredited internships, and work across the country. The DSH-Patton training program (post-doctoral fellowship, predoctoral internship, and practicum training) is directed by Elise Yenne, Ph.D., ABPP. The practicum program is directed by Maria Cueto Lopez, Psy.D. and Tanveer Otal, Ph.D. The focus of our practicum program is the development of solid clinical skills in the context of a forensic psychiatric hospital.

Prerequisites:

• Trainees must be currently enrolled in an APA accredited doctoral program in Clinical Psychology (Ph.D. or Psy.D.).
• Coursework in the areas of psychopathology, statistics/test construction, intellectual assessment, and objective personality assessment must be completed prior to the start of the training year. For the Neuropsychology track, additional coursework in neuropsychology and/or related areas is preferred (e.g. functional neuroanatomy, neuroscience, etc.)
• Trainees should have at least some prior experience administering, scoring, and interpreting psychological assessment instruments outside of tests given exclusively for class assignments.
• Trainees applying to the Clinical/Forensic track should have at least some prior experiences with severe and persistent mental illness. Prior experience with severe and persistent mental illness is preferred but not required for the Neuropsychology track.
• Trainees must have excellent writing abilities.
• As this is an intensive practicum with high expectations, our trainees must have the internal ability to manage multiple tasks and must be able to accept, internalize, and utilize feedback from supervisors in their work.
• This is an advanced practicum and is best suited for trainees who are nearing internship (3rd year or higher).

We have two practicum training tracks, as follows:

Clinical/Forensic track: Student are involved in administering a wide range of psychological assessments, including objective and projective personality assessment, cognitive/intelligence testing, neuropsychological screeners, and forensic assessment instruments, as well as comprehensive clinical interviews. Students will also be required to write approximately 30 reports during the training year, at least 5 of which are comprehensive batteries. Smaller testing batteries are structured in such a way that nearly every evaluation is considered to be an “integrated assessment” battery on the APPI. Students will co-facilitate one therapy group per week and will carry one individual therapy case throughout the year. Students may also be involved in other training opportunities such as writing/formulating behavior plans. Areas of focus for the training year include case conceptualization, diagnostic skills, integration of test data, report writing, and clinical work with the severely mentally ill.

Neuropsychology Track (FREE & SHINE Programs): The Neuropsychology Consultation Service (NCS) at Patton State Hospital is currently accepting two practicum positions for its cognitive rehabilitation programs to start Fall 2027. Students desiring training in neuropsychology may apply for a Neuropsychology Track practicum position at DSH-Patton. The neuropsychology practicum within NCS is designed to provide training on how to be a clinical neuropsychologist within a forensic setting. It provides practicum students experiences in neuropsychological assessment, cognitive remediation, and how to be a neuropsychology consultant for interdisciplinary teams within a large psychiatric hospital. Each neuropsychology practicum student will spend approximately six months in each of the two cognitive rehabilitation programs offered within NCS, including the Functional Rehabilitation and Educational Experience Program (FREE) and Supporting Health and Happiness in New Environments (SHINE).

FREE is an innovative cognitive remediation program designed to meet the unique needs and challenges of individuals committed to the California Department of State Hospitals (DSH) as Incompetent to Stand Trial. It is an intensive, manualized cognitive skills building program that is delivered in both group and individual formats that focuses on improving attention, memory, and problem solving. The trial competency skills building component focuses on learning the roles of various courtroom personnel, entering a plea, plea bargaining, and the trial process. Trainees gain experience in providing individual and group cognitive rehabilitation, competency restoration treatment, and neuropsychological assessments focused on informing treatment and measuring outcomes for patients involved in FREE. The FREE program provides services in both English and Spanish. Other than the language of service delivery, the manualized program and materials are identical across the two programs. Fluency in Spanish is required for applicants wanting the opportunity to provide services for the Spanish version of FREE.

SHINE is manualized group treatment program for long-term patients committed to DSH as Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity or as a special condition of parole (i.e., for Offenders with a Mental Health Disorder) who are trying to become community ready. Using empirically validated cognitive rehabilitation techniques, SHINE is focused upon two main goals: (1) helping patients learn the core elements in their relapse prevention plan and (2) helping patients communicate their understanding of the basic elements of relapse prevention. Trainees gain experience providing group cognitive rehabilitation and brief neuropsychological assessments.

The Neuropsychology Track positions require trainees to be at the hospital for 3 days per week for a minimum of 20 hours per week. Responsibilities of the Neuropsychology Track positions include, but are not limited to, producing written reports based upon assessment and test findings, co-facilitating a FREE/SHINE group, holding a caseload of patients for one-on-one cognitively informed competency restoration treatment (FREE program), evaluating patient progress, validity testing, and updating and managing the FREE program evaluation database. Trainees are responsible for completing a minimum of 17 integrated assessments of patients referred to FREE/SHINE, including a standardized background interview, neurocognitive testing, and validity testing. Additional training opportunities for students in the Neuropsychology Track may be available depending on the needs of the hospital and availability of supervisors.

Supervision: Students will receive 1 - 2 hours per week of individual supervision, approximately 1 - 2 hours per week of group supervision/case conference, and 1 - 2 hours per week of didactic assessment seminar, depending on track:

The Clinical/Forensic track holds mandatory seminar and group supervision on Fridays from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm.

The Neuropsychology Track holds a mandatory weekly Neuropsychology Research and Theory seminar on Tuesdays from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm, and an optional Advanced Practice of Neuropsychology seminar approximately once per month on Wednesdays from 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm.

Note. COVID restrictions and outbreaks may interfere with some training activities at times, when units are on quarantine. Every effort is made to provide the trainee with backup testing referrals, etc.

Application Procedures: We do not have any “captive” practicum positions. Although we are not a SCAPTP member, we follow their guidelines for early notification sites.

Students must receive approval from their graduate school’s Director of Clinical Training (DCT) to apply to Patton’s practicum program. Once approval is received from the student’s DCT, the following materials should be emailed to Drs. Otal and Cueto Lopez at Tanveer.Otal@dsh.ca.gov and Maria.CuetoLopez@dsh.ca.gov

• DCT approval to apply (copy of their email is fine)
• Cover letter that includes why the trainee feels that the DSH-Patton practicum fits well within the context of the student’s overall training goals
• De-identified sample assessment report
• Curriculum Vita
• Letter of Reference from a practicum (externship or internal practicum) supervisor

Applications Due Date: Applications will be accepted only between 1/4/27 and 1/8/27. Interviews will be held between 1/18/27 and 1/22/27. Notifications will be made on or before February 10.

Notification Date: Notifications will be made on or before February 10, 2027.

For application questions and submissions, please contact:

Tanveer K. Otal, Ph.D. and Maria Cueto Lopez, Psy.D.
Tanveer.Otal@dsh.ca.gov and Maria.CuetoLopez@dsh.ca.gov
Practicum Program Co-Directors