For internship sites that can’t fill 2 interns?

[ReciproGal]

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Random question out of curiosity-

With some (if not most) states requiring at least two equivalent interns at internship sites for licensure, what happens if only one position is filled? Are they disqualified from licensure because only one intern was present due to the vacancy? Or is the whole site discontinued? Now that there are more internship sites than interns, it seems like a good problem may end up being a bad one.

 

[AcceptingUncertainty]

This is crazy talk.

 

[erg923]

Random question out of curiosity-

With some (if not most) states requiring at least two equivalent interns at internship sites for licensure

never heard of such a thing

 

[AcronymAllergy]

You can always check with individual state licensing boards, but I would be surprised if a site disqualified someone from licensure because their internship was unable to recruit >1 intern, assuming the internship is setup to allow for >1 intern (i.e., the site has >1 spot but wasn't able to fill them).

I've also not run into the requirement as indicated by individual states, just by APPIC/APA.

 

[Justanothergrad]

Never heard of this requirement before. Where is this a thing?

 

[Dr. Melfi]

Massachusetts and New Hampshire to begin.

 

[psych.meout]

Massachusetts and New Hampshire to begin.

Huh, weird. It would seem odd to penalize the site or the one intern simply because there weren't any qualified applicants who matched to the site or if a qualified intern dropped out for some reason.

 

[ReciproGal]

It’s a requirement for TX (where I’m at). APA/APPIC sites already meet the requirement as many sites have more than 2, but I’ve always wondered about unfilled sites or sites that don’t fill at least two in the PMVS.

 

[ClinicalABA]

Huh, weird. It would seem odd to penalize the site or the one intern simply because there weren't any qualified applicants who matched to the site or if a qualified intern dropped out for some reason.

I believe the intent is for it to be a formal training program with at least some small group didactic instruction, rather than just a supervised clinical experience or cheap clinical labor.

 

[ClinicalABA]

Huh, weird. It would seem odd to penalize the site or the one intern simply because there weren't any qualified applicants who matched to the site or if a qualified intern dropped out for some reason.

Yeah, but OTOH is it ok to potentially punish future patients by credentialing practitioners who don't meet minimum standards of training, regardless of the reasons? I guess the take home message is forvprospectivecinterns to be cautious about sites with low numbers of trainees. Remember, the 2 intern minimum thing is an APA accreditation standard.

 

[erg923]

how do they know? State boards call the DCT and ask?

 

[ClinicalABA]

You can always check with individual state licensing boards, but I would be surprised if a site disqualified someone from licensure because their internship was unable to recruit >1 intern, assuming the internship is setup to allow for >1 intern (i.e., the site has >1 spot but wasn't able to fill them).

I've also not run into the requirement as indicated by individual states, just by APPIC/APA.

For MA licensure application, it comes up on the Internship Program Director Form. The internship director can check off that the program was APA accredited, and then skip a bunch of questions related to the nature of the internship. Basically, they are yes/no questions about equivalency to APA accreditation standards, and one of them is "There were at least two psychology interns at the internship training level during the
applicant's period."

 

[ClinicalABA]

how do they know? State boards call the DCT and ask?

See post above- Internship director has to sign a notarized affidavit form attesting to it.

 

[ClinicalABA]

Here's a link to MA application for an example. Relevant question is on pg 19.

https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2017/12/01/99pyap.pdf

 

[AcronymAllergy]

For MA licensure application, it comes up on the Internship Program Director Form. The internship director can check off that the program was APA accredited, and then skip a bunch of questions related to the nature of the internship. Basically, they are yes/no questions about equivalency to APA accreditation standards, and one of them is "There were at least two psychology interns at the internship training level during the
applicant's period."

It looks like the TX form is very similar to what the MA form sounds to be. I would imagine if the director checks "no" to that box (if they need to complete it to begin with), she/he could attach further explanation, and it would then be up to the board to determine whether or not to accept.

It also looks/sounds like if the internship is accredited, the director would never get to that item.

 

[psych.meout]

Yeah, but OTOH is it ok to potentially punish future patients by credentialing practitioners who don't meet minimum standards of training, regardless of the reasons? I guess the take home message is forvprospectivecinterns to be cautious about sites with low numbers of trainees. Remember, the 2 intern minimum thing is an APA accreditation standard.

Which I get, but that doesn't necessarily mean that a site or the training it provides are of poor quality. Some sites, especially those in remote rural areas, may have difficulty matching interns simply due to the location. There are already issues of access to care for patients in these contexts, so this would see to only compound the issue and disincentivize sites going through the effort of getting accredited.

 

[GradStudent2020]

Random question out of curiosity-

With some (if not most) states requiring at least two equivalent interns at internship sites for licensure, what happens if only one position is filled? Are they disqualified from licensure because only one intern was present due to the vacancy? Or is the whole site discontinued? Now that there are more internship sites than interns, it seems like a good problem may end up being a bad one.

I have heard of smaller sites pairing up to create a “consortium” in Texas. A larger site where I used to live allowed interns from a smaller community practice to attend their didactics and group supervision. So that was how the community practice handled things when they only had one intern instead of two.

I wouldn’t think they would dissolve the internship. However, it is up to the intern to make sure the site provides what they need for licensure. So if it looks like your site might be missing a piece (ex. Second intern), I’d call the state board and see what the options are to show equivalency at licensure application time.