Inpatient psychologists work in hospitals and psychiatric institutions, providing psychological services to patients who stay for more than one day. They assess situations like suspected child abuse or suicidal patients and may specialize in areas like clinical neuropsychology or addiction psychology. To become a hospital psychologist, one needs a doctorate in clinical psychology, a year-long internship, and a postdoctoral residency for specialization. Clinical neuropsychologists may also need board certification.
An inpatient psychologist is a licensed mental health professional who works with staff at a hospital or psychiatric institution, providing psychological services to inpatients, typically for more than one day. Hospitals and medical centers have in-house psychologists to assess many situations that occur in the healthcare environment, such as in the emergency department where healthcare professionals encounter cases of suspected child abuse or a suicidal patient who needs immediate monitoring. It may be necessary for the inpatient psychologist to be on standby, available to provide assistance at any time of the day or night in the hospital. Specialists, including clinical neuropsychologists, can also be inpatient psychologists.
Many mental health institutions, including psychiatric units in critical care hospitals, have inpatient psychologists available to provide in-house assessments, counseling, and therapy services. Psychiatric hospitals are characterized according to the populations served and the level of restriction imposed on their patients. For example, some specialize in helping children and teenagers, while others only treat adults.
Resident drug rehab centers often employ a hospital psychologist to help patients recovering from substance abuse. Also called addiction psychologists, inpatient psychologists who work in substance abuse facilities to assess and treat patients who are physically or psychologically dependent on illicit or prescription drugs through group therapy and psychotherapy sessions. Addiction psychologists often use aversion therapy, a method of substance abuse intervention that has patients associate some unpleasant feeling or image with unwanted behavior, such as drinking alcohol or smoking.
Sometimes a hospital psychologist works in a specialized field such as clinical neuropsychology, the subfield in psychology that focuses on studying how physiology, particularly of the brain, influences individuals’ behavior. They are involved in working with patients suffering from conditions that affect neurological functioning, such as brain trauma and stroke. If a patient suffers a brain injury as a result of an accident, for example, the neuropsychologist will become part of the patient’s health care team, collaborating with the physicians to discover the extent of the neurological dysfunction. By conducting neuropsychological assessments, neuropsychologists can help clinicians determine effective treatment and rehabilitation, as well as possible patient outcomes. Often, neuropsychologists also specialize in pediatrics or a specific diagnosis, such as Parkinson’s disease or mental retardation.
Becoming a hospital psychologist involves completing a doctorate in clinical psychology (PhD or PsyD), followed by a year-long internship and a postdoctoral residency for specialization, such as in clinical neuropsychology or primary health care psychology. Depending on the region of intended practice, clinical neuropsychologists must earn board certification that is in addition to the regular licensure requirement. Board certification is awarded upon successful completion of a residency and a certification exam.
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