PRAC 6645: PSYCHOTHERAPY WITH MULTIPLE MODALITIES 

PRAC 6645: PSYCHOTHERAPY WITH MULTIPLE MODALITIES 

Course Introduction

This practicum, the second of four you will take in your program, is designed for immersive learning and evaluation of clinical skills within a supportive environment. At the practicum site, you will apply your knowledge to specific, real-life cases, thus gaining both experience and confidence in the multiple modalities of psychotherapy for psychiatric and mental health illnesses. 

You will start the course by assessing your strengths and opportunities for improvement and developing goals. Throughout the course, you will formally track both the hours you spend at the practicum site and the patients you see. You will also engage in informal reflection of your skill development and progress toward your goals. Your clinical skills will be evaluated at two points (Weeks 5 and 10). Following these evaluations, you will receive feedback from your Clinical Faculty and Preceptor. The course ends with an opportunity to reassess your strengths and opportunities based on what you have accomplished during the practicum. You will then build on those areas as you continue in your next practicum experience. 

Again, welcome to your practicum!

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner students will synthesize their knowledge from previous clinical courses and professional experiences related to the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of various mental health conditions for patients across the lifespan. Students gain clinical experience applying psychotherapy techniques in a mental healthcare setting. Note: 160 practicum hours and a minimum of 80 patient encounters are required for this course. Practicum experiences must include interactions with all 3 modalities: individuals, groups, and families. No student may complete their practicum hours sooner than 8 weeks.

*Students must be able to see patients across the lifespan to include children, adolescents, adults, and older adults. A minimum of 80 patient encounters are required. Of those minimum 80 encounters, at least 5 patient encounters must be with age populations of children and/or adolescents and at least 5 patient encounters must be with age populations of adults and/or older adults.

If the primary preceptor only sees adult clients, a secondary preceptor will be needed in order to complete the requirements for children and adolescent experiences. Sometimes this can be another provider in the same office as the primary preceptor.

PRAC 6645: PSYCHOTHERAPY WITH MULTIPLE MODALITIES COURSE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

• Types of Patients: Patients receiving psychotherapy for psychiatric and substance use disorders across the life span to include children, adolescents, adults, and older adults.
• Types of Services: Psychotherapy with three populations to include individuals, groups, and families. (Demonstration of experience with all three groups required)
• Possible Preceptor Choices:   licensed clinical social worker, licensed mental health counselor/professional counselor, licensed psychologist, other appropriately licensed/certified mental health professional if the license requires a minimum of a master’s degree in the area of mental health. (Note: Every state has different license categories for mental health professionals, so students should be aware of the different license categories in the state and verify the qualifications with the Office of Field Experience prior to nominating a preceptor if there are questions regarding the qualifications. The licensee must have completed supervised clinical experiences as part of the requirements along with a master’s or doctoral degree in the area of practice within the field of mental health.)
• Possible Site Choices: Private practice, community psychiatric and/or counseling center, crisis centers, drug/alcohol rehabilitation center, college counseling center, employee assistance program (EAP) sites, or assisted living/Alzheimer’s facility, hospital or specialty care facility, jails/prisons, long-term care, hospice, palliative care, or any other site where you have access to all three groups—individual, families, and group for psychotherapy interventions (to be determined on an individual basis).
• Nonacceptable Sites: Any form of community and/or home visits.
• Nonacceptable Preceptors: PMHNP, PMHCNS, Psychiatrist, FNP, AGACNP, AGPCNP, or any other NP. No PAs. No OT, PT, or Speech Therapist. No preceptors who are “spiritual” or “religious-based” counselors will be permitted unless they possess a master’s or higher degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher learning and are licensed to provide psychotherapy services in their state. Practitioners who have graduate-, associate-, or intern-level licenses are not acceptable preceptors because they are not practicing as unsupervised practitioners—if they are required to be supervised as part of their licensure requirement, they are not acceptable preceptors.
• Any schedule for more than 8 hours per day must be verified through preceptor email to faculty as preceptor working a condensed schedule AND approved by faculty.

COURSE PREREQUISITES

• NURS 6630: Psychopharmacological Approaches to Treatment of Psychopathology
• NRNP 6635: Psychopathology and Diagnostic Reasoning 
• PRAC 6635: Psychopathology and Diagnostic Reasoning Practicum
• NRNP 6645: Psychotherapy With Multiple Modalities*

*This course is ideally taken concurrently, as a corequisite, but may also be taken as a prerequisite if needed.

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the conclusion of this course, you should be able to:

1. Assess psychiatric-mental health advanced practice nursing skills for strengths and opportunities 
2. Develop professional plans in advanced nursing practice for the practicum experience
3. Apply advanced practice nursing assessment, diagnosis, and treatment skills in mental health settings
4. Analyze cases involving advanced care of patients across the lifespan in mental health settings
5. Formulate differential diagnoses for patients across the lifespan
6. Formulate plans of care for patients that incorporate individual, family, or group psychotherapy interventions

Course Summary: