Psychology Internship

Appointment: Full-time (40 hours per week); 12 months
APPIC program name: Corewell Health Internship in Prof Psychology
APPIC program code: 2309

 Welcome to the Corewell Health Internship Program in Professional Psychology. We hope the information provided helps you determine if our program is the right fit for your training and professional goals.

Our mission is to prepare interns to pursue careers as clinical scientists and leaders in academic medical centers, community hospitals, and other integrated care settings. Corewell Health is the largest health system in Michigan, and our internship program is based in northeast Grand Rapids operating within the primary health department. We emphasize breadth and depth of training through evidence-based psychological assessment and care. We provide training opportunities in integrated care settings such as psychological evaluations, bariatrics, and outpatient psychotherapy. We accept outpatient referrals from primary and specialty care medical providers and offer psychological services for a wide range of behavioral health concerns.

Our goals and objectives focus on intern competency development in seven foundational and four functional domains as described by Fouad, et.al (2009) and consistent with recommendations from the Council of Clinical Health Psychology Training Programs.

A strong emphasis on clinical training is at the core of our curriculum. Each intern will receive a weekly minimum of two hours of individual supervision, two hours of group supervision, and two hours of didactic seminars. Supervision is provided by our fully-licensed faculty, all of whom are either fellowship-trained or ABPP board-certified. Interns will also be provided with two hours of individual professional development time weekly, which can be used at the intern’s discretion to advance their career, such as reading professional texts or completing their dissertation.

Our foundational competency goals include increasing interns’ (1) Professionalism, (2) Reflective practice and self-care, (3) Scientific knowledge, methods, and applications, (4) Professional relationships, (5) Awareness and sensitivity to individual/cultural diversity, (6) Ethical/legal decision-making, and (7) Awareness of interdisciplinary systems.

Our functional competency goals include increasing interns’ skills in: (1) Psychological assessment, diagnosis, case conceptualization, and treatment planning, (2) Evidence-based psychological interventions, (3) Supervision, and (4) Integrated care practice.

All applicants are required to be enrolled in an APA- or CPA-accredited doctoral program in clinical, counseling, or school psychology and are expected to have completed by the internship's starting date: all doctoral course work, qualifying examinations, and required practica (a minimum of 500 direct hours and 1,000 total hours). The dissertation proposal must be approved before the ranking deadline.

Please include:

• A cover letter articulating how you believe your learning goals would be met through an internship at Corewell Health.
• A completed APPI, including a letter of recommendation from your director of clinical training.
• Curriculum vitae.
• At least two additional letters of recommendation using the APPIC Standardized Reference Form, including one from your primary advisor/mentor. At least one of the letters should describe your recent clinical skills. It is acceptable to send three letters of recommendation if desired.

Please contact Dr. Lyndsay Volpe-Bertram at lyndsay.volpe-bertram@corewellhealth.org, with questions regarding the program or the application.

To learn more, visit the APPIC website.

Lyndsay Volpe-Bertram, PsyD, ABPP (C), Director of Clinical Training, Supervisor
Education: PsyD in clinical psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Chicago Campus. Predoctoral internship at the Youth Opportunity Center in Muncie, Indiana; postdoctoral experience at Child Focus, Inc. in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral
Interests: Trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder, ADHD evaluations, mood disorders

Jared L. Skillings, PhD, ABPP (C, CH, CBT), Chief Psychologist, Supervisor
Education: MA, PhD in clinical psychology at the University of Toledo. Predoctoral internship at the University of Miami (FL)/Jackson Memorial Hospital; Postdoctoral fellowship in clinical health psychology at the Consortium for Advanced Psychology Training through Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
Theoretical orientation: Cognitive-behavioral with humanistic philosophical roots
Interests: Presurgical evaluations, solid organ transplantation, evidence-based assessment, and psychotherapies

Rebecca Preston, PsyD, Psychologist, Supervisor
Education: PsyD in clinical psychology at Loyola University Maryland. Predoctoral internship (clinical psychology) at Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago, Illinois and postdoctoral fellowship (emphasis in integrated care / behavioral medicine) at Edwards Hines, Jr. VA Hospital in Hines, Illinois.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral, interpersonal
Interests: Bariatric surgery, weight loss and weight management interventions, adjustment to chronic health conditions

Lisa Vroman, PhD, Supervisor
Education: PhD in clinical psychology at Michigan State University in East Lansing. Predoctoral internship in clinical health psychology at West Virginia University School of Medicine, Charleston Division, Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry; postdoctoral experience in pediatric behavioral sleep medicine and child psychology at Corewell Health Division of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral
Interests: Child and adolescent psychotherapy utilizing individual and parent guidance approaches to the treatment of both internalizing and externalizing behavior disorders, child and adolescent assessment, pediatric behavioral sleep medicine.

Kiran Taylor, MD, Psychiatrist, Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine Division Chief
Education: MD at University of Michigan Medical School. Residency in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan Health System.
Theoretical orientation: Cognitive-behavioral, acceptance and commitment therapy, meaning-centered therapy
Interests: Psycho-oncology and supportive care

Leisha Cuddihy, PhD, CBSM, Psychologist
Education: MA, PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Arizona in Tucson; pre-doctoral internship in behavioral medicine at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island; postdoctoral fellowship in behavioral sleep medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral, motivational interviewing
Interests: Sleep and sleep disorders, cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia, motivational interviewing, acceptance and commitment therapy, mindfulness

Shawn Hondorp, PhD, ABPP, Psychologist
Education: MS, PhD in clinical psychology at Drexel University in Philadelphia; predoctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship in clinical health psychology at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral
Interests: Weight management including surgical (i.e., bariatric surgery) and behavioral approaches, treatment of stress-related and/or binge eating

Allison Ilem, PhD, BCBA, Psychologist
Education: MA in behavior analysis at Western Michigan University, PhD in clinical psychology (with curricular emphasis in geropsychology) at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs; predoctoral internship (clinical psychology) and postdoctoral fellowship (geropsychology) at VA Puget Sound Health Care System, American Lake Division.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral, interpersonal
Interests: Non-pharmacological approaches to managing challenging behavior in persons with dementia, aging and disability, end-of-life care, interdisciplinary teams

Sylvia Malcore, PhD, Psychologist
Education: MA, PhD in clinical psychology at Detroit Mercy in Detroit, Michigan, predoctoral internship at John D. Dingell VA Medical Center in Detroit, Michigan, and postdoctoral fellowship in clinical health psychology at Genesys Regional Medical Center through the Consortium for Advanced Psychology Training program associated with Michigan State University/Flint Area Medical Education (MSU/FAME) in Flint, Michigan.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral
Interests: Pain management, coping with chronic health conditions, and psychological presurgical evaluations

Antú Shamberger, PsyD, Psychologist
Education: PsyD in clinical psychology at Roosevelt University in Chicago. Predoctoral internship in clinical psychology at the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; postdoctoral fellowship in health psychology at the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center in Detroit, Michigan.
Theoretical Orientation: Cognitive-behavioral, interpersonal
Interests: Health psychology, health promotion and disease prevention, pain management, multiculturalism, Spanish-speaking community