Clinical Psychologist : Careers in Mental Health

This video about Clinical Psychologists is part of a Mental Health Career video series created by the Oregon State Hospital Museum.
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Being a clinical psychologist is a multifaceted line of work with their main responsibilities involving the assessment, education, and treatment of patients. In assessing a patient, the clinical psychologist must determine their past behaviors, and what led them to that behavior. Then the psychologist can help find ways to mitigate further instances of it. This requires a cool head and ability to act rationally in difficult situations as well as problem solve for the future. These skills are highly necessary for a psychologist to successfully treat their patients and set them up for success down the road.
A psychologist can take the information gleaned through this assessment, and in collaboration with other members of the interdisciplinary treatment team, provide a treatment plan that will help the patient into recovery. This team is made up of nurses, social workers, and other therapists who all work with the patients in different ways and can offer a unique perspective on the patients treatment.
Much of the work of the clinical psychologist is individualized based on the needs of the patient. Not every patient has the same diagnoses or needs within therapy making it necessary for the psychologist to meet them one-on-one or in small groups to help determine the best care for that specific person. By knowing a patient well, a psychologist can best determine if they pose a risk to themselves or others and can help them improve at the quickest rate possible.