MPH Options in Advanced Training Programs for Health Professionals
Community Psychiatry Fellowship
back to Collaborative Degree Programs
The University of Florida’s Community Psychiatry Fellowship is designed to be a two year Fellowship for psychiatrists who wish to pursue a career in community/public sector psychiatry. Utilizing a variety of community-based clinical settings in both Jacksonville and Gainesville, this training seeks to foster within the Fellow the necessary clinical, administrative and research skills needed to assume a leadership role in community mental health and public sector systems of care. Moreover, Fellows are provided the opportunity to complete a course of study leading to a Masters of Public Health (MPH) through a collaborative program between the Department of Psychiatry and the University of Florida’s College of Public Health and Health Professions (PHHP).
Fellows can begin their program of study during their PGY-4 year provided all general ACGME requirements for residency graduation are completed prior to beginning. Fellows are expected to participate for an additional post-residency year in order to meet the requirements of both the Fellowship and MPH degree.
Eligibility Requirements
During the initial years of the Fellowship only one applicant is accepted
per year. Applicants to the Fellowship must have completed at least three
years of psychiatry residency in an ACGME-accredited program, have completed
their general residency requirements, and have a demonstrated interest in
pursuing a career in community/public sector psychiatry. Separate applications
to the University of Florida (UF) Department of Psychiatry, UF Graduate
Program and the College of Public Health and Health Professions are required.
The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is not required. Fellowships begin
on July 1 of each year.
Program Structure
The Community Psychiatry Fellowship has been developed under the auspices
of the College of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Community Psychiatry
Program and is administered by the program’s current director, Richard
Christensen, MD, who is based in Jacksonville. Hence, the Fellowship is
a more focused and specialized extension of the previous training provided
through the department’s Community Psychiatry Program that is made
available to PGY-2, 3 and 4 psychiatry residents.
In general, Fellow(s) will spend approximately two days per week in Jacksonville working in settings that are well-established, faculty supervised clinical sites within the Community Psychiatry Program: the IM Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless and Gateway Community Services, Inc. Three days per week will be spent in Gainesville, split between clinical work and graduate studies. Two days will be dedicated to the pursuit of the Masters in Public Health (MPH) through the University of Florida’s College of Public Health and Health Professions. One-half day will be utilized by the Fellow to participate in the Gainesville VA’s Mental Health Intensive Case Management (MHICM) under the supervision of Michael Bengtson, MD. The other one half-day will be committed to the Fellow’s continuity of care outpatients. In sum, there will be three full days of supervised, community-based clinical work and two full days dedicated to graduate level studies/research leading to the MPH which will serve as the didactic component of the Fellowship. The precise days spent in Jacksonville and Gainesville will vary from semester-to-semester depending upon the scheduling of the graduate level seminar offerings required for the MPH.
To ensure the essential training goals and objectives are being fulfilled, formal times for feedback and ongoing evaluation will be developed involving the Fellow and the Fellowship’s Co-Directors. It is anticipated that these formal sessions will occur on a monthly basis and be in addition to the day-to-day supervision provided in the clinical settings.
