Psychology 699 Martin Weinstein

M.A. Practicum Seminar Fall, 1999 and Spring, 2000

The purpose of the practicum serninar is to provide support during the course of training at your practicum site. Class time Will focus on (1) discussing professional issues arising during the practicum such as relating effectively with clients and supervisors, (2) reviewing assigned readings, and (3) developing skills in case conceptualization and case presentation. While treatment and case management issues will be discussed, this course does not provide intensive case supervision. Any ideas or suggestions emanating from this class should be discussed with your site supervisor before being implemented. Your supervisor and you maintain clinical responsibility for your cases. However, class meetings will provide time to exchange ideas with peers regarding practicum issues.

The class will meet for two hours each month from September, 1999 through April, 2000. Attendance in class is required; your grade may be lowered if you miss a class. If you will be unable to attend a class or are having any other difficulty meeting course requirements, you should contact me as soon as T)ossible. My office number is 312341-3759. You may also contact me at home at 773 93~0245.

You are expected to come to every class meeting prepared to discuss an issue that has arisen at your practicum site. If you have an issue that is of a critical nature (e.g., a crisis with a supervisor or client), you should let me know either before class or at the beginning of class. Although not every student will present every class, all students should be prepared to present every class.

In addition to reviewing issues at your site, we will spend part of the class period discussing your views of the assigned readings as they relate to your practicum experience. Active participation in discussions is very important. To prepare for these discussions, you should take notes on the readings and have several comments or observations for each assigned chapter that you are prepared to discuss in class. In addition, you should write a one to two page comment paper for each assigned chapter in which you give your perspective on the readings. Comment papers should be well organized, edited carefully for grammar and spelling, typed, double spaced, and in APA style (see Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, fourth edition). Each should also include your name, the assignment date, and a title. Comment papers will be graded on a scale of 10(A) to 1(D). Papers handed in late will lose one point per week.

Each of you will make one case presentation to the class for about one hour (including class discussion). In your presentation you should include the following: background information (age, sex, ethnicity, and marital and employment status), appearance, living situation, presenting problem, brief history of the problem, history of mental health treatment, and brief social history. The presentation should also include a diagnosis, formulation, treatment plan, and a summary of your work with the client to date. A formulation is a case conceptualization, based on a particular theoretical orientation, that makes sense of the constellation of symptoms, explains their etiology and development, and implies a treatment plan. You may use any theoretical orientation in your formulation that you can justify given the information you have presented. I recommend that you use the format in Case Ap~roach to Counselin~ and Psvchotherapv by Corey (1996). This book is on reserve in the library under Psychology 791-794. The presentation should end with an issue, problem, question, or interesting observation for class discussion. In your presentation you should not provide identifying information such as actual client or family members' names, birthdates, or dates of assessments and therapy. Providing specific identifying information is unethical and a breach of confidentiality.

To prepare for the case presentation, you may find it helpful to review extended case studies written by former students which are located in the Roosevelt library. I recommend those done by Heather Harvey, Athena Pefaniou, Sharyl Wojciechowski, and James Garrett which are on

reserve. To enhance your presentation, you may find it helpful to provide some written material to the class about the client or provide an outline of relevant material on the blackboard or using an overhead projector. If you video- or audiotape your sessions and get permission from your client, you may present this material to the class. As an alternative to recorded therapy sessions, role plays involving class members may be used to help clarify therapeutic issues. Your practicum paper includes a brief (68 page) case study. I recommend that you use your case presentation as the case study. You should hand in a draft of your case study the class after you make your presentation or after you complete your work with the client, whichever comes first.

You need to keep a log of the cases you see during your practic urn, including information on the problems (e.g., depression, conduct disorder, PTSD), populations (e.g., adult, adolescent, child), modalities (e.g., individual, group, couples, faniily therapy), orientations (e.g., client-centered, cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic), and supervisors. Cases of a similar type can be aggregated in one grouping. You should turn this log in each class. Before turning it in, review it with your primary supervisor and obtain his or her signature. I recommend that you keep a copy of the log for your own records. You should continue to send me monthly logs until the end of your practicum. Mter the class ends, you may mail them to me.

Each of you needs to hand in a draft of the first section of the terminal paper, the description of the agency, by the end of the fall semester. The first draft of the complete practicum paper is due no later than one month after you complete the practicum. For examples, I recommend the papers of Madeline Rich, William Meyer, and Virginia Seaman which are on reserve.

After you have completed the practicum paper, you will have your final orals in which you defend your paper before the practicum committee. During the orals, your committee will ask you to review your experience and ask related questions about applications of clinical psychology in your practicum. For example, you may be asked to discuss which therapeutic approaches you used and how they were effective with your population.

Students who attend this class will not be required to do the second half of the practicum paper which consists of either a literature review or extended case study. To verify that you do not have to complete the second half of the practicum paper, you should fill out the form, "Clinical practicum form 3/practicum seminar & paper" after your orals are complete. This form is in the practicum booklet. This form should he included with the copies of your final paper which you submit to the Dean of the Graduate Division.

Required Text

Matthews, J. R. & Walker, C. E. (1997). Basic skills and professional issues in clinical psychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Recommended Readings

Ownby, R. L. (1997). Psvchological rei~rts. New York: Wiley.

Corey, G. (l99~. Case approach to counseling and psvchothera~v. Belmont, CA:

Brooks/Cole.

When you have completed one half of your practicum (about 500 hours), have your primary site supervisor(s) review your performance using the Mid-Term Irracticum Evaluation Form and send a copy to me. Your supervisor(s) should discuss this evaluation with you. At the same time, you should complete the Mid-Term Site Evaluation Form and submit one copy to me and one to the Practicum Coordinator. When you have finished with your entire practicum, have your primary site supervisor(s) write another evaluation of your performance using the Final Practicum Evaluation Form and send a copy to me. At the same time, you should complete the Final Site Evaluation Form and submit one copy to me and one to the Practicum Coordinator. If you receive a substantial number of ratings below Satisfactory on your mid4erm evaluation form, I will consult

with the practicum coordinator and arrange a meeting with your site supervisors to develop a plan of remedi ati on.

For a complete discussion of practicum requirements, see the booklet, "The MA Practicum in Clinical Psychology and Clinical Professional Psychology". The latest edition is May, 1999.