Interns rotate through a variety of experiences to ensure that they gain exposure to the range of patient problems, assessment techniques, and referral questions in the field of neuropsychology. Both outpatient and inpatient referrals are channeled through the clinic and interns will gain experiences with both types of consultation questions. Initially, interns gain exposure to neuropsychological assessment and consultation for adult and child inpatients and outpatients through the Psychology Clinic. Patients are seen for a variety of diagnostic issues ranging from assessment of patients with epilepsy to evaluating the general consequences of closed head injuries. Interns seeking greater experience in the neuropsychological assessment of children may select cases from pediatric neurology, oncology, and neurosurgery referrals and from the large number of learning disabilities assessments conducted in the Clinic.
Forensic referrals occur on both the adult and child neuropsychology services.
Additional clinical experiences can be elected on the Neuropsychology or Speech Pathology Service at the Gainesville V.A. Medical Center and in the Shands Hospital Outpatient Neurology Clinics. In addition to supervised assessment experiences, interns are encouraged to attend didactic course work such as graduate courses in Human Higher Brain Function and Neuropsychological Assessment, weekly Neuropsychology Brown Bag Meetings, Neurology Grand Rounds, Epilepsy Conference, Pediatric Neuro-Pathology Teaching Conferences and to actively participate in weekly meetings of the interdisciplinary Center for Neuropsychological Studies. Several research meetings are also held weekly. Interns who seek experience in basic and applied research on issues relating to neuropsychological assessment or brain mechanisms may participate in these meetings and may conduct supervised research. Members of the neuropsychology faculty are engaged in a variety of research studies.