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The National Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center (NCVC)

The National Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center (NCVC) offers a variety of research, clinical, and teaching opportunities for the intern interested in assessment and treatment of victims of violent crime and other traumatic life events. Interns completing a rotation at the NCVC gain extensive clinical experience with victims of crime and their families. The clinical population served by the NCVC includes adult victims of a variety of crimes and traumatic events (sexual/physical assault, robbery, burglary), child victims of sexual and physical assault, adult survivors of sexual abuse, battered spouses, witnesses to violence (both adult and child), and adult and child family members of homicide victims. Interns develop expertise in the assessment of a range of traumatic events in the client's history and the assessment of post-trauma adaptation, including post-traumatic stress disorder, other anxiety disorders, and affective disorders. As a therapist, the intern works with victims and their families utilizing a variety of cognitive-behavioral, family systems, and other therapeutic techniques. Individual and family therapies are offered.

In addition to these therapeutic activities, interns conduct case management, which involves coordination between professionals and agencies (particularly criminal justice and social service agencies) that serve victims and their families. Because of the NCVC's expertise in assessing victims of violence, it often receives requests from attorneys for expert witness evaluation and testimony in civil, family, and criminal judicial cases. Involvement in such cases by interns is encouraged.

Interns also have the opportunity to become involved with one or more of the numerous research projects the NCVC has at various stages of completion. Topics include, but are not limited to, victimization among the elderly, prevention of post-rape psychopathology, the impact of various types of victimization on adolescent adjustment, and effective methods of dissemination of evidence-based treatments to community-based practitioners.

After completing the NCVC rotation, interns will be able to:

• Accurately identify trauma-related symptoms and diagnose trauma-related disorders among adult and child victims of civilian trauma.
• Develop evidence-based treatment plans for addressing trauma-related problems among adult and child victims of civilian trauma.
• Deliver, with fidelity, evidence-based treatments for PTSD and other trauma-related problems (specifically, TF-CBT, Prolonged Exposure, and Cognitive Processing Therapy).
• Document the delivery of services and patient response to services appropriately in each patient's electronic medical record.
• Identify relevant social service systems that serve civilian trauma victims and advise patients effectively about those services.
  

Location of rotation: Medical University of South Carolina

Faculty:
Dean G. Kilpatrick, Ph.D., Distinguished University Professor of Clinical Psychology and Director
Benjamin E. Saunders, Ph.D., Professor and Associate Director
Ron Acierno, Ph.D., Professor
Angela M. Begle, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
Connie L. Best, Ph.D., Professor
Carla Kmett Danielson, Ph.D., Associate Professor
Michael de Arellano, Ph.D., Professor
Rochelle F. Hanson, Ph.D., Professor
Heidi S. Resnick, Ph.D., Professor
Alyssa Rheingold, Ph.D., Associate Professor
John Roitzsch, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus
Kenneth J. Ruggiero, Ph.D., Associate Professor
Daniel W. Smith, Ph.D., Professor

Clinical Rotation Tracks

General Internship  |  Traumatic Stress  | Substance Abuse| Neuropsychology | Behavioral Medicine |  Child Psychology