Career Opportunities

Henry Ford Health in Detroit, Michigan offers Postdoctoral Fellowships in Clinical Health Psychology, which prepares psychologists to practice independently in the assessment and treatment of medical patients with behavioral manifestations or etiology.

Fellows develop expertise in differential diagnosis, behavioral problems associated with common medical conditions, consultation with referring physicians, and working with multidisciplinary groups. Our fellows are prepared for jobs in health psychology and have gone on to work in a variety of clinical, academic, and research settings.

Fellows perform consultations including chart review, patient assessment, and feedback to staff. They develop liaison relationships with one or more medical/surgical divisions and participate in the programs of that specialty area, including collaborative rounding, and multidisciplinary team meetings, representing the Department of Behavioral Health.

Fellows can develop one or more research projects independently and/or in collaboration with senior staff. Fellows can take advantage of a wide variety of medical education opportunities. On Thursdays, fellows will attend Behavioral Health Grand Rounds. On Fridays, fellows attend weekly teaching conferences and team meetings. There are also many rotation-specific educational opportunities to specialize your training.

Fellows have a flexible start date, likely beginning between July and September. A PhD or PsyD and strong interest in health psychology are required.

We are recruiting for 4 positions for the 2025-2026 Academic Year.

The fellow will complete rotations based on interest and fit. Rotation options include:

Psycho-oncology

Our Psycho-Oncology rotation is designed to provide comprehensive training in the assessment and management of a diverse and complex medical population with cancer. Each fellow will have the opportunity to care for, and engage with, patients and their families through all phases of the cancer journey including diagnosis, active stages of treatment, post-treatment survivorship, recurrence, advanced illness, and end of life. Trainees will learn how to assess and manage common psychiatric concerns in the oncology population, help mediate complex psychosocial issues, gain knowledge regarding psychopharmacological interventions, evaluate medical decision-making capacity, and work within interdisciplinary teams. Training experience occurs in both ambulatory clinics (including telemedicine) and inpatient consultation-liaison settings. Each fellow will work closely with a variety of complementary and integrated disciplines, including Palliative Care and Hospice, Medical Oncology, Radiation Oncology, and Surgical Oncology. Opportunities to train in a multidisciplinary specialty clinic are available based on interest. Opportunities for research and program development are available.

Internal Medicine/Primary Care

The fellow on the Internal Medicine rotation will provide psychological evaluations for outpatients in the Internal Medicine Primary Care clinic. Reasons for consultation requests include depression, anxiety, pain management, weight management, insomnia, adjustment to life stressors, nonadherence with medical regimens, substance abuse, psychosis, and somatoform disorders. Most of these patients also have co-occurring chronic illnesses. Consults are typically received with the “warm-handoff” model from the patients’ primary care physicians. Other opportunities include brief follow-up with patients, participation in interdisciplinary staff meetings, resident teachings, resident communication training, and developing and implementing psychotherapy groups. Fellows can also attend didactic training for the medicine residents to increase medical knowledge and understanding of systems practices. Currently, the team co-leads a 6-week behavioral weight management psychotherapy group. Fellows will also have an opportunity to supervise psychology interns on the service. Fellows will gain knowledge in assessment and diagnosis, pharmacology, general medicine, implementing biofeedback with appropriate patient populations, and learn to work with primary care physicians within an interdisciplinary setting. Supervision occurs regularly throughout the day. Opportunities for research focused on quality and outcomes are readily available.

Transplant Surgery

Transplant Surgery consists of performing inpatient and outpatient evaluations for suitability for transplants including liver, lung, heart, kidney, and intestinal transplants. Henry Ford Hospital is a high-volume provider of such transplants and requires a psychological evaluation to assure adherence with the rigorous self-care and follow-up needed for patients to survive and thrive following transplant. Fellows assess cognitive functioning, behavioral processes relevant to adherence including psychiatric status and stability, quality of social support, motivation for transplant and other factors relevant to decision making. They collaborate with the surgery staff to ensure optimal outcomes and participate in interdisciplinary team listing meetings. Fellows will also conduct consultations and brief interventions for both inpatients and outpatients who may be struggling with various psychosocial concerns either prior to or after transplant. In addition, fellows will have the opportunity to co-lead a group to improve coping skills and a group for relapse prevention. Supervision occurs regularly throughout the day. Fellows also have the opportunity to supervise psychology interns on the service as well as participate in ongoing research projects.

Clinical Research

Fellows may have the opportunity for dedicated research time. On this rotation, the fellow will be matched with a research mentor in the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research to assist with ongoing research projects. Ongoing areas of research include psychological interventions for patients with medical illness in medical settings (i.e., chronic pain, bariatric surgery, neonatal intensive care unit, primary care, women’s health), examination of medical risk factors for suicide, investigation of substance use for patients with medical conditions, technology-based interventions, and evaluation of healthcare utilization for patients with mental health and medical comorbidities. The fellow can also develop his/her own small project. Didactic training in human subjects research, research methods, manuscript writing, and grant writing may be possible. A list of our potential mentors can be found here: https://www.henryford.com/hcp/med-ed/residencies-fellowships/hfh/psychology/faculty/research-mentors

Salary and Benefits

·     $53,000 Stipend

·     $1,000 Professional Development Allowance

·     Malpractice Insurance

·     Options for Medical, Vision, Dental Insurance for self and dependents

·     22 days vacation/personal time

·     Up to 5 conference and/or interview days

Application Process

To apply, please email a cover letter, curriculum vitae, and 3 letters of recommendation to the training director Erin Tobin, PhD, (etobin1@hfhs.org).

Your letters of recommendation can be emailed directly to Dr. Tobin from your references. Please have them include your name in the subject line.

Application due date is December 15, 2024 and we will conduct virtual interviews.

For any questions regarding our Health Psychology Fellowship opportunities, please contact:

Erin Tobin, PhD

Health Psychology Fellowship Director

etobin1@hfhs.org

Henry Ford Hospital is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and educator. Visit henryford.com.