Psychology Research Postdoctoral Fellowship

 

Cpl. Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center (Philadelphia)
3900 Woodland Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19104
http://www.philadelphia.va.gov/ 

Advanced Fellowship Program in Mental Illness Research and Treatment

Description: A 2-year psychology research Postdoctoral fellowship position is anticipated to be available starting September of 2024. Potential areas of emphasis for this position include marital and family issues of combat veterans, integrated behavioral health/primary care, genetics/pharmacology, substance abuse, late-life mental health, sleep disorders, PTSD, and psychosocial factors in chronic illness (See Faculty list below). We are especially interested in candidates who will be able to apply their content area interests to a precision mental health approach to the treatment of mental health conditions, consistent with the theme of our Center (www.mirecc.va.gov/visn4/). This includes consideration of ongoing measurement to drive treatment decisions, biomarkers (e.g., genetic variants in treatment), patient treatment preferences, and decision aids for clinicians in mood and addictive disorders. The Fellowship operates within the VISN 4 Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center in the CPL Michael J Crescenz VA Medical Center (Philadelphia). The Fellowship entails 75% research and 25% clinical training. This is a research Fellowship and not an accredited clinical residency by the American Psychological Association. The goals of the Fellowship are to provide mentored experience in research design, publication of research reports, grant writing, and supervised clinical training sufficient for license eligibility. A third year of training is available in some cases. The position includes an appointment in the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Pennsylvania.

Research Interests and Faculty: Fellowship faculty members and their research interests are as follows:

• Elaine Boland, Ph.D. (sleep and circadian rhythm disturbances in mood disorders)
• Phillip Gehrman, Ph.D. (CBT of insomnia and nightmares)
• Subhajit Chakravorty (genetics/neurobiology and treatment of insomnia in alcohol use disorder)
• Amy Helstrom, Ph.D. (primary care/mental health integration, health behavior change, behavioral interventions for chronic disease)
• Johanna Klaus, Ph.D. (primary care/mental health integration)
• Henry Kranzler, M.D. (genetics, pharmacological treatment, and pharmacogenetics of alcohol and drug dependence)
• James McKay, Ph.D. (continuing care treatments for substance use disorders, adaptive treatment designs, and contingency management)
• David Oslin, M.D. (treatment outcomes for addictive disorders, and pharmacogenetics of mental health conditions)
• Steven L. Sayers, Ph.D. (family member involvement in treatment engagement, telehealth, suicide prevention)
• Cobb Scott, Ph.D. (Neuropsychology/ neuroimaging in PTSD and alcohol/substance dependence, comorbidity)
• Michael Thase, M.D. (assessment and treatment of mood disorders)
• Daniel Weintraub, M.D. (psychiatric and cognitive complications of Parkinson’s disease, treatment and related impulse control disorders)

Additional faculty members of Department of Psychiatry of the University of Pennsylvania are available as supporting mentors for Fellows.

Requirements and Application Process: Each applicant must be a graduate of an APA-accredited doctoral program in clinical or counseling psychology, have completed an APA-accredited internship, received the doctoral degree, and be a U.S. citizen. The application deadline is December 1, 2023, but the review of applications will start at the time of receipt so you are encouraged to submit your application prior to that time. Send a letter detailing your research interests and career goals, likely mentors to whom you might match, CV, 3 letters of recommendation, and any representative reprints, manuscripts, or grant applications to Steven L. Sayers, Ph.D., Fellowship Director, at steven.sayers@va.gov (preferred), or to the following mailing address: Steven L. Sayers, Ph.D., MIRECC/116, Cpl. Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center, 3900 Woodland Avenue, Philadelphia, PA, 19104. Inquiries can be made by email or by calling Dr. Sayers at 215-823-5196. The Cpl. Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center (Philadelphia) in which our training program resides is an Equal Opportunity Employer; we are committed to ensuring a range of diversity among our training classes, and we strive to select candidates representing different kinds of programs and theoretical orientations, geographic areas, ages, racial and ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientations, disabilities, and life experiences.

Click here for more information about the fellowship and the VISN 4 MIRECC.