Toward a New Predoctoral Model: Education and Training in Clinical Psychopharmacology

A ubiquitous research finding in regional and national studies is that at least 40% of persons with mental disorders cannot access mental health services, and pharmacotherapy in particular. The American Psychological Association's (APA) designated programs for the provision of education and training in clinical psychopharmacology can be of great help in alleviating this national need. We address key developments relevant to the foundation of a predoctoral model of clinical psychopharmacology education and training. To this end, an overview of the Master of Science in Clinical Psychopharmacology (MSCP) program at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology (TCSPP) is presented. TCSPP is now enrolling its eleventh consecutive cohort of MSCP students, many of whom are doctoral students who are concurrently attending various APA accredited Health Service Psychology (HSP) programs. We provide two predoctoral routes for completing MSCP training: (a) a route allowing for the creation of concentrations in clinical psychopharmacology in Health Service Psychology (HSP) doctoral programs, providing up to half of MSCP coursework; and (b) a joint doctoral PsyD or PhD/MSCP program meeting APA accreditation and designation standards integrated into a 5-year curriculum to impart HSP graduates with the competencies to provide both psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy. We conclude with a discussion about the future direction of predoctoral clinical psychopharmacology education and training. Given its emphasis on neuroscience and interdisciplinary health care, such curricular models may help to address the nation's immediate mental health care needs, while serving to enhance the sustainability of HSP education and professional practice in the 21st Century. Public Health Significance Research indicates that at least 40% of persons with mental disorders cannot access needed mental health services. In particular, there is a national need for patient access to pharmacotherapy (treatment of mental disorders using prescribed medications). In meeting this national demand, this article presents a curricular model in clinical psychopharmacology for educating psychologists to prescribe medications for mental disorders. Additionally, future directions of the field are discussed.