Department of Veterans Affairs Advanced Fellowship Program in Mental Illness Research and Treatment

VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, VISN 4 MIRECC

(Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center)

Overview: The Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC) at the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System (VAPHS) is recruiting clinical psychologists and other associated health clinicians for a 2-year fellowship program. The primary goal of the fellowship program is to train clinicians to become leading clinical research-ers in the treatment and prevention of comorbid medical, mental health, and/or substance use disorders, with the aim of improving the mental and physical health, quality of life, and outcomes of healthcare services for veterans with mental illness.

Program Description: This interdisciplinary program aims to train clinical psychologists, nurses, and social workers to become outstanding clinical researchers in high priority areas of mental health. Individualized, men-tored research and clinical training is combined with a state-of-the-art curriculum that emphasizes research methods, statistics, epidemiology, mental health systems, quality improvement methods, education, and ser-vice delivery. Training in professional skills includes manuscript preparation, grant writing, project manage-ment, and the responsible conduct of research. Fellowship sites across the national network of VA Advanced Fellowship training sites are linked electronically for didactic, academic, and research efforts. Fellows devote the majority of their time to patient-oriented research and education activities and 25% to direct patient clini-cal care. In collaboration with their mentors, Fellows will develop and implement a research project, publish and present findings, participate in grant writing, and utilize the latest technology for educational activities and clinical service delivery. Psychology applicants must have obtained a doctorate from an APA accredited pro-gram in clinical or counseling psychology and have completed an APA accredited internship in clinical or coun-seling psychology. Fellows must be U.S. citizens. The VA funds the allied health professional stipends in amounts based on VA national standards with locality adjustments for cost-of-living in the area. Fellows will also receive a secondary appointment at the University of Pittsburgh.

Faculty: Available research mentors (and interests) include: Gretchen Haas, PhD (schizophrenia, social cogni-tion and cognitive intervention), Robert Sweet, MD (neurobiology of psychosis), Howard Aizenstein, MD (neuroimaging, late-life mood disorders), Charlotte Brown, PhD (implementation research, mood disorders, cultural barriers to treatment), Daniel Buysse, MD (sleep research training), Matthew Chinman, PhD (implementation research, peer interventions in SMI, recovery), Jack Cornelius, MD, MPH (pharmacotherapy of mood disorders and comorbid alcohol use), Steven Forman, MD, PhD (neurobehavioral studies, neuroimaging of addictive disorders), Ellen Frank, PhD (treatment development and clinical trials for mood disorders, imple-mentation methods), Anne Germain, PhD (sleep research, cognitive-behavioral treatment and intervention for PTSD), Gerald Goldstein, PhD (neuropsychology, schizophrenia), Martica Hall, PhD (behavioral health assess-ment methods, sleep), John Kasckow, MD, PhD (interventions for suicidal behavior, schizophrenia, prevention of depression), Mary Phillips, PhD (neuroimaging), Charles Reynolds, MD (depression prevention and interven-tion in aging), Armando Rotondi, PhD (implementation), Dean Salisbury, PhD (neurophysiology of schizophre-nia), Greg Siegel, PhD (neuroimaging, cognitive interventions for depression), Stuart Steinhauer, PhD (psychophysiology), and Jeffrey Yao, PhD (biochemical aspects of mental illness and neurological disorders).

Application Due Date: January 1, 2014

How to Apply: Interested psychologists and associated clinicians who meet the eligibility requirements should send a cover letter, curriculum vita, transcripts, and three letters of recommendation to Gretchen L. Haas, PhD (haasgl@upmc.edu) and Sara Chapman, MS, OTR/L (sara.chapman@va.gov). The cover letter should specify the reasons for your interest in this particular fellowship training program, a brief overview of your previous clinical and research experiences, and how you see this program promoting your professional and career goals.