The Consultation Center

Overview

Primary placement at The Consultation Center (TCC) provides fellows with a range of community-based training experiences in consultation, prevention, program evaluation, staff development, and related research. Fellows receive professional training through project assignments under the supervision of faculty.

Placement Options

Primary Placement - A full year, 30 hour per week primary placement, which can be combined with one of the following secondary placements: Adult Community Mental Health Services / 34 Park Street; Child & Adolescent Services / West Haven Mental Health Clinic; or Substance Use Services / Substance Use and Addiction Treatment Unit.

Secondary Placement - A full year, 15 hour per week secondary placement at the Hispanic Behavioral Health Services / The Hispanic Clinic or Substance Use Services / Substance Use and Addiction Treatment Unit.

Number of Fellows

Primary Placement: 2

Secondary Placement: 1 to 3

The Setting

For almost 40 years, TCC has been an interdisciplinary service, research, and training site with a tripartite mission: 1) to promote health and wellness, 2) to prevent mental health and substance abuse problems, and 3) to enhance equity and social justice. Faculty, staff, and fellows at TCC carry out its mission work in a variety of community settings, organizations, and service systems through research, consultation, evaluation, program development, and training. Partnerships with public and private agencies to build and sustain local service capacity is a hallmark of TCC’s work. As a cooperative endeavor of the Yale Department of Psychiatry, the Connecticut Mental Health Center, and The Consultation Center, Inc., a nonprofit community-based organization aligned with TCC’s mission, fellows are provided with a range of training opportunities that involve services and research carried out in collaboration with community stakeholders, including service providers, service recipients and residents, state and municipal personnel, and local leaders. This work takes place in Greater New Haven and Connecticut, as well as nationally and internationally.

The Internship

Two doctoral psychology fellows are selected for a 12-month primary placement at TCC, and secondary placements at the Adult Community Mental Health Services / 34 Park Street, the West Haven Mental Health Clinic, or SATU. TCC also serves as a secondary placement site for primary placement fellows at the Hispanic Clinic and Substance Use and Addiction Treatment Unit.

Primary placement fellows complete two (2) year-long projects, each requiring a 12-hour commitment per week. In addition, fellows participate in placement-based seminars, colloquia, and various staff meetings for about 3 hours per week for a total commitment of 30 hours per week. Secondary placement fellows complete one (1) year-long project as well as seminars, colloquia, and meetings for a 15 hour per week commitment.

Fellows are matched to projects during the first two weeks of the internship based on their project preferences and the approval of faculty. The goal of placement is to ensure a training experience that supports the training goals and interests of the fellow. Examples of project activities in recent years have included the following:

• Evaluation of behavioral health, health, and prevention programs and services;
• Provision of psycho-educational and prevention services in school settings;
• Community-based prevention and services research;
• Consulting to community agencies and school systems to build organizational capacity for prevention, program evaluation, continuous quality improvement, or advocacy
• Research on health disparities and health equity;
• Consultation to state and municipal agencies on program and policy development;
• Community-based participatory research (CBPR);
• Risk and protective factor research to address health-related challenges; and
• Consultation to local coalitions and collaboratives to address community challenges and affect positive community change.

Evidence-Based Practices

Depending on their project selection, fellows may have exposure and/or involvement in various evidence-based or evidence-informed practices, such as: Wraparound Services Model; Social and Emotional Learning (SEL); Mental Health First Aid; and Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR).

Assessment

Fellows with this primary placement complete two comprehensive assessments at The Consultation Center focused on systems-based, community, or organizational practice. In their secondary placement they gain experience in routinely conducting brief psychological assessments.

Diversity

Diversity reflects respect for and appreciation of individual differences (personal values, interests, and life experiences), group and social differences (based on race/ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, nationality, age, ability status, religion, as well as political or cultural affiliations) all of which are integral to supporting an inclusive workplace. Our fellows are diverse and come from around the globe. Over the past 30 years, we have trained more than 50 postdoctoral fellows, 150 doctoral psychology fellows, 30 social work trainees, a dozen psychiatric residents, and dozens of graduate students from various disciplines.

Our training program includes seminars that incorporate human diversity into how the work in conceptualized and carried out, and also provides opportunities for fellows to collaborate with supervisors on research, evaluation, consultation, training, and program development with diverse populations.

Scholarly Activity

TCC provides leadership for the Division of Prevention & Community Research (DPCR), one of the research divisions of the Yale Department of Psychiatry. Many faculty affiliated with the DPCR have primary appointments at The Consultation Center and conduct studies in a wide range of areas, including: resilience promotion with at-risk populations; the prevention of adolescent substance abuse; understanding and preventing trauma; impact and effectiveness evaluations of behavioral health, child welfare, and juvenile justice services; academic achievement and engagement among low-income and minority youth; social determinants of health; impact of neighborhood contexts on health and well-being; health access and health disparities; prisoner re-entry; fatherhood; and male development. Studies are conceptualized within social ecological, developmental, and cultural contexts; often involve multiple levels of analysis (individual, family, peer, organization, neighborhood, community); and use mixed methods that combine quantitative and qualitative approaches. Click here for more information about the DPCR.

Each year research projects may be available to fellows as part of their placement. Fellows also participate in scholarly activities through their attendance at monthly colloquia and the Annual Visiting Lecture given by a prominent scholar from outside Yale.

Faculty

Faculty at The Consultation Center may serve as advisors, supervisors, preceptors, research or evaluation consultants, and/or seminar instructors. They include:

Elizabeth H. Connors, Ph.D.
Cindy A. Crusto, Ph.D.
Derrick Gordon, Ph.D.
Joy S. Kaufman, Ph.D.
Patricia Simon, Ph.D.
Michael Strambler, Ph.D.
Tami P. Sullivan, Ph.D.
Jacob Kraemer Tebes, Ph.D.

Supervision

A primary advisor meets regularly with the fellow to ensure that individual training goals are being met, to discuss issues related to professional development, and to serve as a resource when individual needs or questions arise. Project supervisors oversee the training within the context of the assigned projects and may provide individual, group, or team supervision depending on the nature of the specific project. Supervisors also serve as an additional training resource for fellows regarding professional development, professional practice, and scholarly work.

Fellows receive ongoing feedback during the internship from their advisor and project supervisors. Formal evaluations are completed three times each year and serve as opportunities to review progress on training goals and achieving competency of the program's core competencies.

Seminar(s) & Specialized Training

In addition to the Core Seminar, fellows in this placement are required to participate in a site-based seminar, which provides a strong foundation in the theory, methods, and principles of consultation, prevention, program evaluation, and community-based practice and research. Examples of seminar topics include:

• Introduction to Prevention & Health Promotion Models;
• Theory and Practice of Consultation and Training;
• Program Development;
• Organizational Development;
• Ethics in Community-based Research;
• Program Evaluation;
• Ethics in Program Evaluation;
• Grant Development;
• Human Diversity in Practice and Research; and
• Professional Development.

Applicant Qualifications

Applicants for this placement should have an interest in learning more about the systems in which clinical, health, and other services are provided; how best to prevent clinical problems and develop community-based interventions to address them in a variety of settings; how to consult to health service and governmental agencies; and, how to design, implement, and evaluate programs and services, particularly those focused on prevention and systems-level change.

Although no prior experience is required, applicants with some didactic or practicum experience in these areas are likely to have a more competitive application.

Applicants selected for this placement must be able to successfully pass background checks conducted by Yale University and the State of Connecticut. In addition, since the work is conducted in the community, a valid driver's license and use of a car is required for primary and secondary fellows at The Consultation Center.

For More Information

If you have a specific question regarding The Consultation Center as a primary placement training option, please e-mail Dr. Elizabeth Connors at elizabeth.connors@yale.edu or visit the website of TCC at consultationcenter.yale.edu.