Achieve Behavioral Health is now a member of APPIC and will be participating in the Match for the 2024-2025 Doctoral Psychology Internship year.

Internship Tracks:

• General Clinic Track (2):

Psychology interns in this track spend the majority of their time providing individual therapy to adults, couples and children, primarily from the Jewish Orthodox and Hasidic community. They will also complete rotations in the following departments: Intake and Assessment (mandatory), Crisis Services (mandatory), Group Therapy (mandatory as available), as well as the Anxiety/OCD Program (optional), the Women’s Health Department (optional) and Data Analytics and Clinical Metrics (optional).
This track is facilitated by Martin Galla, Ph.D., Clinical Director, Adult Center
*This track is the only track that offers a part-time option.

• Eating Disorder’s Specialization Track (2):

Psychology Interns in this track spend the majority of their time providing treatment to clients with eating disorders. Diagnoses include Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa and Avoidant Restrictive Feeding and Intake Disorder. Interns will receive specialized and extensive training, didactics and supervision in eating disorder assessment and evidence-based treatment approaches for eating disorders, including Enhanced Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-E), Family Based Therapy (FBT), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Arfid (CBT-AR). Interns will be part of a supportive and multidisciplinary treatment team.
This track is facilitated by Sarah Leah Weinberger-Litman, Ph.D., Director of Eating Disorders Program and Ayelet Schechter Gutman, Eating Disorders Program Coordinator.

• School-Child Specialization Track (2):

Psychology Interns in this track spend the majority of their time providing individual therapy to children and may also provide treatment at Achieve’s school-based clinics, located in various Jewish Orthodox, Ultra-Orthodox and Hasidic day schools across Rockland and Orange Counties, and/or providing individual therapy to children and parent support in the Achieve BH Child Center. Interns may also participate in the Child Intensive Track, providing intensive individual and group therapy to children struggling with anxiety. They will also provide individual therapy to a small caseload of adults in the general clinic. Interns in this track will also complete rotations in the following departments: Intake and Assessment (mandatory), Crisis Services (mandatory), Group Therapy (mandatory as available), as well as the Anxiety/OCD Track (optional), Women’s Health Department (Optional) and Data Analytics and Clinical Metrics (optional).
This track is facilitated by Jonathan Frohlich, Ph.D., Senior Clinical Director, Clinical Director, Child and Adolescent Center.

• Women’s Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) Specialization Track (1):

Psychology interns in this track spend 2 days/week providing group therapy, DBT coaching, case management and crisis management in the Women’s Intensive Outpatient Program. They will also provide individual therapy to adults and children in the general clinic. Interns in this track will also complete rotations in the following departments: Intake and Assessment (mandatory), Crisis Services (mandatory), as well as the Anxiety/OCD Program (optional) and Data Analytics and Clinical Metrics (optional).
This track is facilitated by Sara Markowitz, Ph.D., Director of Women’s IOP and Stephanie Hartman, Psy.D., Director of the Recovery Center and Crisis Services.

Required Rotations for All Tracks:

• Intake and Assessment (6 months):

All interns complete a 6-month rotation in our Intake Department. In this role, the psychology intern is the first clinician in our agency to meet with a new client. The psychology intern gathers information pertaining to background and history, and administers various clinical assessments, including the PHQ, GAD-7 and the CSSRS. The intern then formulates a case conceptualization and assigns a DSM-5 diagnosis to each client. The psychology intern is trained in this capacity by one of the intake supervisors and observes intakes conducted by others before conducting them independently. The psychology intern’s written intake assessments are then reviewed by an intake supervisor. Feedback is provided and revisions are suggested when relevant. Upon completion, the intake assessment is signed by both psychology intern and intake supervisor. Recommendations for assignment are then provided to the intake team so that the client is assigned appropriately to a therapist. Interns spend 8 hours/week in the following activities: 6 hours of intake, 1 hour of individual intake supervision, 1 hour of intake team meeting.
This track is facilitated by Yael Genack, M.S., Director of Intake and Assignment.
*Part-time interns do not participate in this rotation. 

• Crisis Services (6 months):

Full-time interns are required to complete a 6-month rotation with Crisis Services. On this rotation, interns will reserve 8 hours/week to be available to answer Achieve’s crisis line. As the line offers a 3-hour window for crisis clinicians to return phone calls, interns reserve slots within their schedules to respond to these calls. Interns provide support to clients in distress and dispatch mobile crisis when necessary. This rotation includes 30 minutes of group supervision and individual supervision, as needed.
This track is facilitated by Stephanie Hartman, Psy.D., Director of the Recovery Center and Crisis Services.
*Part-time interns do not participate in this rotation. 

• Group Therapy (2-12 months, as available):

Full-time interns are encouraged to co-lead group therapy with a more senior clinician when there is an available opportunity. Groups range from skills-based groups, such as DBT and social skills groups, as well as support groups, such as support for mothers of clients with SPMI. Opportunities to provide group therapy vary, as the needs for group therapy vary within the clinic. There are fewer opportunities for male than female interns, as our population tends to prefer same-gendered facilitator and single sexed groups (i.e. male clinician facilitating an all male group, female clinician facilitating an all female group) due to cultural sensitivities. As Achieve tends to have fewer males interested and willing to participate in group therapy, there tends to be limited opportunities for males in this area. We are committed to providing this training opportunity when it is available.
This track is facilitated by Elisheva Katz, Psy.D., Director of Group Services.
*For part-time interns, this rotation is optional. 

Optional Rotations:

• Anxiety/OCD Program (12 months)

Full-time and part-time interns will have the option to participate in a year-long rotation in this track. They will be trained in EBT to treat adults struggling with panic attacks, phobias, social anxiety, GAD, and OCD. Interns participate in 1 hour of weekly group supervision.
This track is facilitated by Jonathan Feiner, Ph.D., Director of Anxiety/OCD Program and Yael Mayefsky, Ph.D., Clinical Supervisor.

• Applied Clinical Data Analytics and Research (12 months)

Interns participate in real-time analysis of clinical data. They receive training in clinical data management, and effective dissemination within a research-to-practice pipeline. Interns also collaborate with clinic leadership in data intelligence gathering – formulation of meaningful questions and identifying meaningful data within clinical mental healthcare. Interns also learn methods for using data for practice implementation on data intelligence findings.
This track is facilitated by Gabriel Hoffnung, Ph.D., Director of Clinical Data Analytics and Research.

• Women’s Health Department (12 months):

Interns provide clinical services in Achieve’s Women’s Health Department, which provides specialized behavioral health and psychiatric care to individuals struggling with emotional impact of infertility, pregnancy loss and perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs). Interns are trained to understand the medical nuances of clients on this journey. They are taught assessment, diagnosis and treatment of clients who have postpartum anxiety, postpartum mood disorders, as well as those who are coping with grief and loss. This rotation is open to both men and women who are passionate about supporting individuals and couples through the challenges of clients’ reproductive years.
This track is facilitated by Michael Bleicher, LCSW, Director of Clinical Training and Rebecca Ashkenas, LCSW, Director of Women’s Health Program.