Training the Psychologist of the Future in the Use of Digital Mental Health Technologies

Abstract

The pandemic forced virtually all mental health professionals to use some form of digital technology, yet few receive any training in digital mental health tools (DMHT). Therapists and students in all mental health treatment settings should be trained to routinely include DMHT in their practice. In this article, we describe why DMHT will play an increasingly important part in clinical mental health practice and discuss how we train psychologists and counselors in our eClinic to learn the basics of incorporating digital technologies into the care they provide. More specifically, we describe the three basic components of the training: (a) an asynchronous onboarding program; (b) a didactic curriculum, implemented via monthly core skill development seminars led by experts in digital mental health practice; and (c) ongoing weekly supervision by licensed supervisors. The eClinic training approach described is a work in progress, and we expect to adjust it to follow the evolution of digital tools for mental health assessment and treatment.