The University of South Florida Psychiatry Fellowship provides a wide-gamut of training in multiple areas of forensic psychiatry, including both the civil and criminal arenas. The program is designed for fellows to excel in various components of being an expert, including evaluation, consultation, report preparation, and testimony. A major strength of the program is direct supervision regularly with the program director and teaching faculty.

Fellows in this program rotate at a variety of sites, including expert consultation at the Veteran’s Court through the James A. Haley VA, inpatient clinical care on a competency restoration unit at Gracepoint hospital, and outpatient clinical care of individuals in the correctional system through a public defender’s office. Time is also specifically allotted for fellows to participate in their own independent criminal evaluations and prepare parallel cases for civil evaluations with the program director.

Both the landmark case series and didactic seminars are specifically tailored not only to meet the ACGME requirements for training in forensic psychiatry, but also to provide the building blocks for a fellow to succeed as a forensic psychiatrist. The faculty associated with this fellowship include multiple board-certified forensic psychiatrists, psychologists, and attorneys. Many of the faculty that teach in the fellowship have national reputations in various areas, including competence to stand trial, addictions and the law, and child forensic psychiatry.

One burgeoning area of forensic psychiatry is the practice of using standardized instruments in evaluations. Fellows in this program are trained in the use and interpretation of a multitude of instruments, including those used in risk assessment, competence to stand trial, and detection of malingering. The fellows benefit from the presence of multiple psychologists who teach these instruments throughout the year and fellows practice their use during evaluations and under supervision.

Applicants are encouraged to apply using the AAPL Common Application Form starting June 1stthe calendar year prior to the fellowship. Interviews will take place between September and October. Further information regarding the uniform application process can be found at: http://www.aapl.org/fellowship.

Download our forensic psychiatry fellowship application.