Pediatric Psychology at Georgia State University: Evaluation of Training With the Society of Pediatric Psychology Competencies

Abstract

The Task Force on Competencies and Best Training Practices in Pediatric Psychology recently proposed pediatric psychology training competencies organized into 6 cluster areas and a cross-cutting group. This blueprint allows programs to evaluate their training models and identify areas for improvement. The Georgia State University (GSU) pediatric psychology program provides training at the university, 3 children’s hospitals at Children’s Health Care of Atlanta, and other pediatric sites. To evaluate our pediatric psychology training, we used the Society of Pediatric Psychology (SPP) Task Force competencies and focused this paper on how training aligned with the Professionalism cluster. The self-evaluation included subjective evaluation of whether training was tied to competencies, outcome data on competency ratings, and broad performance outcomes. The GSU pediatric psychology program generally mapped onto the SPP Task Force professionalism cluster. At closer inspection, some areas are particularly well covered and others could be targeted for improvement. The self-assessment suggests that the GSU pediatric psychology program is providing excellent training in pediatric psychology. Subjective and objective (e.g., publications, internship, and professional placement) indices support this evaluation.