James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, Tampa Psychology ...
Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Fellowship Program
James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, Tampa
Heather G. Belanger, Ph.D., ABPP
Psychology Training Director (116B)
13000 N. Bruce B. Downs Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33612
(813) 972-2000
Applications due: January 1
Accreditation Status
The two-year Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Fellowship at the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, Tampa is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of the American Psychological Association.
The next site visit will be during the year 2018.
Questions related to the program’s accredited status should be directed to the Commission on Accreditation:
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
American Psychological Association
750 1st Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 336-5979 / E-mail: apaaccred@
Web: ed/accreditation
Application & Selection Procedures
APPLICANT QUALIFICATIONS AND PROCEDURES
Qualifications
1. U.S. citizenship. VA is unable to consider applications from anyone who is not currently a U.S. citizen. Verification of citizenship is required following selection. All interns and fellows must complete a Certification of Citizenship in the United States prior to beginning VA training.
2. A male applicant born after 12/31/1959 must have registered for the draft by age 26 to be eligible for any US government employment, including selection as a paid VA trainee. Male applicants must sign a pre-appointment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration before they can be processed into a training program. Exceptions can be granted only by the US Office of Personnel Management; exceptions are very rarely granted.
3. Interns and Fellows are subject to fingerprinting and background checks. Match result and selection decisions are contingent on passing these screens.
4. Have received a doctorate from an APA or CPA accredited graduate program in Clinical, Counseling, or Combined Psychology or PCSAS accredited Clinical Science program. Persons with a doctorate in another area of psychology who meet the APA or CPA criteria for respecialization training in Clinical, Counseling, or Combined Psychology are also eligible.
5. Have completed an internship program accredited by APA or CPA or have completed a VA-sponsored internship.
Application Packet:
1. A Vita,
2. A letter of interest outlining training goals for the postdoctoral residency year and detailing future professional goals,
3. A letter from the Internship Training Director describing the clinical experiences and overall performance of the applicant during the internship year. (Successful completion of an APA accredited internship prior to the post-doc is required, and this letter should state if successful completion is expected.),
4. Some demonstration that the doctoral degree has been obtained from an APA accredited doctoral program or that the applicant will graduate prior to the beginning of the residency year (if all doctoral requirements are completed prior to the beginning of the post-doc, and the applicant will be awarded the doctoral degree within 4 months of the beginning of the post-doc, and the Graduate Training Director documents this in writing, then the applicant will be considered to have met this requirement), and
5. Three or more other letters of recommendation, one of which must be from an internship supervisor.
6. A brief (one paragraph minimum) statement detailing your experiences with and/or commitment to diversity.
Applications packets and letters of recommendation must be submitted electronically via the APPIC site:
Questions to:
Jessica Vassallo, Ph.D., ABPP-CN
Assistant Training Director, Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Program
Psychology Service (116B)
James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital
13000 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33612
Phone: (813) 972-2000 x 6727
FAX: (813) 903-4814
Application packets must be complete by January 1st. Earlier submissions are preferred. We are a member of the Association of Postdoctoral Programs in Clinical Neuropsychology (APPCN) and participate in the APPCN Resident Matching Program.
Selection Procedures
We strongly encourage applications from candidates from underrepresented groups. The Federal Government is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
We have four postdoctoral residents and two openings per year. Each resident completes two full years. Application materials will be reviewed for completion. A selection committee composed of post-doctoral rotation supervisors and current residents will review and rank order all completed applications. The top candidates will be offered interviews (by telephone). Following interviews, the selection committee will again rank order applicants. We participate in the APPCN Resident Matching Program and are a member of the Association of Postdoctoral Programs in Clinical Neuropsychology (APPCN). This residency site agrees to abide by the APPCN policy that no person at this facility will solicit, accept, or use any ranking-related information from any residency applicant. Details of the APPCN can be found at:
Postdoctoral Residency Admissions, Support, and Initial Placement Data (This table was last updated on 12/12/2016)
|Postdoctoral Program Admissions |
|The aim of the program is to promote advanced competencies in our residents such that graduates are eligible for employment in public sector |
|medical center settings serving specialized patient populations with neurological conditions. Residents completing the program should have |
|solid foundational preparation to initiate ABPP certification in Clinical Neuropsychology. We review applicants to our program using the |
|following criteria: clinical experience, research experience, letters of recommendation, motivation/professional development, writing ability,|
|commitment to and/or experience/interest in diversity, and interview/match with our program. Ideally, we are looking for individuals committed|
|to the scientist practitioner model and who are committed to pursuing board certification in clinical neuropsychology. The qualifications |
|listed above in this brochure (see “Qualifications”) are required of all applicants; applicants not meeting these qualifications will not be |
|considered. |
|Financial and Other Benefit Support for Upcoming Training Year |
|Annual Stipend/Salary for Residents |$42,310 1st year |
| |$44,597 2nd year |
|Program provides access to medical insurance for resident? |Yes |
| -Trainee contribution to cost required? |Yes |
| -Coverage of family member(s) available? |Yes |
| -Coverage of legally married partner available? |Yes |
| -Coverage of domestic partner available? |No |
|Hours of Annual Paid Personal Time Off (PTO and/or Vacation) |13 (vacation and sick leave accrue at the rate of 4 hours every two |
| |weeks. This amounts to 13 vacation days and up to 13 sick days.) |
|In the event of medical conditions and/or family needs that require |Yes |
|extended leave, does the program allow reasonable unpaid leave to | |
|residents in excess of personal time off and sick leave? | |
|Other benefits |All Federal Holidays off, 5 days authorized absence for approved |
| |professional activities (e.g., conferences, workshops, etc.), eligible|
| |for life insurance benefits |
|Initial Post-Residency Positions |
|Total # Residents who are training in the program currently |4 |
|Total # Residents who were in the last 3 cohorts |7 |
|Total # From Last 3 Cohorts Working In: |Employed Positions: |
| -Veterans Affairs Medical Center |6 |
| -Academic Health Center |1 |
|Percentage From Last 3 Cohorts Who are Employed Full-Time |100% |
|Percentage From Last 3 Cohorts Who are Licensed |100% |
|Total # From Last 3 Cohorts Who are ABPP |2 |
Psychology Setting
The Psychology Service is comprised of over 90 doctoral level psychology staff representing a variety of theoretical orientations and specializations. Psychologists have major leadership roles within hospital clinical and research programs and have recognized national expertise and leadership within VHA as well as psychology organizations. Many staff hold faculty appointments at the nearby University of South Florida. Staff psychologists have authored textbooks, written numerous professional articles, and developed or helped develop prominent psychological tests. In addition, psychologists have served on national VHA Work Groups, Polytrauma Task Forces, and QUERIs.
Seventeen doctoral level staff are involved in the neuropsychology fellowship, of these 16 are potential primary or secondary rotation supervisors, 3 have a diplomate in clinical neuropsychology (ABPP-CN), and 1 has a diplomate in rehabilitation psychology.
In addition to our American Psychological Association (APA) accredited two-year neuropsychology postdoctoral fellowship program (four fellows), we also have an APA accredited psychology internship program (eight interns), a two-year Rehabilitation Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship (2 fellows) and a Clinical Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship with an emphasis on pain/psycho-oncology (2 fellows), health (1 fellow) or PTSD/TBI (2 fellows).
Training Model and Program Philosophy
Our philosophy is that sound clinical practice is based on scientific research and empirical support. Our training model is the Scientist-Practitioner Model of Training -- research and scholarly activities inform and direct clinical practice, and clinical practice directs research questions and activities.
Our clinical training focuses on scientifically-based and empirically-supported general psychological principles and theories for evaluation, psychotherapy, and consultation. We believe these principles and theories provide the foundation of clinical training and are essential for competent practice of psychology across settings and populations. However, we also recognize that future clinical jobs may call for specialized training. Therefore, we have structured the internship program to be a generalist training model that is scientifically-based, with opportunities for focused training within that generalist model. Thus, a Scientist-Practitioner “general-flexible” training model best characterizes our program.
Program Goals & Objectives
The primary goal of the program is to train residents who will become licensed psychologists prepared to assume positions in public sector medical center settings serving specialized patient populations with neurological conditions. Residents completing the program should have solid foundational preparation to initiate ABPP certification in Clinical Neuropsychology. The neuropsychology program is designed to be consistent with recommendations of the 1997 Houston Conference for Training in Clinical Neuropsychology. These overall training goals are consistent with our program’s and the VA’s mission to provide training and research opportunities which further the quality clinical care of veterans with these important needs.
Our expectation is that our fellows will become licensed psychologists. In pursuit of its primary goal, the training program is designed such that six primary objectives are pursued. Specifically, journeyperson level proficiency is expected in each of 6 primary areas of competency: 1) neuropsychological assessment, 2) psychotherapeutic interventions, 3) consultation/ supervision/teaching, 4) professional and ethical behavior, 5) diversity issues, and 6) scholarly inquiry and critical, empirically-based evaluation of clinical and research activities.
The Psychology Service serves an integral role in the hospital’s training function. The hospital and the Psychology Service are pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to the professional development of interns and residents. Their presence stimulates and enhances our services to the thousands of patients who are entrusted to us for effective and caring treatment. In return, we believe that the rich training experience at our hospital, and at our affiliated institutions, will make a vital contribution to your professional growth and development.
The psychology staff regards the training of new psychologists as a serious responsibility and this is demonstrated by a commensurate investment of staff time and energy in all facets of the training program. The didactic and clinical experiences of this program are designed to facilitate the professional attitudes, competencies, and personal resources essential to the provision of high quality patient care in contemporary psychology service settings. As mentors, psychology staff members demonstrate, and encourage resident participation in, the professional roles of clinician, consultant, team member, supervisor, evaluator, and researcher. The professional growth and development of residents is enhanced by consistent supervision, varied clinical responsibilities with diverse patient populations, and ongoing didactic training.
Program Structure
TRAINING PLAN
An orientation period serves to familiarize residents with the Medical Center, the various treatment units, and the staff psychologists and their various roles. During this time, residents attend VA required New Employee Orientation sessions and also visit potential rotation sites and supervisors. Following the orientation period, the resident is requested to prepare his/her own training program proposal. The proposal indicates the rotations desired, research ideas and projects, didactic activities desired (above and beyond the required didactics), etc. The Director of Training, representing the Training Committee, reviews the proposal with the resident, taking into account the resident’s prior experience and professional goals. When mutual agreement is achieved concerning the plan, the plan is reviewed with the Psychology Postdoctoral Training Subcommittee for approval. Residents may request training plan changes at any point during the year through the Director of Training. In order to offer each resident maximal exposure to a variety of patients and settings, training plans may allow rotations through a variety of service and training areas.
There are four major components to the training program:
a) clinical rotations
b) didactic seminars
c) ongoing research activities,
d) provision of supervision.
The didactic seminars are designed to provide an advanced level of training in neuropsychological and psychological assessment, interventions, advanced multivariate statistics, ethics, law, and human diversity issues. The clinical rotations allow practical application of past skills, current and prior didactic instruction, and ongoing competency development in assessment, intervention, and consultation, and the impact of ethics, law and human diversity issues on these professional activities. Postdoctoral residents also play an active role in providing first line supervision and training to psychology interns, under the overall supervision of their clinical rotation supervisor(s). This allows hands-on professional development in the areas of supervision and teaching, and furthers their professional development and sensitivity to ethical, legal, and human diversity issues. In addition, neuropsychology postdoctoral residents are responsible for co-teaching portions of a neuropsychology seminar in which they provide didactics well as arrange for others to present on selected topics. Again, this helps further their professional development in the area of supervision/teaching. Finally, research and scholarly activities are developed through required participation in a variety of research studies and involve critical literature reviews, statistical and methodological sophistication, and scholarly manuscript preparation.
ROTATIONS
During the two-years of training, residents complete four 6-month clinical rotations. In addition to the clinical rotations, residents attend training seminars and participate in research activities.
The Neuropsychology Fellowship requires that the resident complete 1) the Traumatic Brain Injury/Polytrauma Rehabilitation rotation and 2) the Memory Disorder Clinic/Outpatient Neuropsychology rotation. The third and fourth rotations may be selected from other rotation offerings, but must be approved by the Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Training Subcommittee according to the resident's training needs and goals. Residents may complete one off site (non-VA) rotation among the available rotations.
Availability & Timing of Rotations
Residents in Clinical Neuropsychology Tracks normally complete their required 6-month rotations during the first year. The sequence for their remaining rotations will be mutually determined by them and the Clinical Training Committee on the basis of availability during a given rotation period.
SEMINARS
The development of clinical skills requires not only day-to-day patient contact but also ongoing didactic training. To accomplish this, the neuropsychology postdoctoral training program includes seminars which focus on theoretical as well as applied aspects of clinical work. Regular attendance at two year-long seminars is required for all residents: Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Seminar and Professional Development Seminar. Residents are also welcome to participate in the seminar series offered to the psychology interns which include a Fundamentals of Neuropsychology Seminar (required for residents who have not completed it previously), a general Assessment Seminar, and a Psychotherapy Seminar. USF Medical School Psychiatry Grand Rounds, USF Department of Psychology Seminar series, brain cuttings, and additional didactic opportunities are also available.
RESEARCH
A number of Psychology Service staff maintain active involvement in clinical research, provide research consultation to other services within the VA and at the University of South Florida, serve on VA and USF research committees, provide reviews for a wide variety of professional journals, and serve on journal editorial boards.
Residents are required to demonstrate competence in methods of scholarly inquiry by conducting and/or participating in a research project(s) within their special focus area. Residents are expected to participate in at least one research project. At a minimum, residents submit a scientific presentation to some annual professional meeting such as APA, INS, NAN, AACN, American Pain Society, ASCIP, etc. Typically these are then submitted to a journal for possible publication. Development of a grant proposal and submitting it for funding would also meet the research requirement. Residents wishing to do more are encouraged to do so. Several staff members are actively involved in funded research projects providing role models, research opportunities, supervision, and training for residents. Residents receive ongoing didactic seminars that integrate the scientific literature with their clinical case material and receive regular feedback on their developing competencies in critically reviewing, utilizing, and conducting scientific research. Participation in research is an expected part of the postdoctoral years.
THERAPY
Neuropsychology Residents are expected to spend at least 2% of their time getting intervention/therapy experience (the equivalent of at least one psychotherapy patient per week). This can be accomplished by doing a rotation with an intervention component and/or picking up psychotherapy cases in addition to rotational requirements (i.e., typically, carrying a psychotherapy case for one year).
SUPERVISION RECEIVED
In helping residents acquire proficiency in the core competency areas, learning objectives are accomplished primarily through experiential clinical learning under the supervision and mentoring of licensed psychologists. All work performed by residents during the year must be under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. Essentially, residents are involved in the day-to-day demands of a large psychology service. Residents work with and are supervised by psychologists who serve as consultants to medical staff members or who serve as members of multidisciplinary teams in treatment units or programs. As a consultant or team member under supervision, the resident’s core competencies are developed and the resident learns to gradually accept increasing professional responsibility. The residency is primarily learning-oriented, and training considerations take precedence over service delivery. Because residents enter the program with varying levels of experience and knowledge, training experiences are tailored so that a resident does not start out at too basic or too advanced a level.
Residents receive a minimum of four hours of supervision each week, 2-3 hours on their rotations and 1-2 hours from supervisors of ongoing therapy cases, if applicable, and other activities. Often, this is dyadic supervision of a general clinical nature and includes discussion and development of core competency areas. Complementing basic supervision, through the process of working closely with a number of different Psychology Service supervisors, residents are also exposed to role modeling and mentoring on an ongoing basis. In addition to the above supervision, residents also receive didactic seminar presentations on topics related to their training.
TIME COMMITMENTS
The postdoctoral fellowship is a 40 hour per week fellowship. Typically residents have 2-3 hours of supervision as part of their rotation and group supervision within the seminars. If they pick up therapy cases in addition to their rotational responsibilities, they will typically have an additional hour of weekly supervision.
Training Experiences
ROTATION DESCRIPTIONS
The following is a description of each major rotation available to residents. Other training experiences can be structured specific to the particular interests of a resident depending on availability at the clinical site, availability of adequate supervision, and approval by the Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Training Subcommittee and the Training Committee.
Required Rotations (these may be repeated in the second year with a slightly different focus)
Memory Disorder Clinic / Outpatient Neuropsychology
Inpatient Clinical Neuropsychology (Acquired Brain Injury)
Optional Rotations
Inpatient Clinical Neuropsychology (Acquired Brain Injury) – Required Rotation
Memory Disorder Clinical / Outpatient Neuropsychology – Required Rotation
Advanced Inpatient Neuropsychology Post-Doctoral Rotation
Consultation/Liaison Outpatient Neuropsychology
Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation (PTRP) Neuropsychology
USF Neuropsychology / Epilepsy and Forensics
Spinal Cord Disease (including multiple sclerosis): Psychological & Neuropsychological Assessment & Intervention
INPATIENT CLINICAL NEUROPSYCHOLOGY – Acquired Brain Injury
Supervising Psychologists:
Tracy Kretzmer, Ph.D., Rodney Vanderploeg, PhD, ABPP-CN & Marc A. Silva, Ph.D.
This inpatient rotation involves participating in an interdisciplinary approach to assessment and rehabilitation of individuals with a history of acquired brain injury, including TBI, stroke and anoxia. Two units will be covered:
POLYTRAUMA UNIT: This 18 bed unit includes patients with Polytrauma and TBI of all severities (i.e., mild, moderate, severe, disorders of consciousness). Tampa VAMC is one of five lead VAMCs TBI and Polytrauma rehabilitation centers. These lead sites are also involved in a Department of Defense funded traumatic brain injury (TBI) program, DVBIC (see website at ) and with TBI Model Systems. It also includes patients with a variety of neurological and physical injuries, including stroke and anoxia, and occasionally brain tumors and viral encephalopathy. Cases on this unit are typically more acute and/or severe in nature, and as a result, lengths of stay are often longer, as compared to patients on the General Rehab Unit. Following local patients as outpatients to monitor progress is also available.
GENERAL REHAB UNIT: This is an 18-bed unit that admits a wide variety of medical populations for needed rehabilitation due to injuries suffered as a result of stroke (and other vascular insults), cardiac conditions, amputations, orthopedic injuries, or other medical conditions that have left them debilitated/deconditioned. While medical diagnoses are diverse, the majority of patients are male veterans ranging in age from 50-80 years old. Average length of stay is 3 weeks and local cases are often seen as outpatients to monitor continued recovery.
ASSESSMENTS: General clinical referrals typically result in an assessment of cognitive and behavioral deficits resulting from brain dysfunction, the residual cognitive strengths for rehabilitation and vocational planning purposes, and personality and emotional adjustment issues that may impact treatment participation. Interview and assessment ranges from 1- 5 hours, and varies depending on the patient’s injury severity and time since injury. Assessments can range from a brief assessment of orientation (serially tracking delirium/PTA) to comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations. Commonly employed test measures include: selected WAIS-IV subtests, MOAT/GOAT/O-LOG, California Verbal Learning Test -II, Brief Visuospatial Memory Test – Revised, subtests from the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System, Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure, Trail Making Tests, RBANS, and Behavioral Neurology tasks. Trainees are challenged to utilize creative ways to assess cognitive functioning, given many patients have significant motor and sensory limitations that prevent them from completing many standardized measures. Cognitive and behavioral assessments that include both qualitative and quantitative data (“process”) are key to inpatient evaluations and case conceptualizations.
In addition to neuropsychological assessment, emphasis will be placed on chart review, report writing, test selection, review of neuroimaging results, communicating feedback to an interdisciplinary team and patient/family members, and making appropriate recommendations to help improve the patient's ability to succeed during his/her inpatient stay and upon return home. Report styles vary from comprehensive to more succinct, especially given the notable change patients often demonstrate during the acute recovery phase. Turn-around time for evaluations and reports is typically expected within 48-72 hours.
Residents are expected to complete two to five evaluations each week. This involves reviewing the chart for relevant history, conducting a careful clinical interview, noting relevant behavioral observations, conducting the neuropsychological evaluation, scoring using age-and-education-adjusted norms, interpreting results, and writing integrated reports.
Residents will participate in weekly interdisciplinary treatment team meetings. There is also the opportunity to participate in various individual and group activities led by psychologists for both patients/families and staff. Opportunities to supervise interns/practicum students are sometimes available, as are opportunities for family feedback/education and behavioral management intervention experiences.
Training objectives: By the end of the rotation the intern will be able to:
1. State the rationale underlying the selection of various neuropsychological tests and other assessment methods for use with individuals with ABI.
2. Perform neuropsychological evaluations utilizing standardized instruments in a flexible-adjusted, clinically-guided approach, and incorporate “process” observations into the interpretive endeavor.
3. Produce a journeyman's quality written, integrated neuropsychological report that provides functional and practical information to the rehabilitation team and includes appropriate recommendations.
4. Understand the course of recovery from ABI and be able to identify factors that can negatively or positively impact that course. Identify and grade TBI severity using commonly utilized measures and track recovery milestones (i.e. recovery from PTA, Rancho Scale, GCS, TBI severity).
5. Identify and describe common neurobehavioral syndromes or clinical problems that occur in individuals with ABI.
6. Cite the major literature on common cognitive, behavioral, emotional, personality, and psychosocial issues related to ABI.
7. Function effectively as a consultant to other health care providers in relation to cognitive, behavioral, social, and emotional issues associated with ABI.
MEMORY DISORDER CLINIC / GENERAL OUTPATIENT NEUROPSYCHOLOGY
Supervisory Psychologists: Eric Spiegel, PhD & Jessica Vassallo, PhD, ABPP-CN
The role of the neuropsychologist and post-doctoral resident in this rotation is to provide a variety of assessment and consultation services. The neuropsychologist and postdoctoral resident attempt to determine the cognitive and behavioral deficits resulting from cerebral dysfunction secondary to disease or injury. An assessment is also made of cognitive strengths so that such information can be utilized in rehabilitation and future vocational or placement planning. This is accomplished by the rational, selective use of a variety of neuropsychological evaluation procedures (see below) as well as test instruments for personality assessment (e.g., Beck, MMPI, Geriatric Depression Scale). The general purpose of such evaluation is to determine potential disruption of general cognitive and behavioral function secondary to neurologic disease; identification of specific neurobehavioral deficits, and identification of critical areas of dysfunction which relate to rehabilitation potential. Specific questions addressed in consultation requests include (but are not restricted to) the following:
1. Documentation of symptoms in diagnosed neurological disease.
2. Issues of competency.
3. Delineation of vocational disabilities.
4. Differentiation of neurobehavioral and psychiatric disorders.
5. Differential diagnosis of dementia and pseudodementia.
6. Rehabilitation/treatment planning.
The key training emphasis on this rotation is on a process-oriented, flexible/adjustive approach to neuropsychology in contrast to the fixed battery approaches. In this approach test instruments are selected to provide cognitive ability data relevant to the specific hypotheses formulated for the individual case. Commonly employed procedures include selected WAIS-IV subtests, tests of language ability, learning and memory tests, tests of visual-spatial competency, executive functioning tests, and other selected procedures and tests as indicated.
Residents are expected to complete or supervise an average of 5-6 evaluations and reports each week. These will include comprehensive evaluations, memory screenings, and/or memory psychoeducation groups. Residents will also attend clinic rounds, weekly journal club and other presentations pertinent to neuropsychology services.
Rotation Learning Objectives: By the end of the rotation the neuropsychology resident will have:
1. Demonstrated a thorough knowledge of standardized neuropsychological evaluation procedures by stating rationale for selection of measures of intelligence, concept formation, language/aphasia, learning and memory (verbal, visual, and remote), visual-perceptual-spatial ability, executive functioning, and sensorimotor ability. The emphasis is on a core evaluation with flexible-adjustive exploration of specific neurobehavioral syndromes.
2. Demonstrated the ability to identify and describe common neurological disorders, provide brief screening evaluation procedures, and navigate the interface of psychiatric/neurologic disease by producing clinically sound conceptualizations and interpretive statements that take into account potential rule-out conditions.
3. Developed knowledge and experience in serving as consultant to various services and departments within the healthcare settings by consistently producing concise, integrated neuropsychological reports that include diagnostic impressions, prognostic indicators, and recommendations for treatment and follow-up.
4. Developed knowledge and experience relevant for maintaining a high-volume neuropsychology consultation clinic well-suited to the VA system of care through executing day-to-day administrative tasks of the clinic.
5. Developed supervisory skills by providing one-on-one supervision throughout the rotation, as available.
6. Demonstrated the interpersonal skills necessary for collaborative endeavors in both clinical and research settings.
ADVANCED INPATIENT NEUROPSYCHOLOGY POST-DOCTORAL ROTATION
(Advanced Diagnostics)
Supervisory Psychologists: Tracy Kretzmer, Ph.D., Risa Richardson, Ph.D., Tamara Mckenzie-Hartman, Ph.D.
This rotation occurs within the context of multiple hospital inpatient units, with the primary focus on complex and diagnostically challenging populations. It was designed to be flexible by allowing the resident to choose specific areas of training in which they would like to gain advanced and unique experiences. Proficient practice in evaluating these complex clinical populations and their diagnostic differentials requires unique skills not often gained in graduate or post-graduate training. On this rotation you will have the opportunity to 1) see the full range of brain injury populations, including mild TBI and those with the most severe brain injuries (coma, minimally conscious), 2) serve as a consultant to the inpatient psychiatric unit, where discerning the role of advancing cognitive decline/dementia vs. severe psychiatric sequelae vs. impact of medical comorbidities is often required, 3) increase supervision of interns and first year residents, and 4) get specialized training focused on capacity evaluations, including more specific training and exposure to specific measures to assess for medical, financial and legal decision making abilities.
As a second year resident you will also be expected to gain more functional independence. Residents will provide supervision to both interns and first year residents. You will also be responsible for leading neuropsychological feedback in team staffings. By the end of this rotation you will be expected to function as independently as possible --much as a junior colleague. Finally, postdoctoral residents are also required to participate in and lead bimonthly didactics and required readings (e.g., empirically based journal articles, book chapters, journal club) in order to gain a better understanding of medical conditions, behavioral syndromes, prognostic indicators, appropriate assessment measures and brief psychological interventions associated with each of these populations.
This rotation does offer many opportunities. It is strongly recommended that your training plan be specific on this rotation to ensure that the depth of knowledge and training gained is sufficient. While postdoctoral residents may choose to focus on any combination of these units with supervisor approval, depending upon patient census, trainees may be required to see patients from several teams in order to fulfill case load requirements. This rotation may be taken on a full-time basis in your second year of training. Given the multiple options and supervisors available, you will only have two supervisors at any one time (supervisors can change over the course of the rotation as your case load changes; e.g. PREP first 3 months, EC second 3 months for example). Potential experiences are detailed below.
INPATIENT NEUROPSYCHOLOGY (Rehab/Polytrauma/ARC)
Supervisor: Tracy Kretzmer, Ph.D.
This clinic will cover several inpatient units including Polytrauma/TBI, General Rehabilitation, and ARC (inpatient psychiatry). As this rotation is geared towards preparing 2nd-year residents for independent expert practice, residents will be afforded flexibility in how they arrange their work with consulting clinics and in their day-to-day activities. As a second year resident, your focus will be on more complex cases, capacity evaluations, supervision of interns and first-year residents, learning how to function more independently, and leading staffing/family feedback sessions. There will be focus on both qualitative (behavioral observations, behavioral neurology) and quantitative data to conceptualize complex cases, as individuals with limited stamina or motor/sensory deficits often require creative modifications from standardized batteries. How to elicit reliable and valid data within such a context in a key skill required for inpatient settings. As the second year resident, you will be required to provide tiered supervision to interns and first year residents. You will also lead staffing feedback and family meetings, reporting to team and family members current patient status, recommendations and concerns. In addition, second year-residents will gain extensive training and experience with capacity evaluations, as these are often requested by medical providers to assist with discharge planning.
This inpatient rotation involves participating in an interdisciplinary approach to assessment and rehabilitation of individuals with a history of acquired brain injury, including TBI, stroke and anoxia. A summary of the individual units is below:
POLYTRAUMA UNIT: This 18 bed unit includes patients with Polytrauma and TBI of all severities (i.e., mild, moderate, severe, disorders of consciousness). Tampa VAMC is one of five lead VAMCs TBI and Polytrauma rehabilitation centers. These lead sites are also involved in a Department of Defense funded traumatic brain injury (TBI) program, DVBIC (see website at ) and with TBI Model Systems. It also includes patients with a variety of neurological and physical injuries, including stroke and anoxia, and occasionally brain tumors and viral encephalopathy.
GENERAL REHAB UNIT: This is an 18-bed unit that admits a wide variety of medical populations for needed rehabilitation due to injuries suffered as a result of stroke (and other vascular insults), cardiac conditions, amputations, orthopedic injuries, or other medical conditions that have left them debilitated/deconditioned. While medical diagnoses are diverse, the majority of patients are male veterans ranging in age from 50-80 years old. Average length of stay is 3 weeks and local cases are often seen as outpatients to monitor continued recovery.
ARC: The ARC is an inpatient psychiatric unit with a diverse patient population. The ARC option is a unique experience and often found to be both challenging and interesting. How does one ascertain the role of advancing neurological vs. psychiatric processes vs. medical comorbidities? The Resident will be consulted to evaluate possible cognitive deficits/dementia in persons with severe mental illness, or to identify persons with neurologic injury/disease who have been misdiagnosed and mistakenly placed in inpatient psychiatric centers as a result of behavioral and personality changes.
MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY (PREP)
Supervisors: Tamara Mckenzie-Hartman, PsyD & Tracy Kretzmer, PhD
The inpatient mild TBI service occurs within the context of the Post-Deployment Rehabilitation and Evaluation Program (PREP), which is housed under Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service in the new Polytrauma Building. PREP focuses on patients who have experienced (or suspected of experiencing) a mild TBI. Often these individuals present with a complex array of nonspecific postconcussive-like symptoms, including chronic headaches, sleep problems, balance issues, as well as comorbid PTSD and/or Depression. Patients on this team typically include both active duty and veteran males in their 20-30s, though female patients are also seen. The interdisciplinary PREP team provides a comprehensive evaluation of the individual’s medical, cognitive and psychological functioning. Weekly team staffings and patient rounds are quite interactive and psychologists often help provide an overall conceptualization of the patient's current status and guide treatment planning. Extensive chart reviews and thorough interviews focusing on history of concussion, daily functioning, cognitive complaints, mood disturbance and readjustment issues are conducted. Personality testing (MMPI-RF, PAI) and performance/symptom validity assessment is used routinely.
Neuropsychology Focus: Neuropsychological assessments usually take 2- 3 hours and utilize common standard neuropsychological measures (CVLT-II, WAIS-IV subtests, verbal fluency, Stroop, Trails, etc.) within a flexible/adaptive battery. Unique training experiences include appropriate utilization of validity/effort measures, understanding of postconcussive symptoms and somatoform issues, integration of psychological testing results with cognitive testing, ability to test a patient’s cognitive functioning at multiple time points during treatment (i.e., pre- and post- PTSD treatment), providing feedback to team members and patient/family members, and potentially facilitating a variety of group and individual interventions focused on sleep, headache, mild TBI education, compensatory strategies and relationship of cognitive function to mood, pain, and sleep. Given the importance of providing feedback and psychoeducation to this population, additional components of the postdoctoral resident’s training are accurate knowledge of postconcussion symptoms (PCS), the role of patient expectations on outcomes, symptom normalization, addressing effort/motivation issues while maintaining rapport, and appropriate communication styles. Report lengths vary depending upon the specific evaluation needs of each case, however, these reports often require a thorough explanation and conceptualization to help the patient's providers better understand what the patient is experiencing, the etiological factors leading to a complex symptom array, why symptoms may remain refractory and how best to approach future treatment modalities. Completed reports are expected within three working days and no later than the final Monday of the patient's 3 week stay.
EMERGING CONSCIOUSNESS PROGRAM
Supervisor: Risa Richardson, Ph.D.
The fellow will develop specialized knowledge in the assessment and treatment of working with the most severe form of acquired brain injury within the VA’s specialized Emerging Consciousness Program. Patients in this program are admitted with various forms of acquired brain injury (traumatic, anoxia, stroke, and other forms of encephalopathy) for a minimum of 90 days of inpatient brain injury rehabilitation. The primary diagnostic approach with patients in this program is to use serial neurobehavioral examinations with consideration of motor, cognitive, sensory, and behavioral factors that confound assessment. Post-doctoral fellows become familiar with all categories of Disorder of Consciousness (Coma, Vegetative State, Minimally Conscious State), behavioral criteria for each diagnosis, and other differential diagnoses that would hasten misdiagnosis which is common in non-DOC experienced personnel (i.e., Locked-In Syndrome, Severe Encephalopathy, Cognitive, Visual, and Motor Disorders). Fellows are expected to learn the standardized assessment measures that are recommended for use with this patient population including but not limited to the Glasgow Coma Scale, Disability Rating Scale, Coma Recovery Scale-Revised, and Rancho Scale. The use of quantitative behavioral assessment approaches are taught to help gauge level of responsiveness in patients with limited behavioral repertoires to guide diagnosis and help monitor response to treatment in concert with the treatment team. Fellows will conduct serial examination with faculty and on their own to develop skill and confidence over time in working with this patient group. For patients that recover consciousness, competence with measures of delirium and post-traumatic amnesia are emphasized in the training experience. These measures include the Galveston Orientation Amnesia Test, Orientation Log, Agitated Behavior Scale, Delirium Rating Scale – Revised, and Confusion Assessment Protocol. Differential diagnosis between delirium and cognitive disorders are heavily emphasized. Fellows will learn how to work with treatment team providers to work with patients with limited behavioral abilities through improved diagnosis and case conceptualization of limitations based on diagnosis and anticipated impairments using neuroimaging as a guide to brain-behavior relationships. A key feature of this clinical experience is delivering feedback about current functioning and prognosis to family members initially and over time as the patient’s neurobehavioral status evolves.
Inpatient rehabilitation for DOC patients is currently non-uniformly covered by private insurance thus the VA’s dedicated program is a rare training experience to work with catastrophic injury. A majority of the patients admitted awaken from DOC (i.e., emerge from a minimally conscious state) with severe cognitive and behavioral impairments that evolve over time. Interaction with team and family members about these deficits and environmental and rehabilitation adaptations to promote ongoing recovery and maximize independence are a key focus of the neuropsychologists working with these patients. Helping to address barriers to ongoing neurologic recovery (identifying treatable conditions such as sleep problems; minimizing use of pharmacologic restraints through behavioral management techniques used by staff) are a major focus of the treatment experience for the trainee. Many ethical issues arise working with this patient group that are part of the training experience (e.g., guardianship, Do Not Resuscitate Status, and re-acquiring decision making capacity). Finally, the fellow will learn how to assist with transition plans from inpatient hospitalization through team and family education about cognitive and behavioral impairments that impact levels of supervision needed and environmental requirements. The fellow will learn what factors are considered when making recommendations about community versus institutional living based on cognitive and behavioral impairments for these types of patients. The VA has published several studies showing that this slow to recover patient group can improve over time with more than three-quarters regaining independence in activities of daily living in the first five years post-injury and 20 percent returning to productive roles and independent living in society during that timeframe. Guidelines and position statements in development from the American Academy of Neurology, American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine, and NIDILRR TBI Model System indicate psychologists trained in DOC assessment, prognosis, and treatment participate in rehabilitation programs specializing in DOC inpatient rehabilitation. As such, this rotation provides a unique opportunity to acquire this form of specialized knowledge.
For full time trainees, regardless of selected area for focus, you will be expected to carry at least 2-4 neuropsych/psych cases at a time, though due to fluctuations in census, there may be times when you have more or less cases. You will be expected to participate in weekly interdisciplinary treatment team meetings, participate in bimonthly readings and didactics focused on these specific populations, and participate in weekly (or more) scheduled supervision.
Training objectives: By the end of the rotation residents will be able to:
1. State the rationale underlying the selection of various neuropsychological tests and other assessment methods for use with individuals in these specific populations.
2. Perform neuropsychological evaluations utilizing behavioral neurology techniques and standardized instruments in a flexible-battery, clinically-guided approach, and incorporate “process” observations into the interpretive endeavor.
3. Produce a journeyman's quality written, integrated neuropsychological or psychological report that provides functional and practical information to the rehabilitation team and includes appropriate recommendations.
4. Identify and describe common neurobehavioral and psychological syndromes (e.g., postconcussion syndrome, EC, poor effort/malingering, neglect, post-stroke depression, PTSD) or clinical problems specific to these populations.
5. Function effectively as a consultant to other health care providers in relation to psychological, social, and emotional issues associated with these clinical populations.
6. Cite the major literature on common cognitive, behavioral, emotional, personality, and psychosocial issues related to these populations.
7. Demonstrate improved differential diagnostic skills.
CONSULTATION/LIAISON OUTPATIENT NEUROPSYCHOLOGY
Supervisory Psychologist: Eric Spiegel, PhD
The Consultation/Liaison Outpatient Neuropsychology rotation involves managing a consultation service within several outpatient medical clinics (neurology, geriatric psychiatry, geriatric medicine, outpatient TBI) as well as inpatient medical/neurology. The patient populations served by this rotation will reflect the patient composition of the above noted clinics and will represent a more focused subset of patients currently served in the context of outpatient neuropsychological services. In contrast to traditional consultative outpatient models, the resident will work with the supervising neuropsychologist to provide on-demand consultation to address memory and other cognitive concerns with collaborating referral sources. Presence at team meetings as dictated by patient needs and on-call coverage will be part of this advanced rotation. The overarching training goals on this rotation are to develop fluid higher-order conceptualization skills, the ability to quickly assess and characterize cognitive functioning, and to practice effective, concise consultation with other providers. Emphasis is made on conducting brief but thorough exams to answer the primary referral question and to provide concrete recommendations regarding the further evaluation and treatment needs of the patient.
This dynamic, time-constrained service requires integration of multiple skill sets developed over the course of 1st year postdoctoral rotations. Specific skills that will remain the focus of further development include: 1) embedding as a contributing member of several multidisciplinary treatment teams; 2) management of a busy, multi-faceted assessment clinic; 3) conducting time-limited assessment of cognitive abilities; 4) integration and conceptualization of all available data sources on the fly to provide diagnostic, treatment, and evaluation recommendations; and 5) provision of timely and meaningful verbal and written feedback to patients and referral sources.
Residents will build proficiency in managing their workload and clinical caseload with the expectation of an average of 14 hours of face-to-face time per week, comprised of both C/L and comprehensive assessments. Comprehensive evaluations will be expected, as necessary, to augment C/L workflow. The advanced resident will be afforded reasonable autonomy to further refine their individualized assessment approach to address evaluation of performance validity, attention, processing speed, language, visuospatial functioning, memory, and executive functioning. The advanced resident will also be responsible for managing scheduling of the ongoing, regularly scheduled Memory Disorder Screening Clinic. Finally, residents are expected to provide 1 case presentation at neurology grand rounds over the course of the rotation.
The Consultation/Liaison Outpatient rotation is geared towards preparing 2nd-year residents for independent expert practice. To that end, residents are afforded a great deal of flexibility in how they arrange their work with consulting clinics and in their day-to-day activities. These activities will help prepare advanced residents for work in a dynamic and changing health care environment, including increased focus on interdisciplinary care teams as mandated by the ACA. Mentorship and professional development with 1st-year residents is an expected component, with the goal of developing peer consultation and mentoring skills. This relationship will include first-line consultation of supervision and professional development issues encountered by the 1st-year resident on the MDC/General Outpatient Neuropsychology Rotation and support in conceptualizing and framing difficult cases. There is also an advanced journal club with focus on evidence-based models of supervision and diagnosis-related topics to further prepare residents for independent expert practice.
By the end of the rotation the advanced neuropsychology resident will have:
1. Developed the ability to quickly and effectively conceptualize cases, as evidenced by provision of an average of 14 hours of face-to-face clinical care per week, timely written and oral feedback, and comfort working in fast-paced medical clinics.
2. Demonstrated the ability to integrate and comfortably work with physicians and other health care disciplines by liaising with and providing concise and effective feedback both individually and in team meetings.
3. Demonstrated a working knowledge of behavioral neurology, functional neuroanatomy, and neuropsychologically-relevant neurological syndromes (e.g., types of aphasia, broad categorizations of seizure disorders, subtypes of FTD) to aid in diagnosis and treatment planning.
4. Developed the comfort and flexibility necessary to begin work as a fully independent neuropsychologist, as evidenced by the ability to successfully manage their own time and workload, complete consultation requests in a timely manner, and manage administrative demands.
5. Demonstrated the interpersonal and skill-based abilities to mentor and provide peer supervision through a working knowledge of evidence-based models of supervision and consultation.
POLYTRAUMA TRANSITIONAL REHABILITATION (PRTP)
NEUROPSYCHOLOGY ROTATION
Supervisory Psychologist: Jennifer Duchnick, PhD, ABPP-Rp
This rotation will provide an opportunity for postdoctoral neuropsychology trainees to gain: 1) enhanced clinical skills related to assessment and intervention with post-acute polytrauma/brain injury patients; 2) experience with the multiple roles of rehabilitation neuropsychologists, such as team consultation, therapy provision, cognitive rehabilitation, assessment of family needs & provision of feedback regarding cognitive and behavioral functioning to patients and families; and 3) exposure to a holistic model of interdisciplinary treatment. This rotation occurs within the context of the Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Program (PTRP) which is housed in the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Service. PTRP is a CARF-accredited interdisciplinary rehabilitation program for soldiers and military veterans who sustained severe trauma to multiple systems. It consists of both outpatient day treatment and a residential program. Moderate to severe brain injury is the most common injury, with most program participants also having sustained orthopedic trauma, amputation(s), spinal cord injury, and/or burn injuries. Many were exposed to combat trauma and have psychological disorders related to war experiences or injury-related events. Primary transitional program goals are to aid participants': 1) return to community living with maximum independence; and 2) return to productive community roles, with an emphasis on work, volunteer, or formal education programs. Psychoeducation and supportive services are offered to participants' family members.
The PTRP residential treatment is a 10-bed residential unit and treatment space on the hospital campus. This building includes patient residences, treatment clinics, and common areas for patient use. Therapeutic activities are scheduled 5 to 7 days per week, including group and individual therapeutic activities for patients and families. Areas targeted include cognitive skills, functional living skills, home management skills, community reintegration skills, and management of emotional and behavioral symptoms post brain injury. Therapeutic work/volunteer activities may be available and educational guidance is provided through vocational rehabilitation. The outpatient day program has been in existence since 2006. Therapeutic activities are similar to those of the residential component, with sustained, intense and coordinated treatment from multiple disciplines focused on assisting the patient to return to productive community life with maximum independence. Transitional program psychologists function as members of the interdisciplinary treatment team and provide a full range of psychological and neuropsychological rehabilitation services within both component programs. Participants are typically in their 20s or 30s with moderate to severe brain injuries. Length of time since injury ranges from a few months to several years. The typical length of stay ranges from a few months to over 1 year.
At program admission, the psychologists conduct evaluations to help the team conceptualize the nature of cognitive, emotional, personality, and psychosocial issues that may affect the individual's progress in continuing rehabilitation, adjustment to injury, and quality of life issues. The trainee will be involved in a mix of general psychological assessment, neuropsychological assessment, and intervention. Neuropsychology evaluations may occur at program admission, discharge, or at periods during the program where updated evaluation of cognitive functioning is useful to inform treatment planning. On average, 2-3 opportunities for neuropsychological evaluation occur per month. These evaluations tend to be brief in nature (typically 2-4 testing hours). Evaluation instruments are selected based on clinical questions and on consideration of the individual's current behavioral repertoire. Recommendations are typically generated to address areas such as: level of supervision necessary for safety, ability to engage in work or volunteer activities, ability to participate in educational activities, capacity for independence with IADLs, or readiness for return to motor vehicle operation. Trainees will gain skill in providing therapeutic feedback to the patient and the family (if applicable), as well as to the rehabilitation treatment team. Psychological evaluations are conducted at admission for every patient, and typically include interview and questionnaire measures. Instruments assessing emotional state and personality/ psychopathology may also be included.
The postdoctoral trainee is expected to learn and utilize multiple treatment formats directed toward cognitive rehabilitation, behavioral improvement and psychological adjustment, such as individual, group, and family interventions. The trainee will be expected to lead or co-lead at least one of the weekly interdisciplinary groups and carry an individual caseload of 1-3 patients. Individual case load will vary depending upon the complexity of the patient/family needs and the time demands of assessment and group involvement. The trainee will lead 1-2 presentations in the Healthy Lifestyles psycho-educational group over the course of the rotation. Involvement in at least one team in-service presentation over the course of the rotation is expected. Opportunities also exist for involvement in co-treatment with other disciplines and for development of programming. At times, opportunities are also available for involvement in supervision of intern trainees.
The trainee will learn to function at an increasingly independent level with regards to provision of consultation to other disciplines, coordination of interdisciplinary interventions, and education of rehabilitation staff. Various components of a holistic treatment model will be utilized for case conceptualization, including the focus on the adjustment process and compensatory management of TBI-related cognitive deficits. Pertinent readings on holistic cognitive rehabilitation will be assigned to further develop the postdoctoral trainee's knowledge regarding neuropsychological and psychological issues associated with the specific patient population served. Participation in monthly journal club is also expected.
By the end of rotation the neuropsychology postdoctoral trainee will have:
1. Obtained advanced knowledge of common cognitive, behavioral, emotional, and psychosocial issues related to brain injury and polytrauma, with an increased appreciation of common behavioral manifestations of brain injury symptoms.
2. Demonstrated sound clinical rationale for assessment methods and intervention techniques in postacute brain injury rehabilitation. The trainee will have developed clinical intervention skills specific to the patient population and will have provided interventions with increased independence.
3. Developed familiarity with the multiple roles of a neuropsychologist in a rehabilitation setting.
4. Demonstrated a journeyman's ability to produce integrative written reports of neuropsychological and psychological test findings, with recommendations. The trainee will have achieved high-level assessment skills, including test selection, administration, and integration of information from patient report, collateral sources, and the medical record.
5. Demonstrated a journeyman's ability to share findings and recommendations with relevant stakeholders, including patients, family members, and treatment team members.
6. Demonstrated advanced ability in providing consultation to interdisciplinary treatment team members regarding the implications and/or management of cognitive, behavioral, or emotional status of patient.
USF NEUROPSYCHOLOGY ROTATION / EPILEPSY & FORENSICS
Supervisor: Michael Schoenberg, Ph.D., ABPP-CN
This rotation will involve working closely with attending neuropsychologists completing both outpatient and inpatient neuropsychological assessments with children and adults at either the downtown Tampa outpatient center (STC building) or at USF Affiliated Hospital, including Tampa General Hospital and FL Hospital-Tampa. Fellows will work with a broad number of neuropsychological and psychological measures. Focused experiences are provided in the neuropsychology of epilepsy, bedside neurobehavioral assessment on an inpatient rehab and neurological care unit as well as forensic neuropsychology.
Epilepsy/Neurosurgical Neuropsychology: Experiences in the neurosurgical neuropsychology focus on epilepsy surgery as well as surgical evaluation for DBS and normal pressure hydrocephalus. Fellows will be exposed to outpatient neuropsychological evaluations, intracarotid methahexital (Wada's) testing, and assessments completed during long-term video monitoring on an inpatient consult service. Additional experiences, including observing aspects of neurological surgery including resection and stereotaxic surgical procedures as well as electrocorticography (ECoG) can be negotiated. Fellows will be provided with hands on training in conducting Wada's testing with attending neuropsychologist as well as neurology and interventional radiology faculty. Fellows will be expected to attend and participate in weekly Epilepsy case conferences. Fellows will review neuropsychology, neurology, and neurosurgical literature in epilepsy to provide a framework for consulting with neurology and neurosurgery faculty on providing input to guiding surgical decision making process. Opportunities for research in the neuropsychology of epilepsy and/or pseudo nonepileptic seizures/attacks is also available to motivated fellows. Goals of the rotation include continued development of assessment skills, diagnosis, and recommendations. Functional neuroanatomy is discussed in depth. Training will emphasize gaining competence to identify neuropsychological features that, when combined with neurological and/or radiological data, have implications for predicting surgical outcome, and consulting in multidisciplinary treatment teams to provide input for neuropsychological indications and contra-indications for surgical treatment. Evidence-based neuropsychology practice is emphasized. Fellows will also participate in didactic neuropsychology programmatic activities within the USF Health, Dept. of Neurosurgery and Brain Repair as well.
Forensic Neuropsychology: Experiences in forensic neuropsychology practice will include exposure to civil case neuropsychology services. Cases will include personal injury, independent neuropsychological (medical) evaluations (IME), worker's compensation cases, and long-term disability cases. Fellows will obtain experience in civil aspects of forensic neuropsychology practice (allowed by parties involved), including record review, neuropsychological assessment, interviewing skills, and developing integrative reports to answer referral questions. Additional experiences, including observing depositions and court testimony of neuropsychology attending may also be possible. Fellows will review relevant literature for particular cases to provide input to guiding the assessment and interpretation process. Opportunities for research are available to motivated fellows. Goals of the rotation include continued development of assessment skills, diagnosis, and means to practice neuropsychology in a medicolegal arena. Evidenced-based neuropsychology research and practice is emphasized. Fellows will also participate in didactic experiences as detailed above for the epilepsy neuropsychology service.
Training expectations:
1. Perform a minimum of 4-8 evaluations each month in either epilepsy and/or forensic neuropsychology. Forensic neuropsychology caseloads vary as does extent fellows may be allowed to participate depending upon agreement from parties involved; however, every effort will be made to assure Fellow’s involvement in at least 1 forensic case each rotation. Fellows may be involved in testing patients/claimants, scoring data, and assisting in conceptualization and decision making.
2. Review medical/legal records and integrate into report.
3. Write/complete full reports within 1 week of the completed assessment.
4. Participate in weekly division meetings.
5. Participate in bi-monthly readings and didactics focused on these specific populations.
6. Participate in weekly Epilepsy case conference meetings
7. Participate in weekly (or more) scheduled supervision.
8. Attend Neurosurgery Grand Rounds, Neurology Grand Rounds and Radiology Grand Rounds as may be possible.
Training objectives:
By the end of the rotation the post-doctoral trainees will be able to
1. State the rationale underlying the selection of various neuropsychological tests and other assessment methods for use with individuals in specific populations.
2. Perform neuropsychological evaluations utilizing standardized instruments in a flexible-battery, clinically-guided approach.
3. Perform the neuropsychological or cognitive portion of the Intracarotid methahexital (Wada’s) tests independently.
4. Produce a written, integrated neuropsychological report that provides diagnostic and interpretive summary to address referral question.
5. Identify and describe common neuropsychological and psychological syndromes (e.g., TBI, poor effort/malingering, PTSD) or clinical problems specific to these populations.
6. Cite the major literature on common cognitive, behavioral, emotional, personality, and psychosocial issues related to these populations.
7. Demonstrate improved differential diagnostic skills.
8. Demonstrate ability to consult with neurologists and neurological surgeons on pre-surgical planning for patients with medication refractory epilepsy using evidence-based neuropsychology.
SPINAL CORD INJURY/DISORDERS REHABILITATION ROTATION
Supervisory Psychologist: Michael Pramuka, Ph.D., CRC
This rotation occurs within the context of the Spinal Cord Injury/Disorders (SCI/D) Service. The SCI/D Service provides clinical care to individuals who have sustained spinal cord injuries or who suffer from other causes of spinal cord dysfunction, such as multiple sclerosis or spinal stenosis. The service is located in a newly constructed wing dedicated to the care of individuals with SCI/D. The inpatient component is comprised of 100 beds, including 10 beds for individuals weaning off ventilators and 30 long-term care beds (10 of which are for individuals dependent on ventilators). The SCI/D Inpatient Rehabilitation Program is CARF-accredited. Annually, it provides acute and sustaining care to more than 500 individuals through a multidisciplinary team model of health care delivery. Patient characteristics vary considerably from the older WWII and Korean War veteran to young active duty individuals injured in the Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn.
SCI/D neuropsychologists and residents function as members of the multidisciplinary teams and provide a full range of psychological rehabilitation services. The resident may work with veterans and active-duty individuals through both the inpatient and outpatient components of the SCI/D Service but the primary experience will be with the inpatient Acute Rehabilitation Team. The SCI/D neuropsychologist helps to identify and conceptualize the nature of cognitive, personality, and psychosocial issues that may affect the individual's progress in rehabilitation, adjustment to SCI/D, and quality of life. Common findings include cognitive impairment from concomitant head injury, hypoxia, or premorbid neurological disorder; mood and adjustment disorders; substance abuse/dependence. Personality disorders/characteristics, grief and loss, and changes in primary relationships are common areas of focus. Psychotherapeutic interventions may include relatively brief series of problem-focused interactions, longer-term treatment of adjustment to disability, education/interventions with treatment staff, and couples or family therapy. Residents will be involved in co-facilitating supportive group therapy and/or a psychoeducational group. Residents may conduct cognitive rehabilitation under the aegis of our Speech and Language Pathology Service. Close involvement and consultation with the treatment team, including attendance at weekly team meetings and team rounds, is expected.
Opportunities for involvement in outpatient referrals are diverse. The J. A. Haley SCI/D program is part of the VA Multiple Sclerosis Centers of Excellence and actively treats individuals with MS. In addition, the SCI/D program provides treatment to a large cohort of individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The resident will conduct neuropsychological evaluations for those individuals requiring baseline evaluations and evaluations following MS exacerbations. The resident will provide feedback and education regarding neuropsychological status and the behavioral expression of those deficits. Outpatient evaluations can also include participation in conducting the psychosocial needs assessment, which is part of the Comprehensive Annual Medical Examination.
A clinically-oriented, flexible/adaptive approach is used for conducting cognitive and psychological evaluations. Evaluations involve chart review for relevant history, clinical interview, collateral interview (when available), administration and scoring of appropriate tests, interpretation of test performance, and the production of a written report of the findings and recommendations. Evaluation instruments are selected based on clinical questions and on consideration of the individual's current behavioral repertoire. Regardless of the specific instruments selected, evaluations typically include assessment of intellectual ability, learning and memory abilities, visuospatial abilities, reasoning/concept formation ability, attentional control and other executive functions, and emotional state and personality/psychopathology.
Participation in the weekly meeting of the SCI/D psychologists and the monthly SCI/D Psychology journal club is also expected. Experience in supervision of psychology interns who are completing the SCI/D internship rotation is possible.
By the end of the rotation, the resident will demonstrate:
1. A sound knowledge of the etiology and physical sequelae of SCI/D.
2. An advanced knowledge of the cognitive and psychosocial sequelae of SCI/D.
3. Sound clinical rationale for test selection and administration of cognitive and psychological assessment instruments with this specialized population.
4. A journeyman's ability to produce integrative written reports of psychological test findings with recommendations for treatment and rehabilitation.
5. Advanced ability in providing psychotherapeutic interventions that address the broad range of psychological and psychosocial sequelae of SCI/D.
6. The interpersonal skills necessary for consultative and collaborative endeavors in both clinical and research settings.
Requirements for Completion
The postdoctoral training program requires two years of full-time training to be completed in no less than 24 months. Fellows must complete 4000 hours of supervised on-duty time during the postdoctoral years. Residents will average at least 14 hours/week in direct patient contact (i.e., “face-to-face” contact with patients or families for any type of group or individual therapy, psychological testing, assessment activities or patient education). This experience meets Florida psychology licensing requirements (i.e., at least 900 hours of activities related to direct client contact).
To successfully complete the fellowship, fellows are expected to demonstrate an appropriate level of professional psychological skills and competencies in the core areas (all competency areas rated at High Intermediate/Occasional supervision needed or Advanced Skills) and successfully complete the research requirement. However, it is expected that by the end of the 2-year program the majority of competency areas will be rated at level of competence of "Advanced/Skills comparable to autonomous practice at the licensure level".
EVALUATION PROCEDURES
Competency-Based Evaluation System: It is our intention that evaluation of postdoctoral resident’s progress be open, fair, and part of the learning process. Residents are involved in all phases of evaluation from the initial concurrence with training goals through the final evaluation. Ongoing feedback during supervisory sessions is presumed and residents should request clarification from supervisors if there is uncertainty about progress.
To assist in our postdoctoral training and evaluation process, and to document the attainment of basic core competencies and outcomes, competency evaluations are conducted for the resident’s clinical activities. The program utilizes a behaviorally-based model of evaluation with ratings based on the amount of supervision required for the resident to perform the task competently. In general, this rating scale (described below) is intended to reflect the developmental progression toward becoming an independent psychologist. Expectations for Postdoctoral Residents are as follows:
_____ Goal for post-doctoral evaluations done prior to 12 months
All competency areas will be rated at a level of 6 (as described below):
Proficiency is emerging even in non-routine cases. Supervisor oversees trainee’s activities, but trainee manages day-to-day activities with emerging autonomy. Supervision resembles peer consultation with in-depth supervision necessary only in unusually complex situations.
_____ Goal for post-doctoral evaluations done after 12 months
The majority of competency areas will be rated at level of competence of at least a 7 (described below):
Proficiency in advanced skills or area of specialty interest is developing. Competency in all global competency areas at full VA psychology staff privilege level is achieved; however, as an unlicensed trainee, supervision is required while in training status. Supervisor remains responsible for trainee’s activities, but trainee demonstrates autonomy in all routine day-to-day activities. In-depth supervision is required infrequently and occasional discussion of advanced topics.
At the end of each rotation, in the judgment of his/her supervisor and the Postdoctoral Training Subcommittee, the resident is evaluated in each of the core competency areas and their components, with an expectation of satisfactorily progressing. The core competency areas are: 1.) psychological assessment, 2.) interventions, 3.) supervision/teaching, 4.) research and scholarly inquiry, 5.) administration and professional development, and 6.) ethics, law, and diversity issues. To successfully complete the residency, residents are expected to demonstrate an appropriate level of professional psychological skills and competencies in the core areas as described above. Competency based ratings are as follows:
|NA |Not applicable for this training experience / Not assessed during training experience |
| | |
|9 |Advanced proficiency is demonstrated with skills comparable to autonomous practice in a specialized field. This is a rare rating |
| |that reflects collegial level of autonomy and proficiency at the expert level despite maintenance of required trainee role and |
| |expectations. |
| | |
|8 |Proficiency even in non-routine cases is routinely demonstrated at an early-career specialist level. While potentially licensed, |
| |supervision is maintained due to trainee status. Supervision devoted primarily to advanced, expert topics and trainee maintains |
| |autonomy in all but exceptional circumstances. Competency in all global competency areas at full VA psychology staff privilege |
| |level is maintained. |
| | |
|7 |Proficiency in advanced skills or area of specialty interest is developing. Competency in all global competency areas at full VA |
| |psychology staff privilege level is achieved; however, as an unlicensed trainee, supervision is required while in training status. |
| |Supervisor remains responsible for trainee’s activities, but trainee demonstrates autonomy in all routine day-to-day activities. |
| |In-depth supervision is required infrequently and occasional discussion of advanced topics. |
| | |
|6 |Proficiency is emerging even in non-routine cases. Supervisor oversees trainee’s activities, but trainee manages day-to-day |
| |activities with emerging autonomy. Supervision resembles peer consultation with in-depth supervision necessary only in unusually |
| |complex situations. |
| | |
|5 |Competency attained in all but non-routine cases, though supervisor provides overall management of trainee’s activities. Trainee |
| |demonstrates increasing ease and integration of advanced skills and proficiency is emerging in routine cases or area of specialty |
| |interest. Supervision/consultation may be necessary in non-routine situations, though depth of supervision varies as clinical needs|
| |warrant. While the trainee may not possess the specific skill set required for independent practice in a specific rotation setting,|
| |this level represents the achievement of minimal competency for independent general psychological practice. |
| | |
|4 |Basic skills are implemented with ease and more complex skills are emerging, particularly in a specialty area of interest. Trainee|
| |demonstrates emerging competency in routine cases. Routine supervision of most activities, though depth of supervision varies as |
| |clinical needs warrant. |
| | |
|3 |Basic skills have been acquired and trainee implements them in with increasing ease, but continues to require routine supervision |
| |of each activity. |
| | |
|2 |Routine, and occasionally intensive, supervision is needed, particularly in unfamiliar training areas. Skills are becoming more |
| |familiar, but trainee needs assistance in implementing them. |
| | |
|1 |Most skills are new and trainee needs very intensive and close supervision. Requires remediation plan if trainee is an intern or |
| |post-doc. |
Residents receive a formal, written evaluation from their rotation supervisor at the end of each rotation, as well as an intermediary, written evaluation at the mid-point of each rotation. The rotation mid-point evaluations are intended to be a progress report for residents to ensure they are aware of their supervisor’s perceptions and to help them focus on specific goals and areas of work for the second part of the rotation. Final rotation evaluations will also provide specific feedback and serve to help the resident develop as a professional. Residents also provide a written evaluation of each rotation and supervisor upon completion of the rotation. This and the supervisor’s evaluation of the resident are discussed by the resident and supervisor to facilitate mutual understanding and growth.
Upon completion of each rotation, copies of the resident’s and the supervisor’s final rotation evaluations are kept in the resident’s training file.
Facility and Training Resources
Residents have individual office space as well as individual workstations with computers. Residents also have access to other offices for therapy and evaluations. The offices are all equipped with networked computers that allow access to the computerized medical record system, productivity software, internet/intranet, and email. The psychology programs are integrated into the Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Service, and, in addition to the training program administration, the staff and trainees have some additional clerical and administrative support from the service.
The libraries of the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital provide a wide range of evidence-based resources for Psychology staff, interns, and trainees. Hospital librarians provide:
• Professional and prompt assistance, including expert research and bibliographic searching, reference assistance, instruction on database use, interlibrary loans, etc.
• More than 50 databases, including 9 directed specifically to the needs of mental health professionals (, PILOTS, Health & Psychosocial Instruments, PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, PsycBOOKS, PsycTESTS, Mental Measurements Yearbook, Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection).
• Resources are IP-authenticated for immediate access on any VA networked computer. Remote access is provided using Athens authentication.
• The Medical Library has 3,400 print books and more than 20,000 ebooks. The Library also has unique collections of ebooks on PTSD and TBI.
• The Medical Library’s collection includes more than 7,000 print and electronic journals, including 13 ‘clinical psychology’ and 10 ‘mental health’ titles.
• The Patient Library provides access to more than 7,000 consumer health education books and DVDs to assist clinicians in providing patient education and meeting informed consent guidelines. A small consumer health library, the PERC, is located at the Primary Care Annex (13515 Lake Terrace Lane, Tampa).
• The Medical Library is open 24/7 for staff and trainees. It has 12 computers, and is conveniently located near the cafeteria and auditorium of the main hospital.
The main library at the University of South Florida houses over 1,500,000 volumes including 4,900 journal subscriptions. In addition, the USF College of Medicine library, which is directly across the street from the VA medical center, maintains over 88,000 books including over 1,400 journal subscriptions. Literature searches and complete bibliographies with abstracts are available upon request.
Commonly used and essential tests and related materials are maintained by the rotation supervisors and are available to the resident for assessment of the veteran. In addition, the residents maintain a smaller library of assessment instruments for their own use. In addition, many computerized assessments are available through the computerized medical record’s Mental Health Assistant (e.g., MMPI2, MMPI2-RF, PAI, BDI2, BAI, etc.).
Administrative Policies and Procedures
ANNUAL AND SICK LEAVE
Accumulated according to standard VA policy: 4 hours of sick leave and 4 hours of vacation leave earned every two-week pay period.
DUE PROCESS: GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES
Although rare, differences of opinion do sometimes arise between residents and a supervisor or other staff member. If this occurs, the following procedures will be followed:
(1) The trainee should request a meeting with the supervisor or staff member to attempt to work out the problem/disagreement. The supervisor will set a meeting within 2 working days of the request. It is expected that the majority of problems can be resolved at this level. However, if that fails:
(2) The trainee should request to meet with the Director, Psychology Training Programs and the Assistant Training Director of the program. A meeting will be arranged within 2 working days to work out the difficulty. In cases involving disagreement with the Assistant Training Director, the trainee may address their case directly to the Director, Psychology Training Programs. In cases involving disagreement with the Director, Psychology Training Programs, the trainee may address their case directly to the Psychology Service Chief for appropriate action. In unusual and confidential instances, the trainee may address their case directly to the Psychology Service Chief. If that fails:
(3) The Training Director, Assistant Training Director, trainee, and supervisor or staff member meet within 2 working days of Step 2. If a consensual solution is not possible:
(4) The trainee, Psychology Service Chief, Training Director, and the trainee's supervisor or staff member meet to resolve the problem within 5 working days of Step 3. If that fails:
(5) The issue will be brought before the Affiliations Subcommittee of the Continuing and Hospital Education Committee for resolution. This is the final step of the appeal process.
UNSATISFACTORY OR DELAYED PROGRESS
Most issues of clinical or professional concern are relatively minor and can be addressed in open and ongoing assessment of skills by the resident and immediate supervisor. However, the following procedures are designed to advise and assist residents performing below the program's expected level of competence when ongoing supervisory input has failed to rectify the issue:
1. If, in the course of routine evaluation, specific remedial actions are identified, the resident will be informed by the Training Director as to the Training Committee's recommendations for revised training goals and specific requirements for remediation. Monitoring of subsequent progress will occur through the Rotation Supervisor, any Psychotherapy Supervisor(s), and Training Director.
2. If the resident's performance in the problem area has improved to the level that the training goals for the rotation in which the problem was identified are substantially met, the resident will proceed to subsequent rotation(s) as planned and routine monitoring of new rotation goals and/or continued general training goals will be done by the new Rotation Supervisor and the Training Director. However, if satisfactory progress on the problem is not made during the rotation in which the problem was identified, the Training Committee will meet again to discuss additional plans for remediation, which may include repeating the current rotation.
3. If, at any time, the resident disagrees with the evaluation of progress, an appeal may be made to the Chief of Psychology Service.
4. If, at the end of the subsequent rotation, the resident's performance deficiencies have not improved substantially, the Training Committee may enact one or more of the following:
a. If the resident has demonstrated some improvement but at a rate that precludes satisfactory improvement before the end of the normal fellowship, the resident will be notified and the resident will be placed on probationary status. The resident's progress will be closely monitored by the Training Committee and Training Director. Further review and recommendations will be made at mid-rotation and end-of-rotation evaluations, including consideration of options b and c as necessary.
b. If correction of the problem is possible with additional months of training beyond the normal fellowship timeframe or by adding additional diverse training experiences, such may be recommended. This decision will be conveyed to the resident.
c. If the problem is severe enough that it cannot be remediated in a timely manner, termination may result. This decision will be conveyed to the resident prior to formal action.
COLLECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
We collect no personal information from you when you visit our website. If you are accepted as a resident, some demographic descriptive information is collected and sent in a de-identified aggregate manner to the American Psychological Association as part of our annual reports for accreditation.
Training Staff
All members of the Psychology training staff have clinical responsibilities. In addition, they all serve in a variety of other professional roles: as faculty members in the College of Medicine and other university departments, as office holders in professional organizations, in administrative roles within the hospital, and as researchers. In the following pages, we provide a brief description of potential primary and/or secondary supervisors. They are listed alphabetically with information regarding their doctoral training program, primary clinical responsibility, faculty appointments, and clinical interests.
Heather G. Belanger – Ph.D., ABPP-CN, University of South Florida, 2001
Assistant Training Director, Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Program
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, USF
Clinical Interests: Assessment, mild TBI, TBI interventions
Jennifer J. Duchnick - Ph.D., ABPP-RP, Auburn University, 2001
Assistant Training Director, Rehabilitation Psychology Postdoctoral Program
Rehabilitation Neuropsychologist, Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Program
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, Rehabilitation Psychology, TBI, SCI, Clinical Intervention, Adjustment to Injury, Trauma
Ann Cradit, Ph.D. – Michigan State University, Counseling Psychology, 1996
Rehabilitation Psychologist, Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Program
Clinical Interests: Acquired Brain Injury, Cognitive Rehabilitation, Family adjustment, Program Development and Outcomes.
Joel E. Kamper – Ph.D., Loma Linda University, 2013
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Memory Disorder/General Neuropsychology Clinics
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, TBI, Dementias, Instrument Development
Tracy S. Kretzmer - Ph.D., University at Alabama, Birmingham 2006
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Program
Assistant Professor, USF Department of Psychology
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, TBI, Mood-related Cognitive Dysfunction, Stroke
Tamara McKenzie-Hartman– Psy.D., Argosy University, Washington DC, 2012
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Defense & Veteran’s Brain Injury Center,
Post-Deployment Rehabilitation and Evaluation Program (PREP)
TBI Clinic at MacDill AFB
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, TBI, Rehabilitation
Risa Nakase-Richardson, Ph.D. West Virginia University, 1999
Clinical Neuropsychologist Polytrauma Rehabilitation Program
Associate Professor, USF Department of Medicine, Pulmonary & Sleep Medicine Division
Clinical Interests: Acquired Brain Injury, Emerging Consciousness, Rehabilitation, Sleep
Michael Pramuka, PhD., CRC, University of Pittsburgh 1998
Clinical Neuropsychologist and Rehabilitation Psychologist, JAHVH SCI/D Center
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Rehabilitation Science, University of Pittsburgh
Clinical Interests: TBI, MS, ALS, Cognitive Rehabilitation, Functional Assessment
Mike R. Schoenberg – Ph.D., ABPP-CN, Wichita State University, 2001
Chief, Neuropsychology Division, USF Dept of Neurosurgery
Associate Professor, Depts. of Psychiatry and Neurosciences, Neurology, and Neurosurgery, USF
Clinical Interests: Epilepsy, TBI, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Neuroanatomic Organization of Language and Memory, Forensic Assessment.
Marc A. Silva – Ph.D., Marquette University, 2011
Neuropsychologist, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Program
Courtesy Faculty, University of South Florida, Department of Psychology
Clinical Interests: Assessment, Brain Injury
Eric P. Spiegel – Ph.D., Fuller Graduate School of Psychology, 2007
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Memory Disorders Clinic
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, Dementia, Movement Disorders
Holly Villareal Steele - Ph.D. University of South Florida, Tampa 1990
Clinical Psychologist, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Program
Adjunct Professor & Supervisor, USF Department of Psychology
Clinical Interests: Behavioral Interventions, Assessment and Enhancement of Functional Abilities, Self-Injurious Behavior
Christina Thors - Ph.D., Fordham University, 2000
Clinical Psychologist, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Program
Clinical Interests: Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, PTSD, Post deployment Adjustment
Rodney D. Vanderploeg - Ph.D., ABBP-CN, Fuller Graduate School of Psychology, 1982
Psychology Supervisory Program Leader: Section of Brain Injury Rehabilitation and Neuropsychology.
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Polytrauma/Traumatic Brain Injury Program.
Clinical Professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, USF
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, Traumatic Brain Injury, Cognitive Rehabilitation, Instrument Development
Jessica L. Vassallo – Ph.D., ABBP-CN, Fairleigh Dickinson University, 2004
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Memory Disorder/General Neuropsychology Clinics
Clinical Interests: Neuropsychology, Dementia, Epilepsy, Neuropsychological Interventions
Trainees
Past Residents are listed below by year of beginning the program, graduate school, type of graduate program, degree earned, and prior internship site.
Resident Graduate University Area of Prof Degree Internship Site
2006 Univ. of Alabama Clinical Ph.D. Birmingham VA
2007 Fuller Graduate School Clinical Ph.D. Tampa VA
2007 Louisiana Tech Clinical Ph.D. VA Gulf Coast Care
2008 Univ. of Alabama Clinical Ph.D. Boston Consortium
2009 San Diego State Univ Clinical Ph.D. Univ of Florida
2009 Washington State Univ Clinical Ph.D. Palo Alto VA
2010 Univ of Florida Clinical Ph.D. Tampa VA
2011 Marquette University Counseling Ph.D. Tampa VA
2011 Florida Institute of Technology Clinical Psy.D. Brooke Army Medical
2012 Univ of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Counseling Ph.D. Tampa VA
2013 Wayne State University Clinical Ph.D. Univ of Alabama
2013 Loma Linda University Clinical Ph.D. Detroit VA
2014 George Washington University Clinical Ph.D. Tampa VA
2014 California School of Prof Psychology Clinical Ph.D. Gainesville VA
2015 Roosevelt University Clinical Psy.D. Tampa VA
2015 Univ. of Houston Clinical Ph.D. Univ. AL - Biringham
2016 Roosevelt University Clinical Psy.D. Tampa VA
2016 Wayne State University Clinical Ph.D. Tampa VA
Recent Staff and Trainee Research Publications (2010 to present)
Intern or Postdoc Names are bolded
PUBLICATIONS
Ajao, D.O., Pop, V., Kamper, J.E., Adami, A., Rudobeck, E., Huang, L., Vlkolinsky, R., Hartman, R.E., Ashwal, S., Obenaus, A., & Badaut, J. (2012). Traumatic brain injury in young rats leads to progressive behavioral deficits coincident with altered tissue properties in adulthood. Journal of Neurotrauma, 29(11), 2060-74.
Arciniegas, D.B., Zasler, N.D., Vanderploeg, R.D., & Jaffee, M.S. (Editors). (2013). Clinical Manual for the Management of Traumatic Brain Injury. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc.
Armistead-Jehle, P., Cooper, D.B., Vanderploeg, R.D. (in press). The role of performance validity tests in the assessment of cognitive functioning after military concussion: A replication and extension. Applied Neuropsychology. 2015 Nov 16. [Epub ahead of print].
Belanger, H.G., Barwick, F.H., Kip, K.E. Kretzmer, T. & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2013). Postconcussive symptom complaints and potentially malleable positive predictors. Clinical Neuropsychologist, 27(3): 343-55.
Belanger, H.G., Barwick, F., Silva, M.A., Kretzmer, T., Kip, K.E., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2015). Web-based psychoeducational intervention for postconcussion symptoms: A randomized trial. Military Medicine, 180, 192-200.
Belanger, H.G., Donnell, A.J., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2014). Special Issues with Mild TBI in Veterans and Active Duty Service Members. (pp. 389 - 412). In Sherer, M. & Sander, A. (Eds.), Handbook on the Neuropsychology of Traumatic Brain Injury. New York: Springer Press.
Belanger, H.G., Kretzmer, T., Vanderploeg, R.D., French, L.M. (2010). Symptom complaints following combat-related TBI: Relationship to TBI Severity and PTSD. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 16(1): 194-9.
Belanger, H.G., Lange, R.T., Bailie, J., Iverson, G.L., Arrieux, J.P., Ivins, B., Cole, W.R. (in press). Interpreting change on the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory and the PTSD Checklist in military personnel. The Clinical Neuropsychologist.
Belanger, H.G., Powell-Cope, G., Spehar, A.M., McCranie, M., Klanchar, S.A., Yoash-Gantz, R., Kosasih, J.B., & Scholten, J. (in press). The Veterans Health Affairs’ traumatic brain injury clinical reminder screen and evaluation – Practice patterns. Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development.
Belanger, H.G., Proctor-Weber, Z., Kretzmer, T., Kim, M., French, L.M., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2011). Symptom Complaints following Reports of Blast versus Non-Blast Mild TBI: Does Mechanism of Injury Matter? The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 25, 702-715.
Belanger, H.G., Silva, M.A., Donnell, A., McKenzie-Hartman, T., Lamberty, G.J. & Vanderploeg, R.D. (in press). Utility of the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI) as an outcome measure: A VA TBI Model System study. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 2015 Dec 24. [Epub ahead of print].
Belanger, H.G., Spiegel, E., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2010). Neuropsychological performance following a history of multiple self-reported concussions: A meta-analysis. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 16(2): 262-7.
Belanger, H.G., Tate, D., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (in press). Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. (pp. xxx-xxx). In Morgan, J.E. & Ricker, J.H. (Eds). Textbook of Clinical Neuropsychology, 2nd Edition. New York: Taylor & Frances.
Belanger, H.G., Vanderploeg, R.D., & McAllister, T. (2016). Subconcussive blows to the head: A formative review of short-term clinical outcomes. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 31(3):159-66.
Belanger, H.G., Vanderploeg, R.D., & Sayer, N. (2016). Screening for remote history of mild TBI in VHA: A critical literature review. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 31(3):204-14.
Belanger, H.G., Vanderploeg, R.D., Silva, M.A., Cimino, C.R., Roper, B.L., Bodin, D. (2013). Postdoctoral recruitment in neuropsychology: A review and call for interorganizational action. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 27, 159-175.
Belanger, H.G., Vanderploeg, R.D., Soble, J.R., Richardson, M. & Groer, S. (2012). Validity of the Veterans Health Administration’s TBI Screen. Archives of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, 93(7), 1234-9.
Brenner, L.A., Vanderploeg, R.D., & Terrio, H. (in press). Assessment and Diagnosis of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Other Polytrauma Conditions: Burden of Adversity Hypothesis. (pp. xxx-xxx). In Giordano, J. (Ed.). Brain Injury and Stroke: Spectrum Effects and Implications. Arlington, VA: Potomac Institute Press.
Caplan, L.J., Ivins, B., Poole, J., Vanderploeg, R.D., Jaffee, M.S., Schwab, K. (2010). The Structure of Postconcussive Symptoms in Three U.S. Military Samples. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 25(6), 447–458.
Castro A, Anderson WM, Nakase-Richardson R. (in press). Actigraphy. In C. Kushida’s Encyclopedia of Sleep, 1st edition, Elsevier (Atlanta).
Cernich, A.N., Belanger, H.G., Pramuka, M. & Brim, W.S. (2016). Rehabilitation in military and veteran populations: The impact of military culture. (Chapter 9, pp. 231-252). In Uomoto J.M. (Ed). Multicultural Neurorehabilitation: Clinical Principles for Rehabilitation Professionals. New York: Springer.
Cooper, D.B., Bowles, A.O., Kennedy, J.E., Curtiss, G., French, L.M., Tate, D.F. Vanderploeg, R.D. (in press). Cognitive rehabilitation for military service members with mild traumatic brain injury: A randomized clinical trial. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation.
Cooper, D.B., Mercado-Couch, J.M., Critchfield, E., Kennedy, J., Vanderploeg, R.D., DeVillibis, C., & Gaylord, K.M. (2010). Factors influencing cognitive functioning following mild traumatic brain injury in OIF/OEF burn patients. Neurorehabilitation, 26, 233-238.
Cooper, D.B., Vanderploeg, R.D., Armistead-Jehle, P., Lewis, J.D., & Bowles, A.O. (2014). Factors associated with neurocognitive performance in OEF/OIF service members with post-concussive complaints in post-deployment clinical settings. Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development, 51, 1023 – 1034. 10.1682/JRRD.2013.05.0104
Dahdah, M.N., Barnes, S., Buros, A., Dubiel, R., Dunklin, C., Callender, L., Harper, C., Wilson, A., Diaz-Arrastia, R., Bergquist, T., Sherer, M., Whiteneck, G., Pretz, C., Vanderploeg, R.D., Shafi, S. (in press). Variations in inpatient rehabilitation functional outcomes across centers in the Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems (TBIMS) study and the influence of demographics and injury severity on patient outcomes. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2016 May 28. [Epub ahead of print]
Daniels, B. D., Nakase-Richardson, R., Silva, M. A., Critchfield, E., Midkiff, M., Kretzmer, T., … McGarity, S. (2012, August). Relationship between sleep, posttraumatic amnesia (PTA), and agitation in acute traumatic brain injury (TBI). Oral presentation at the 120th annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Orlando, FL.
D’illahunt-Aspillaga C, Nakase-Richardson R, Hart T, Powell-Cope G, Dreer LE, Eapen BC, Barnett SD, Mellick DA, Haskin A, Silva MA. (in press). Predictors of employment outcomes in Veterans with traumatic brain injury: A VA TBI model system study. Journal of Head Trauma and Rehabilitation.
Donnell, A.J., Belanger, H.G., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2011). Implications of Psychometric Measurement for Neuropsychological Interpretation. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 25, 1097-1118.
Donnell, A. J., Kim, M. S., Silva, M. A., & Vanderploeg, R. D. (2012). Incidence of postconcussive symptoms in psychiatric diagnostic groups, mild traumatic brain injury, and comorbid conditions. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 26, 1092-1101.
Duchnick, J. , Ropacki, S., Yutsis, M., Petska, K., & Pawlowski, C. (2015). Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Programs: Comprehensive Rehabilitation for Community Integration after Brain Injury. Psychological Services, 12(3).
Eastvold, A.D., Belanger, H.G. & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2012). Does a third party observer affect neuropsychological test performance? It depends. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 26(3): 520-541.
Eastvold, A.D., Walker, W.C., Curtiss, G., Schwab, K., and Vanderploeg, R.D. (2013). The differential contributions of posttraumatic amnesia duration and time since injury in prediction of functional outcomes following moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 28, 48-58.
Eichstaedt, K.E., Soble, J.R., Kamper, J.E., Bozorg, A.M., Benbadis, S.R., Vale, F.L., & Schoenberg, M.R. (2015). Sex differences in lateralization of semantic verbal fluency in temporal lobe epilepsy. Brain and Language 141, 11-15.
Farrell-Carnahan L, Barnett S, Lamberty G, Hammond F, Kretzmer TS, Franke L, Geiss M, Howe LL, Nakase-Richardson R. (2015). Insomnia and behavioral health problems in veterans one year after traumatic brain injury: A USA veterans affairs polytrauma rehabilitation center traumatic brain injury model system program study. Brain Injury, 29(12), 1400-1408.
Flanagan S, Bell K, Dams-O’Connor K, Arciniegas D, Hammond F, Fann J, Watanabe T, Nakase-Richardson R. (2015). Developing a medical surveillance for traumatic brain injury. Brain Injury Professional, 12, 8-11.
Greenwald BD, Hammond FM, Harrison-Felix C, Nakase-Richardson R, Howe LLS, Kreider S. (2015). Mortality following traumatic brain injury among individuals unable to follow commands at the time of rehabilitation admission: A NIDRR TBI model systems study. Journal of Neurotrauma 32(23), 1883-1892.
Hart T, Brenner L, Clark AN, Bogner JA, Novack TA, Chervoneva I, Nakase-Richardson R, Arango-Lasprilla JC. (2011). Major and minor depression following traumatic brain injury. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 92(8),1211-9.
Hartman, R.E., Kamper, J.E., Goyal, R., Stewart, J.M., & Longo, L.D. (2012). Motor and cognitive deficits in mice bred to have high or low blood pressure. Physiology & Behavior, 105(4), 1092-1097.
Helmick, K. and members of Consensus Conference. (2010). Cognitive rehabilitation for military personnel with mild traumatic brain injury and chronic post-concussional disorder: Results of April 2009 consensus conference. Neurorehabilitation, 26, 239-255.
Holcomb E.M., Schwartz D.J., McCarthy M., Thomas B., Barnett S.D., Nakase-Richardson R. (2016). Incidence, characterization, and predictors of sleep apnea in consecutive brain injury rehabilitation admissions. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 31(2), 82-100.
Holcomb, E.M., Towns, S., Kamper, J.E., Barnett, S., Sherer, M., Evans, C., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2016). The relationship between sleep-wake cycle disturbance and trajectory of cognitive recovery during acute TBI. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 31(2), 108-116.
Huang L., Coats J.S., Mohd-Yusof A., Yin Y., Assad S., Muellner M.J., Kamper J.E., Hartman R.E., Dulcich M., Donovan V.M., Oyoyo U., & Obenaus A. (2013) Tissue vulnerability is increased following repetitive mild traumatic brain injury in the rat. Brain Research, 1499, 109-120.
Kamper, J.E., Pop, V., Fukuda, A.M., Ajao, D., Hartman, R.E., & Badaut, J. (2013). Juvenile traumatic brain injury evolves into a chronic brain disorder: behavioral and histological changes over 6 months. Experimental Neurology, 250C, 8-19.
Kamper, J.E. & Axelrod, B.N. (2014). The perfect blend: A research and practical-based approach to forensic neuropsychology. Psychological Injury and Law, 7(1), 54-56.
Kamper, J.E., Garofano, J., Schwartz, D.J., Silva, M.A., Zeitzer, J., Modarres, M., Barnett, S.D., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2016). Concordance of actigraphy with polysomnography in traumatic brain injury neurorehabilitation admissions. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 31(2), 117-125.
King, E.G., Kretzmer, T.S., Vanderploeg, R.D., Asmussen, S.B., Clement, V.L. & Belanger, H.G. (2013). Pilot of a novel intervention for postconcussive symptoms in Active Duty, Veteran, and Civilians. Rehabilitation Psychology, 58(3), 272-9.
Kim, M. S., Silva, M. A., & Vanderploeg, R. D. (2011). Postconcussion syndrome frequencies in psychiatric diagnostic groups versus mild traumatic brain injury [Abstract]. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 25, 889. Poster presented at the 119th annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Lamberty GJ, Nakase-Richardson R, Farrell-Carnahan L, McGarity S, Bidelspach D, Harrison-Felix C, Cifu DX. (2014). Development of TBI model systems within the VA polytrauma system of care. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 29(3), E1-E7.
Lange, R.T., Brickell, T.A., Ivins, B., Vanderploeg, R.D., & French, L.M. (2013). Variable, not always persistent, postconcussion symptoms following mild TBI in U.S. military service members: A 5-year cross-sectional outcome study. Journal of Neurotrauma, 30(11), 958-969.
Lew, H.L., Hsu, P., Pogoda, T.K., Cohen, S., Amick, M.M., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2010). Impact of the “Polytrauma Clinical Triad” on Sleep Disturbance in a Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Rehabilitation Setting. American Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 89(6), 437-445.
Lekic, T., Rolland, W., Hartman, R., Kamper, J.E., Suzuki, H., Tang, J., & Zhang, J.H. (2011). Characterization of the brain injury, neurobehavioral profiles, and histopathology in a rat model of cerebellar hemorrhage. Experimental Neurology, 227(1), 96-103.
Lekic, T., Rolland, W., Manaenko, A., Krafft, P., Kamper, J.E., Suzuki, H., Hartman, R.E., Tang, J., & Zhang, J.H. (2013). Evaluation of the hematoma consequences, neurobehavioral profiles, and histopathology in a rat model of pontine hemorrhage. Journal of Neurosurgery, 118(2), 465-477.
Lekic, T., Rolland, W., Manaenko, A., Krafft, P., Kamper, J.E., Suzuki, H., Hartman, R.E., Tang, J., & Zhang, J.H. (2013). Letter to the editor: response. Journal of Neurosurgery.
McGarity S, Barnett S, Lamberty G, Kretzmer T, Powell-Cope G., Patel N., Nakase-Richardson R. (in press). A comparison of community reintegration problems among veterans and active duty service members with mild and moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation. Epub Ahead of Print, June 2016.
McNamee S, Howe L, Nakase-Richardson R, Peterson M. Treatment of disorders of consciousness in the Veterans Health Administration Polytrauma Centers. (2012). Journal of Head Trauma and Rehabilitation, 27(4):244-252.
Nakase-Richardson R. (2016). Improving the significance and direction of sleep management in TBI. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation. 31(2): 79-81.
Nakase-Richardson R. & Evans C. (2014). Behavioral Assessment of Acute Neurobehavioral Syndromes to Inform Treatment. In Sherer M, Sander AM, ed. Handbook on the Neuropsychology of Traumatic Brain Injury. New York: Springer, 157-172.
Nakase-Richardson R, McNamee S, Howe LLS, Massengale J, Peterson M, Barnett SD, Harris O, McCarthy M, Tran J, Scott S, Cifu DX. (2013). Descriptive characteristics and rehabilitation outcomes in active duty military personal and veterans with disorders of consciousness with combat and non-combat-related brain injury. Arch of Phys Med Rehabil 94(10), 1861-1869.
Nakase-Richardson R, Sherer M, Barnett SD, Yablon SA, Evans CC, Kretzmer T, Schwartz DJ, Modarres M. (2013). Prospective evaluation of the nature, course, and impact of acute sleep abnormality following TBI. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 94 (5): 875-82.
Nakase-Richardson R, Sherer M, Seel R, Hart T, Hanks R, Lasparilla-Arango JC, Yablon SA, Sander A, Barnett SD, Walker W, Hammond F. (2011). Utility of Post-traumatic Amnesia in Predicting One-Year Productivity Following Traumatic Brain Injury: Comparison of the Russell and Mississippi PTA Classification Intervals. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 82, 494-9.
Nakase-Richardson R, Sherer M, Barnett SD, Yablon SA, Evans CC, Kretzmer T, Schwartz DJ, Modarres M. (2013). Prospective evaluation of the nature, course, and impact of acute sleep abnormality following TBI. Arch of Phys Med Rehabil 94(5), 875-882.
Nakase-Richardson R, Tran J, Cifu DX, Barnett SD, Horn LJ, Greenwald BD, Brunner RC, Whyte J, Hammond FM, Yablon SA, Giacino JT. (2013). Do rehospitalization rates differ among injury severity levels in the NIDRR TBI model systems program? Arch Phys Med Rehabi. 94(10), 1884-1890.
Nakase-Richardson R, & Whyte, J. (2015). International collaboration to advance the science and care for those with severe brain injury and disorder of consciousness. International Neurotrauma Letter. international-collaboration-to-advance-the-science-and-care-for-those-with-severe-brain-injury-doc/.
Nakase-Richardson R, Whyte J, Giacino JT, Pavawalla S, Barnett ST, Yablon SA, Sherer M, Kalmar K, Hammond F, Greenwald B, Horn LJ, Seel RT, McCarthy M, Tran J, Walker W. (2012) Longitudinal outcome of patients with disordered consciousness in the NIDRR TBI Model Systems Programs. Journal of Neurotrauma, 29(1):59-65.
Nelson, N.W., Lamberty, G.J., Sim, A.H., Doane, B.M., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2012). Traumatic Brain Injury in Veterans. (pp. 101 – 144). In Bush, S.S. (Ed.), Neuropsychological Practice with Veterans. New York: Springer-Verlag.
Olson-Madden, J.H., Brenner, L.A., Matarazzo, B.B., Signoracci, G.M., & Expert Consensus Collaborators (2013). Identification and treatment of TBI and co-occurring psychiatric symptoms among OEF/OIF/OND veterans seeking mental health services within the state of Colorado: Establishing consensus for best practices. Community Mental Health, Journal. 49(2): 220-9.
Pavawalla, S.P., Salazar, R., Cimino, C., Belanger, H.G., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2013). An Exploration of Diagnosis Threat and Group Identification Following Concussion Injury. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 19(3): 305-313.
Pop, V., Sorensen, D., Kamper, J.E., Ajao, D., Murphy, P., Head, E., Hartman, R.E., & Badaut, J. (2013). Early brain injury alters the blood-brain barrier phenotype in parallel with beta-amyloid and cognitive changes in adulthood. Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism, 33(2), 205-214.
Sander AM, Maestas KL, Sherer M, Malec J, Nakase-Richardson R. (2012). Relationship of Caregiver and Family Functioning to Participation Outcomes Following Post-acute Rehabilitation for Traumatic Brain Injury: A Multicenter Investigation. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 93(5):842-848.
Scholten, J.D., Sayer, N.A., Vanderploeg, R.D., Bidelspach, D.E., David X. Cifu, D.X. (2012). Analysis of US Veterans Health Administration comprehensive evaluations for traumatic brain injury in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom Veterans. Brain Injury, 26, 1177-1184. Published online ahead of print May 30, 2012.
Schoenberg, M. R., Silva, M. A., & Benbadis, S. R. (2012). Does epilepsy affect intelligence? Epilepsy Therapy Project Forum Newsletter. Available at: newsletter/dec12/intelligence
Silva, M. A. (2014). [Review of the test Sleep Disorders Inventory for Students]. In J. F. Carlson, K. F.
Geisinger, & J. L. Jonson (Eds.), The nineteenth mental measurements yearbook (pp. 626-631). Lincoln, NE: Buros Center for Testing, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Silva, M. A., Donnell, A. J., Kim, M. S., & Vanderploeg, R. D. (2012). Abnormal neurological exam findings in individuals with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) versus psychiatric and healthy controls. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 26, 1102-1116.
Silva M.A., Nakase-Richardson R, Sherer M, Barnett SD, Evans C, Yablon SA. (2012). Posttraumatic confusion (PTC) predicts patient cooperation during TBI rehabilitation. American Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation;91(10):890-893.
Soble, J.R., Donnell, A.J., Belanger, H.G. (in press). TBI and nonverbal executive functioning examination of a modified Design Fluency Test’s psychometric properties and sensitivity to focal frontal injury. Applied Neuropsychology.
Soble, J. R., Donnell, A. J., & Belanger, H. G. (2013). TBI and nonverbal executive functioning: Examination of a modified design fluency test’s psychometric properties and sensitivity to focal frontal injury. Applied Neuropsychology: Adult, 20, 257-262.
Soble, J. R., Silva, M. A., Vanderploeg, R. D., Curtiss, G., Belanger, H. B., Donnell, A. J., & Scott, S. G. (2014). Normative data for the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI) and postconcussion symptom profiles among TBI, PTSD, and nonclinical samples. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 28, 614-632.
Spiegel, E.P. & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2010). Postconcussion syndrome. In I.B. Weiner & W.E. Craighead (Eds.) The Corsini encyclopedia of psychology (4th Ed). John Wiley & Sons.
Towns, S. J., Silva, M. A., & Belanger, H. G. (2015). Subjective sleep quality and postconcussion symptoms following mild traumatic brain injury. Brain Injury, 29(11): 1337-41.
Towns, S. J., Zeitzer, J., Kamper, J., Holcomb, E., Silva, M. A., Schwartz, D.J., & Nakase-Richardson, R., (2016). Implementation of actigraphy in acute traumatic brain injury neurorehabilitation admissions: A veterans administration TBI model system study. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
Toyinbo, P.A., Vanderploeg, R.D., Donnell, A.J., Mutolo, S.A., Cook, K.F., Kisala, P.A., Tulsky, D.S. (in press). Development and initial validation of military deployment-related TBI quality of life item banks. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation.
Toyinbo, P., Vanderploeg, R.D., Belanger, H.G., Spehar, A., Lapcevic, A. & Scott, S. (in press). System science approach to understanding polytrauma/blast-related injury: Bayesian network model of the Florida National Guard data. American Journal of Epidemiology.
Toyinbo, P.A., Vanderploeg, R.D., Donnell, A.J., Mutolo, S.A., Cook, K.F., Kisala, P.A., & Tulsky, D.S. (2016). Development and initial validation of military deployment-related TBI quality of life item banks. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation. 31(1), 52–61. 2014 Oct 13. [Epub ahead of print].
Tran J, Hammond F, Dams-O’Connor K, Tang X, Eapen B, McCarthy M, Nakase-Richardson R. (in press). Rehospitalization in the First Year following Veteran and Service Member TBI: A VA TBI Model Systems Study. Journal of Head Trauma and Rehabilitation.
Ulloa, E. W., Marx, B. P., & Vanderploeg, R.D., Vasterling, J. J.. (2012). Assessment of Comorbid PTSD and mTBI. (pp. 149 – 173). In J.J. Vasterling, R.A. Bryant and T.M. Keane (Eds.), PTSD and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. New York: Guilford Press.
Vanderploeg, R.D. (2013). Neuropsychological Assessment. (pp. 73-102). In Arciniegas, D.B., Zasler, N.D., Vanderploeg, R.D., & Jaffee, M.S. (Eds), Clinical Manual for the Management of Traumatic Brain Injury. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc.
Vanderploeg, R.D. & Belanger, H.G. (2013). Screening for a remote history of mild TBI: When a good idea is bad. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 28(3): 211-218.
Vanderploeg, R.D. & Belanger, H.G. (2015). Stability and validity of the Veterans Health Administration's traumatic brain injury clinical reminder screen. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation. 30(5), E29–E39. doi: 10.1097/HTR.0000000000000095
Vanderploeg, R.D., Belanger, H.G., & Brenner, L.A. (2013). Blast Injuries and PTSD: Lessons Learned from the Iraqi and Afghanistan Conflicts. (pp. 114-148). In Koffler, S.P., Morgan, J.E., Baron, I.S., & Greiffenstein, M.F. (Eds.), Neuropsychology Science and Practice. New York: Oxford Univ. Press.
Vanderploeg, R.D., Belanger, H.G., & Kaufmann, P.M. (2014). Nocebo effects and mild traumatic brain injury: Legal implications. Psychological Injury and Law, 7, 245-254. doi: 10.1007/s12207-014-9201-3.
Vanderploeg, R.D., Cooper, D.B., Belanger, H.G., Donnell, A.J., Kennedy, J.E., Hopewell, C.A. & Scott, S.G. (2014). Screening for postdeployment conditions: Development and cross-validation of an embedded validity scale in the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 29(1): 1-10.
Vanderploeg, R.D., Donnell, A.J., Belanger, H.G., & Curtiss, G. (2014). Consolidation deficits in traumatic brain injury: The core and residual verbal memory defect. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 36(1): 58-73.
Vanderploeg, R.D., Groer, S., & Belanger, H.G. (2012). The initial developmental process of a VA semi-structured clinical interview for TBI identification. Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development, 49(4): 545-56.
Vanderploeg, R.D., Nazem, S., Brenner, L.A., Belanger, H.G., Donnell, A.J., & Scott, S.G. (2015). Suicidal ideation among Florida National Guard Members: Combat deployment and non-deployment risk and protective factors. Archives of Suicide Research. 19(4), 453-471. 2014 Dec 17. [Epub ahead of print].
Vanderploeg, R.D., Silva, M.A., Soble, J.R., Curtiss, G., Belanger, H.G., Donnell, A.J., Scott, S.G. (2015). The structure of postconcussion symptoms on the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory: A Comparison of alternative models. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 30, 1-11.
Whyte J, Nakase-Richardson R, Hammond FM, McNamee S, Giacino JT, Kalmar K, Greenwald B, Yablon SA, Horn LJ. (2013). Functional outcomes in traumatic disorders of consciousness: 5-year outcomes from the NIDRR traumatic brain injury model systems. Arch of Phys Med Rehabil 94(10), 1855-60.
Whyte J, Nakase-Richardson R. (2013). Disorders of consciousness: outcomes, comorbidities, and care needs. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 94(10), 1851-1854.
Wilde, E.A., Whiteneck, G.G., Bogner, J., Bushnik, T., Cifu, D.X., Dikmen, S., French, L., Giacino, J.T., Hart, T., Malec, J.F., Millis, S.R., Novack, T.A., Sherer, M., Tulsky, D.S., Vanderploeg, R.D., von Steinbuechel, N. (2010). Recommendations for the use of common outcome measures in traumatic brain injury research. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 91, 1650-1660.
Wolf, G.K., Kretzmer, T., Crawford, E., Thors, C., Strom, T.Q., Eftekhari, A., Klenk, M., Hayward, L., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2015). Prolonged exposure therapy with veterans diagnosed with PTSD and traumatic brain injury. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 28, 1–9.
PRESENTATIONS
Bailey EK, Nakase-Richardson R, Dillahunt-Aspillaga C, Patel NR, Ropacki SA, Sander A, Stevens L., Tang X. Supervision needs following Veteran and Service Member traumatic brain injury: A VA TBIMS Study. Clinical Neuropsychologist (abstract). Oral presentation at: Annual American Psychological Association Convention; August 2016; Denver, Colorado. Division 40 Blue Ribbon Award for Best Research 2016
Belanger, H.G. (August 4, 2013). Web-Based Intervention for PCS Symptoms in Active Duty, Veteran, and Civilian Participants Following concussion. Presentation at the American Psychology Association annual convention. Symposium organized by Jennifer Vasterling on “Traumatic Brain Injury in Military Populations---Clinical Outcomes and Interventions.”
Belanger, H., Barwick, F., King, E., Kretzmer, T., & Vanderploeg, R. (2013, February 9). Psychoeducation interventions for postconcussive symptoms: Computer and web-based administrations. Paper presented as part of a Symposium at 41st Annual Meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society (INS), Waikoloa, Hawaii. Chaired by Dr. Elizabeth Twamley, Rehabilitation of Mild to Moderate TBI Symptoms in Service Members and Veterans (Abstract). Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 19 (S1), 292.
Belanger, H.G. (2010, March 14). Neuropsychology of Blast-Related TBI. Invited address by Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC) at International Brain Injury Association (IBIA)’s Eighth World Congress on Brain Injury, Crystal City, MD.
Belanger, H.G., King, E., Kretzmer, T., Stirling, E., Clement, V., Neff, J., Asmussen, S., Paula, R., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2011, August). Intervention for Postconcussion Symptoms in Active Duty, Veteran, and Civilian Participants With a History of MTBI: Pilot Study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Belanger, H.G., Klanchar, S.A., Spehar, A.M., Powell-Cope, G. (July 8, 2015). VHA TBI Screen and Comprehensive Evaluation: Practice patterns data. Poster presented at the 2015 HSR&D/QUERI National Conference: Health Service Research for a Veteran-Centered Learning Organization, Washington, DC.
Belanger HG, Silva MA, Donnell A, Lamberty G, Vanderploeg RD. The concurrent and predictive validity of the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI): A VA Traumatic Brain Injury Model System Study. Clin Neuropsychol. 2015; 29(3): 328-329. Poster presented at: the 13th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology; June 2015; San Francisco, CA.
Belanger, H.G., Silva, M.A., McKenzie-Hartman, T., Vanderploeg, R.D. (August 18, 2015). Is the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI) a Good Outcome Measure? A Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium (CENC) and VA TBI Model System Study. Poster presented at the Military Health System Research Symposium in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Belanger, H.G., Smith, D., Wang, K. & Wilde, E. (2011, June 14). Blast-related vs non-blast Mild TBI: Pathophysiology, biomarkers, imaging, and outcome. Symposium organized by Harvey Levin, Presented at the Federal Interagency Conference on Traumatic Brain Injury, Washington, DC.
Belanger, H.G., Stirling, E., Kretzmer, T., Clement, V., Walker, R., Hickling, E., Neff, J., Paula, R., Watts, D. & Vanderploeg, R. (2010, July 14-15). Web-based Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation. Invited poster for HSR&D/VERC National Field-Based Meeting: Quality Improvement in Parallel Circuits, Indianapolis, IN.
Belanger, H.G. & Vanderploeg, R.D. (August 18, 2015). Population Screening for TBI: What is the Evidence? Poster presented at the Military Health System Research Symposium in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Belanger, H.G., Vanderploeg, R.D., Soble, J.R., Richardson, M., Groer, S. (2012, July 16). Validity of a population-based screen for TBI: Comparing the VA’s TBI Screen to follow-up evaluation. Poster presented at: the VA HSR&D / QUERI National Meeting, Washington, DC.
Belanger, H.G. (Chair), Vanderploeg, R.D., Lacy, M., Thombs, B.D. (August 7, 2015). Mass Screening in Clinical Settings: Is There Evidence? Collaborative program presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association (APA) in Toronto, Canada.
Bentley, J. A., Silva, M. A., Nakano, E. V. & Vanderploeg, R. D. (2011). Post-acute neuropsychological
functioning in a veteran with Kernohan’s notch phenomenon following a boxing-related traumatic brain injury [Abstract]. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 26, 522. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the National Academy of Neuropsychology, Marco Island, FL.
Burns, K.M., Garofano, J.S., Schwartz, D., Silva, M.A., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2015). Self-reported sleepiness and relationship to objective sleep quality measures using actigraphy in acute TBI [Abstract]. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 96, e64. Poster presented to the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Dallas, TX
Burns, K.M., Vanderploeg, R.D., Belanger, H.G., Towns, S.J. & Scott, S.G. (February 13, 2014). Mild TBI and chronic pain associations with post-deployment mental health outcomes. Poster presented at the 42nd annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Seattle, WA.
Cantor J, Modarres M, Nakase-Richardson R, Yablon SA, (October, 2012). Wrestling with hypnos: Sleep, wake, and fatigue after TBI. Symposium Presentation at 2012 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Vancouver, CA.
Cooper, DB, Bowles, AO, Primus, J., Kennedy, JE & Vanderploeg, R. (2013, February). A randomized controlled trial of cognitive rehabilitation for service members with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI): Insights from the SCORE trial. Poster presented at the 41st annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Waikoloa, Hawaii. (Abstract). Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 19 (S1), 292.
Cooper, DB, Vanderploeg, RD, Kolodziej, M, Fox, C, Manning, RK, Wilken, J. & Bowles, AO. (2011, February). Relationship between mechanism of injury and neuropsychological functioning in OEF/OIF Service Members with mild traumatic brain injuries. Poster presented at the 39th annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Boston, MA. (Abstract). Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 17 (S1), 244.
Cooper, DB, Vanderploeg, RD, Manning, RK, Kolodziej, M, Fox, C, Wilken, J. & Bowles, AO. (2011, February). Factors associated with neuropsychological functioning in OEF/OIF Service Members in post-deployment settings. Poster presented at the 39th annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Boston, MA. (Abstract). Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 17 (S1), 243-244.
Critchfield, E., Nakase-Richardson, R., Sherer, M., Barnett, SD, Evans CC. (2012) Does Early
Neuroimaging Predict Duration of PTA Among Neurorehabilitation Admissions? The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 26 (5):744.
Czipri, S.L., Kamper, J.E. & Belanger, H.G. (June 10, 2016). Reduction in postconcussion symptom severity is associated with self-efficacy and attributions in those with mild TBI histories. Poster presented at the 14th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology; June 2016; Chicago, IL.
Daniels, B.J., Nakase-Richardson R, Midkiff, M., Silva, M.A., Critchfield, E., Kretzmer T, Barnett S.D., Schwartz D., Modarres, M., Donnell, A., McGarity, S. (2012). The relationship between sleep, post-traumatic amnesia (PTA), and agitation in acute traumatic brain injury. Oral presentation at the 2012 American Psychological Association Annual Conference for Division 22.
Dean, P. & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2010, August). Effects of depression, anxiety and their comorbidity on cognitive functioning. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Diego, CA. (Abstract). The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 24, 933-934.
Dunnam, M., Donnelly, K.T., King, P., Guyker, W., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2011, February). We Use Them, But Should We? Psychometric Properties of the VA TBI Screening Tool, NSI, and Combat Experiences Scale. Paper presented at the 39th annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Boston, MA.
Eastvold, A., Dean, P., Belanger, H., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2010, August). Third Party Observers and neuropsychological test performance: A meta-analysis. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Diego, CA. (Abstract). The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 24, 939.
Haskin, A.C., Dillahunt-Aspillaga, C.T., Silva, M.A., Schmitt, M.M., Pugh, M.J., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2015). Employment stability in veterans and service members with TBI: A VA brain injury model systems study [Abstract]. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 96, e20-21. Poster presented to the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Dallas, TX.
Hinds S, Helmick K, Brickell, T, French L, Lange R, Nakase-Richardson R. Defense and veterans brain injury center (DVBIC) longitudinal research on traumatic brain injury (TBI) in military service members and veterans. Symposium presented at: The International Brain Injury Association Meeting; February 2016; The Hague, Netherlands.
Holcomb, E., Nakase-Richardson, R., & Kamper, J.E. (2015, February). Assessment of sleep disturbance in acute rehabilitation: implications for clinical practice. Symposium given at the 17th annual meeting of APA Division 22: Rehabilitation Psychology, San Diego, CA.
Holcomb, E., Kamper, J.E., Nakase-Richardson, R., & Silva, M. (2015, October). Measurement and
treatment of sleep disorders with unexpected outcomes in veterans with severe brain injury. Symposium given at the 92nd annual meeting of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine, Dallas, Tx.
Kamper, J.E., Ajao, D., Hartman, R.E., & Badaut, J. (2011, November). The long-term persistence of cognitive and motor deficits following TBI in juvenile rats. Oral presentation given at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Washington, D.C.
Kamper, J.E., Nakase-Richardson, R., Schwartz, D., McCarthy, M., Kretzmer, T., Garofano, J., Geck, R., & Anderson, W. (2015, February). The validity of actigraphy as a sleep correlate in the TBI population. Oral presentation given at the 43rd annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Denver, CO.
Kamper, J.E. & Czipri, S. (2016, March). Assessment of traumatic brain injury: a neuropsychological perspective. Invited lecture given to the 6th Medical Group, MacDill AFB, Tampa, FL.
Kean J, Nakase-Richardson R, Brenner L, Bahraini N, Dams-O’Connor K, Hammond F. Rehospitalization following brain injury in veterans: perspectives from the VA and the private sector. Symposium presented at: The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Meeting; October 2015; Dallas, TX.
Kim, M. S., Silva, M. A., & Vanderploeg, R. D. (2011). Postconcussion syndrome frequencies in
psychiatric diagnostic groups versus mild traumatic brain injury [Abstract]. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 25, 889. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Kim, M.S., Bentley, J.A., Belanger, H.G., Proctor-Weber, Z., Kretzmer, T., French, L., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2011, August). Symptom Complaints Following Blast Versus Nonblast Mild TBI: Does Mechanism of Injury Matter? Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Lange, R.T., Brickell, T.A., Ivins, B., Vanderploeg, R.D., Parkinson, G., & French, L.M. (2012, June). Variable, not persistent, postconcussion symptoms following mild traumatic brain injury in U.S. Military Service Members: A 4-year cross-sectional cohort study. Poster presented at the 2012 meeting of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology, San Diego, CA. (Abstract). The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 26, 409.
Letsch, E., Kuemmel, A., & Sylvester, M. (2010, February). Interview Skills for Internship and Postdoctoral Applicants: Mock Interview Workshop. Invited presentation at the Rehabilitation Psychology Annual Conference, Tucson, AZ.
Lew, H.L., Pogoda, T.K., Hsu, P-T., Cohen, S., Amick, M.M., Baker, E., Meterko, M.M., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2010, April). Impact of the “Polytrauma Clinical Triad” on Sleep Disturbance in a VA Outpatient Rehabilitation Setting. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Association of Academic Physiatrists (AAP), Bonita Springs, FL.
McDonald, S. D., Law, W., Lew, H., Terrio, H., & Vanderploeg, R. (2010, November). The Polytrauma Clinical Conundrum: Conceptualization, Assessment, and Treatment of Complex Post-Deployment Symptoms. Symposium conducted at the Annual Meeting of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS), Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
McKenzie-Hartman, T., & Silva, M. A. (2016, June 10). Exercise and Cognitive Functioning Following TBI: Findings from the Tampa VA Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems (VA TBIMS). Poster presented at the 14th Annual meeting of the Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology (AACN) Abstracts from the, Chicago, IL. (Abstract). The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 30 (5), pp 695-805.
Midkiff, M., Kretzmer, T., Donnell, A., Belanger, H.G. (2013, Nov 14). The impact of self-efficacy on post concussive symptom reporting in a mild TBI military population. Poster at the Annual Meeting of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Orlando, FL.
Midkiff, M., Silva, M.A., Kretzmer, T. (2015). Neuropsychological performance and symptom reporting in a chronic post-concussive military population [Abstract]. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 96, e72. Poster presented at the 92nd American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Dallas, TX.
Moore, D.H, Powell-Cope, G., Belanger, H.G. & Mutolo, S.J. (2013, Oct 21). Perceptions of the Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Screening Program for Returning Combat Veterans. Presentation at the Joining Forces to Restore Lives: Nursing Education and Research in Veterans Health Conference, Tampa, FL.
Nakase-Richardson R. (2010). Behavioral intervention for persons with severe TBI. Invited presentation at the “Managing Challenging Behaviors in Older Adults Conference” co-sponsored by VHA VISN 6 and Duke University, Durham, NC.
Nakase-Richardson R. (December, 2012). Severe TBI and Disorders of Consciousness: Rehabilitation Update. Presentation at the DOD DVBIC/SOMA TBI Symposium, Tampa, FL.
Nakase-Richardson R. (April, 2012). Syndromes of impaired consciousness: An introduction and update. Brooke Army Medical Center Polytrauma Grand Rounds Invited Talk, San Antonio, TX.
Nakase-Richardson R, (April, 2012). Syndromes of impaired consciousness: An introduction and update. Department of Neurosurgery/Neurology Grand Rounds, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS.
Nakase-Richardson R, (August, 2011). Early neurobehavioral recovery from impaired consciousness. Invited Speaker, Division 40, American Psychological Association Annual Conference, Washington, DC.
Nakase-Richardson R. (May 2014) Brain injury and sleep-wake cycle disorders. Invited Presentation at: The Mayo Clinic’s Neurorehabilitation Summit Conference; Rochester, MN.
Nakase-Richardson R. Sleep and TBI. (March 10, 2016) Webinar sponsored by Journal of Head Trauma and Rehabilitation and Brain Injury Association of America.
Nakase-Richardson R, Holcomb E, Kamper J, Silva M. (October 2015) Measurement and treatment of sleep disorders with unexpected outcomes in veterans with severe brain injury. Symposium presented at: American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Meeting; Dallas, TX.
Nakase-Richardson R, Eastridge D, Kupfer J. (Presenters). (January 2015) Neurobehavioral Functional Analysis: Paradigms for Treatment. Invited presentation at: The Brain Injury Summit; Vail, CO.
Nakase-Richardson R, Fins J., Giacino JT, Katz D, Greenwald B, Yablon SA, Whyte J, Wilson C, (October, 2012). Management conundrums among patients with severe TBI: Ethical considerations and practice. Four Hour Instructional Course at 2012 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Vancouver, CA.
Nakase-Richardson, R., Haskin, A.H., Lynn, C., Silva, M.A., Finn, J., Ropacki, S., Jung, C., Cotner, B., Stevens, L., Amos, T., & Crocker, J. (2016). Development of the TBI Rehabilitation Needs Survey for Veterans and Service Members in Post-Acute Stages of TBI [Abstract]. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 97, e127–e128. Poster presented at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Conference, Chicago IL.
Nakase-Richardson, R. & Horn, LJ (May, 2011). Early neurobehavioral recovery from impaired consciousness. Symposium Presentation at the Brain Injury Association of Michigan Annual Conference, Lansing, MI.
Nakase-Richardson R, Kretzmer T, McGarity S, (August, 2012). The role of sleep in maximizing rehabilitation outcomes: experience of three VHA programs. Symposium presentation at the American Psychological Association Annual Conference for Division 22, Orlando, FL.
Nakase-Richardson R, Makley M. Syndromes of impaired consciousness: Diagnostic distinctions and rehabilitation. (January 2015) Invited presentation at: The Brain Injury Summit; Vail, CO.
Nakase-Richardson R., Schwartz D., Jenkins B, Pastorek N. (May 2015) Sleep and traumatic brain injury. Presentation at: The VA National Polytrauma Conference; Hyattsville, MD.
Nakase-Richardson R, Whyte J, Katz D, Giacino J, Arciniegas D. (February 2016) Disorder of consciousness SIG evening session to introduce minimal competency guidelines for rehabilitation of disorders of consciousness. Invited session at: The International Brain Injury Association Meeting; The Hague, Netherlands.
Nakase-Richardson R, Whyte J, Giacino JT, Katz DI, Greenwald BD, Sherer M, Weintraub A, Zafonte RD, Hammond F, Arciniegas D, Kothari S. (October 2015) Building capacity in the assessment, treatment, and ethical management in severe TBI. Instructional course presented at: The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Meeting; Dallas, TX.
Nakase-Richardson R (Organizer), Zafonte R, Makley M, Bell K. (October 2014) Conceptual Framework for The Study Of Sleep Disturbance Following Acute Neurologic Injury. Symposium Presentation at: The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference; Toronto, CA.
Nakase-Richardson R, Whyte J, Greenwald B., Horn LJ (Organizer). (November 2012). Rehabilitation of persons with disorders of consciousness Part I. Symposium Presentation at the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA.
Nakase-Richardson R, (Organizer). Whyte J, M.D., Giacino JT, Scott S, Greenwald B., Horn LJ, McCarthy M, Hammond F, McNamee S, Kalmar K, (October, 2011). Medical and behavioral complexity of persons with DOC. Two-Part Symposium Series at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA.
O’Dell, K.M., Vanderploeg, R.D., Ramanathan, D.M., Donnell, A.J., Groer, S. (2013, February). Anger and guilt in US Veterans with traumatic brain injury: Who is vulnerable and what are the relationships with subjective psychological functioning and general well-being? Poster presented at the 41st annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Waikoloa, Hawaii. (Abstract). Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 19 (S1), 118.
Powell-Cope, G., Belanger, H.G., Spehar, A., McCranie, M., & Barnett, S. (2013, October). Clinical Practice Patterns for Screening Veterans for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. Presentation at the Joining Forces to Restore Lives: Nursing Education and Research in Veterans Health Conference, Tampa, FL.
Proctor-Weber, Z. & Vassallo, J.L. (2014, July). Parkinsonism to Parkinson’s Plus: The Co-existence of Parkinsonism and Cognitive Impairment. Workshop presented at the annual meeting of the Florida Psychological Association, Bonita Springs, FL.
Ramanathan, D.M., Vanderploeg, R.D., O’Dell, K.M., Donnell, A.J., Groer, S. (2013, February). Factors associated with resiliency following traumatic brain injury in a military population. Poster presented at the 41st annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Waikoloa, Hawaii. (Abstract). Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 19 (S1), 118.
Scott, S.G., Belanger, H.G., & Vanderploeg, R.D. (2011, June). Sorting through the contributions to health outcomes from the Florida National Guard Survey Study: Blast and TBI Effects. Symposium presented at the 3rd Federal Interagency Conference on TBI, Washington, DC.
Schwartz DJ, Nakase-Richardson R. Traumatic Brain Injury and Sleep. (September 2015) Invited presentation at: The Current Concepts in Sleep Medicine Conference; St. Petersburg, FL.
Silva, M. A. (2015, October). Outcomes following OSA diagnosis during post-acute rehabilitation for severe brain injury: A report on 2 cases. In R. Nakase-Richardson (Chair), Measurement and treatment of sleep disorders with unexpected outcomes in veterans with severe brain injury. Symposium conducted at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Dallas, TX.
Silva, M. A., Barwick, F. H., Kretzmer, T. S., Vanderploeg, R. D., & Belanger, H. G. (2013). Reliable change indices for the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory and Brief Symptom Inventory-18 in a mild traumatic brain injury sample [Abstract]. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 27, 601. Poster presented at the 11th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neuropsychology, Chicago, IL.
Silva, M. A., Critchfield, E., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2012). Charles Bonnet Syndrome following
penetrating TBI in an OEF/OIF/OND active duty service member [Abstract]. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 27, 577-578. Grand Rounds presented at the 32nd annual meeting of the National Academy of Neuropsychology, Nashville, TN.
Silva, M.A., Haskin, A.C., Schwartz, D., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2015). Unexpected improvement following OSA treatment during post-acute recovery from brain injury and minimally conscious state. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 96, e28. Poster presented to the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Dallas, TX.
Silva, M.A., Martinez, K.M., Schmitt, M.M., Lynn, C.A., Dillahunt-Aspillaga, C., Garofano, J.S., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2015). VA TBIMS study of mental health and functional characteristics of military/veterans returning to school [Abstract]. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 96, e21. Poster presented at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Dallas, TX.
Silva, M.A., Mckenzie-Hartman, T., Belanger, H.G., Drasher-Phillips, L., M. & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2016, August). PTSD predicts tobacco smoking after TBI: A VA TBI Model Systems Study. Poster presented at the Military Health System Research Symposium, Kissimmee, FL.
Silva, M.A., Mckenzie-Hartman, T., Belanger, H.G., Tang, X., Dams-O’Connor, K., & Nakase-Richardson, R. (2016). Prevalence and Predictors of Tobacco Smoking 1-year after Traumatic Brain Injury: A VA TBI Model Systems study. [Abstract] Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 97, e119. Poster presented at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Conference, Chicago, IL.
Silva, M. A., Kim, M. S., & Vanderploeg, R. D. (2011). Neurological signs in veterans with mild traumatic
brain injury versus PTSD. [Abstract]. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 25, 889. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Silva, M.A., Nakase-Richardson, R., Critchfield, E., Kieffer, K, & McCarthy, M. (2012). Syndrome of
Trephine Presentation in a Minimally Responsive Patient: In search of Measures Sensitive to Neurologic Decline. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 27(6), 628.
Silva, M. A., Nakase-Richardson, R., Sherer, M., Yablon, S. A., Evans, C. C., & Barnett, S. D. (2011).
Posttraumatic confusion predicts poor treatment cooperation in TBI rehabilitation therapies. Poster resented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Soble, J.R., Donnell, A.J. & Belanger, H.G. (2012, August 5). TBI and Design Fluency performance: Effects of frontal injuries on nonverbal executive functioning. Poster presented at the American Psychological Association Division 40 Conference, Orlando, FL.
Sol, K., Curtiss, G. & Belanger, H.G. (February 7, 2015). Somatization predicts self-efficacy in mTBI, and both predict post-concussion symptom reporting. Poster presented at the 43rd annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Denver, CO.
Towns, S. J., Belanger, H. G., Vanderploeg, R. D., Silva, M. A., Kretzmer, T. S., & Burns, K. M. (February 13, 2014). Subjective sleep quality and postconcussion symptoms in mild TBI. Poster presented at the 42nd annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society, Seattle, WA.
Toyinbo, P., Vanderploeg, R.D., Belanger, H.G., Spehar, A.M., Lapcevic, W.A., Scott, S.G. (July 9, 2015). Exploring blast exposure effects using Bayesian Network (BN) Modeling. Paper presented at the 2015 HSR&D/QUERI National Conference: Health Service Research for a Veteran-Centered Learning Organization, Washington, DC.
Trudel, T.M. (moderator), Willer, B., Cicerone, K., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2013, September). Affect Related Disorders Post-TBI. Platform Symposium at the North American Brain Injury Society (NABIS) Annual Conference on Brain Injury, New Orleans, LA.
Vanderploeg, R.D. (2016, April). Treatment of Comorbid TBI and PTSD: Lessons Learned. The North American Brain Injury Society (NABIS) 13th Annual Conference on Brain Injury, Tampa, FL.
Vanderploeg, R.D. (2013, September). Mild TBI and Suicidal Ideation. Platform oral presentation at the North American Brain Injury Society (NABIS) Annual Conference on Brain Injury, New Orleans, LA.
Vanderploeg, R.D. & Belanger, H.G. (June 26, 2014). Sensitivity and specificity of the VA’s TBI Screening Tool. Poster presented at the 12th Annual Conference of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology, New York, NY. (Abstract). The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 28, 366.
Vanderploeg, R.D. & Kretzmer, T.S. (2014, March). The post-deployment conundrum of mild TBI plus other polytrauma conditions: developing an informed approach to treatment. Platform oral presentation at the Tenth World Congress on Brain Injury, San Francisco, CA.
Vassallo, J.L. (2011). Current standards in sports-related concussion. Invited address for the Neuropsychology Division meeting at the Annual Convention of the Florida Psychological Association.
Vassallo, J. L. & Hammond, N. (2016, April). Uncovering the Leader in You. Workshop presented at the 2016 Florida Psychological Association Southwest Region Conference, St Petersburg, FL.
Vassallo, J. L. & Proctor-Weber, Z. (2013, July). Advances in Alzheimer’s Disease: Where is Neuropsychology’s Seat at the Table? Workshop presented at the annual meeting of the Florida Psychological Association, Palm Beach Gardens, FL.
Wallace T, Morris J, Gore R, and Nakase-Richardson R. (October 2016) Novel Applications of Technology for Brain Injury Rehabilitation of Military Service Members. Symposia presentation at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Conference, Chicago IL.
Weintraub A, Arciniegas D, Malec J, Nakase-Richardson R, Seaton D, Ziejewski M. (April 2016) Severe traumatic brain injury TBI: Case presentations and panel discussion. Presentation to: North American Brain Injury Society’s 13th Annual Conference on Brain Injury; Tampa, FL.
Whyte J, Giacino J, Nakase-Richardson R, Lovstad M, Estraneo A, Maurer P, Laureys S. (March 2014) Clinical management of disorders of consciousness: Toward an international consensus. Invited workshop at: The International Brain Injury Association Conference; San Francisco, CA.
Whyte, J, Nakase-Richardson, R (Interviewees), Babbage, DR (Interviewer/Producer). (October 2013) Disorders of consciousness. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation [audio podcast]. Available at:
Wilson, C., Steele, H., Evardone, M. (2012, May). Psychosocial Aspects from the Patient, Family, and Caregiver Perspectives. Paper presented at Perspectives: A focus on Veterans with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis). Clearwater, FL.
Wolf, G., Crawford, E., Vanderploeg, R.D., Kretzmer, T., Wagner, D.R., Dillon, K. (2015, November). Effectiveness of Prolonged Exposure for Comorbid PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury. Symposium conducted at the Annual Meeting of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS), New Orleans, Louisiana.
Yelland, S., Wolf, G., Vanderploeg, R.D. (2015, November). Symptom Attribution in Veterans Diagnosed with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Comorbid Traumatic Brain Injury Undergoing Prolonged Exposure Treatment. Poster presentation at the Annual Meeting of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS), New Orleans, Louisiana.
Zasler, N.D., Walker, W.C., Vanderploeg, R.D., Helmick, K.M. (2011, June). Patient Self-Report Information In The Diagnosis Of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: State Of The Art And Emerging Research. Symposium presented at the 3rd Federal Interagency Conference on Traumatic Brain Injury, Washington, DC.
Local Information
JAMES A. HALEY VETERNS HOSPITAL
The James A. Haley Veterans Hospital (Tampa VAMC), a JCAHO accredited hospital, is a 415 bed facility that provides comprehensive inpatient, primary, secondary, and tertiary care in medical, surgical, neurological, rehabilitation, and short-term psychiatric modalities, primary and specialized ambulatory care, and rehabilitation nursing home care through its 180 bed nursing home care unit.
Specialized programs are offered in treatment of chemical dependency, post-traumatic stress, comprehensive rehabilitation, and women’s health. The Tampa VAMC also has an established Clinical Center of Excellence in Spinal Cord Injury/Disease. In addition, the medical center has five outpatient clinics that are located in Orlando, New Port Richey, Brooksville, Palm Bay and Bartow, Florida. Our medical center provides healthcare services to Veterans’ and TRI-CARE patients in central Florida. From 1996 to the present, the medical center was the busiest in the VA healthcare system of 150+ hospitals, treating 10,534 inpatients and providing care for 450,187 outpatient visits.
The facility has a national reputation for excellence. In 1997, the hospital was awarded the Robert W. Carey Award for quality as well as the National Partnership Award for staff/leadership relationships. In 1998, we received a Merit Achievement for the President’s Quality Award. These are the highest awards bestowed upon a VAMC.
The medical center is affiliated with the University of South Florida (USF) and its College of Medicine. The university is the 16th largest educational center in the nation and provides all facilities and resources typical of a large metropolitan university. The medical center's dynamic and progressively expanding postgraduate teaching program encompasses most of the healthcare specialties. Approved programs are conducted in Audiology and Speech Pathology, General Surgery, Internal Medicine, Nursing, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Otolaryngology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Radiology, Pathology, Social Work, and Urology.
A wide range of supportive resources is available to Psychology staff, residents, interns, and trainees. The hospital maintains its own professional library listing of approximately 4,000 volumes of books and 2,500 bound volumes of journals (361 journal subscriptions including 16 psychological journals). Terminals for direct access to MEDLINE, PSYCHLIT, and other databases are available. Many electronic journal subscriptions are available. The main library at the University of South Florida houses over 678,000 volumes including 4,500 journal subscriptions. In addition, the USF College of Medicine library maintains over 88,000 books including over 1,400 journal subscriptions. Literature searches and complete bibliographies with abstracts are available upon request.
Most of the commonly used psychological tests are included in our file of more than 125 instruments. Among these are numerous specialized neuropsychological tests in the areas of language/verbal abilities, learning and memory, executive functioning, attention, mental control, visuoperceptual/sensorimotor functioning, and abstract problem-solving.
THE TAMPA ENVIRONMENT
The James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital is located in Tampa, Florida. Tampa is a growing metropolitan area, the county seat of Hillsborough County, and the second most populous city in the state. The city is situated on the west coast of Central Florida, 266 miles northwest of Miami and 197 miles southwest of Jacksonville. With a population of over 825,000, the county is composed of several residential, industrial, and agricultural communities, which are interspersed with orange groves and cattle ranches. The climate is generally mild with an average annual temperature of 72 degrees. Freezing temperatures are rare, as are those of more than 90 degrees.
Because of its climate, opportunities for outdoor recreational activities abound. The coastal waters of the Gulf of Mexico and Tampa Bay offer a broad spectrum of water sports - swimming, deep-sea fishing, paddle boarding, power boating, water skiing, sailing, and scuba diving. Freshwater fishing is also available in the numerous local lakes. Residents enjoy year-round facilities and activities because there is little change in the seasons. There are several running and cycling clubs in the Tampa Bay area, and various organized group races are held throughout the year (). Golf is a popular sport with many public and private courses available. Also found in the area are horse racing, dog racing, and the famed Jai-Alai. For sports fans, there are 10 major league baseball spring training camps within 20 miles of Tampa. The Tampa Bay area is also home to several professional sport franchises, including the Rays, the Buccaneers, and the Lightning.
A variety of educational facilities are available in the Tampa Bay area. The University of South Florida has an enrollment of over 36,000 students and is composed of 10 colleges: Architecture, Arts and Letters, Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Fine Arts, Medicine, Natural Sciences, Nursing, and Social and Behavioral Sciences. The University of Tampa, located in downtown Tampa, has an enrollment in excess of 2,400 students. In addition to the higher educational facilities, there are excellent public, parochial, and technical school systems. Both Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties have well-regarded community colleges.
A variety of arts and cultural activities can be found in the Tampa Bay area. Because of Florida’s early history in the exploration of the “New World,” Tampa has a large population of Hispanic and Latino residents (23.1% of the population). The African-American population is also well represented. Events celebrating the heritage and contribution of various ethnic cultures to the area occur throughout the year. For example, the Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival, Festival del Sabor, Asia Fest, and the Tampa International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival are all popular annual events that highlight the region’s diversity.
The University of South Florida, located just across the street from the hospital, has an active and acclaimed drama and fine arts program. Film, dance, stage productions, and repertory companies are regular offerings of the Tampa Theater and Straz Center for the Performing Arts () (both located in downtown Tampa) and the world-famous Asolo Theater (located approximately 50 miles south of Tampa, in Sarasota). Tampa has also become a popular stop for touring musicians. The Amphitheater and the Tampa Bay Times Forum are popular venues for contemporary music and have hosted artists such as Journey, Yes, Dave Mathews Band, Counting Crows, Maroon 5, Jimmy Buffett, Toby Keith, Taylor Swift, Motley Crue, Radiohead, and Coldplay to name a few. Downtown Tampa also hosts a free monthly music concert series held at Curtis Hixon Park (). Across Tampa Bay, St. Petersburg is home to the Dale Chihuly glass museum, the Salvador Dali museum, which is the only exclusive museum of this artist’s works in the world, and the St. Petersburg Bayfront Center for performing arts. See for current cultural events in the Tampa/St. Pete area.
Well-known tourist attractions also lie in close proximity to Tampa. Busch Gardens and Adventure Island Water Park are only 3 miles from the hospital. The various Disney World theme parks and Universal Studios are 75 miles east of Tampa in Orlando, and the Ringling Brothers Museum is located in Sarasota. Tampa itself is home to a world-class aquarium (the Florida Aquarium) in downtown Tampa harbor and an award-winning zoo, Lowry Park Zoo.
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