General Impression of the Clinical Internship (Bahay Pag-asa)
For the first part of my internship, I started at Bahay Pag-asa, since it was still
pandemic, we were instructed that the internship would be output-based and will not
depend on the number of hours of duty. Bahay Pag-asa is a center for children in conflict
with law, focusing on having them reintegrated in their respective communities after their
cases were processed and done for hearing. To be honest, I asked my co-interns before
the start of the whole internship where Bahay Pag-asa was located, and to my surprise it
was just inside the DLSU-D campus. I then got intrigued since I was thinking how does
Bahay Pag-asa function inside a university.
I pushed to have my internship first at Bahay Pag-asa since I got curious and
wanted to help children who were there because we all know that crimes in the Philippines
are sometimes committed even by minors. When we were having the internship there, I
was stunned hearing the stories behind each resident’s reason of being at Bahay Pagasa, though it is overwhelming, it was eye-opening to hear those stories yet the residents
look forward for their release at Bahay Pag-asa and the huge help that the institution had
given them from start until their release. It was also heart-warming to see how they
change as children in conflict with the law to children whom want to change for the better
through the opportunities given by the institution.
Aside from hearing their stories, we were also given a chance to give these
residents an intervention program that would enable them to adapt to the community
outside of Bahay Pag-asa. We really were surprised how cooperative the residents were
during the implementation of program of activities. Through this intervention program we
were able to know more about the residents assigned to us and were able to give them
more insights on what to expect and how to handle situations outside Bahay Pag-asa.
I commend the people in-charge of Bahay Pag-asa especially Sir MJ and Doc
Madrid for their undying dedication and support not just for the residents but also to interns
who were having the internship program there. They were very accommodating and
helpful to us since they never forget to give us tips and insights on how we can handle
our residents well. Truly, I can say that my internship at Bahay Pag-asa was eye-opening
and I have learned a lot. It helped me practice my skills and understanding of the field of
Clinical Psychology.
General Impression of the Clinical Internship (A-max Psychological Services)
A-max was not my first choice for my external internship, I was really eyeing for
Exalt Psychological Services near our place because it is more accessible to me that Amax. However, I pushed through with A-max because I had encountered problems with
my schedule at work. I also looked into the feedbacks regarding the internship program
in A-max and Ms. Kresha, one of my co-interns recommended it to us. Thankful enough,
I was accepted for the internship program together with my co-interns, Angela, Camille,
Lea and Kresha.
As we are in need of actual exposure to clients, A-max gave us different activities
where we handled clients during test administration, in-depth interviews, and even
psychotherapy. The exposure to clients were quite new to me since we got used to being
in dyads during our classes and one of the members of the dyad acts as the client, which
looked like a role play. Though we had client exposure, A-max did not leave us hanging,
they always schedule for dry runs and give us feedbacks before we immerse ourselves
with the clients. They even guide us in writing our psychological reports, treatment plan,
behavioral feedback and taught us to administer and interpret some commonly used
assessment tools in their clinic.
I am very thankful for A-max for accommodating us in our external internship
program. It was a fun and knowledge-gaining experience for me. The immersion we did
was interesting and made me understand and learn more about my chosen profession, I
am really hoping to have more experience in the field.
Problems Met and How were they resolved?
As I mentioned in my writing on Metaphor for the clinical internship experience, it
was a roller coaster ride and we cannot control how things will happen even if we already
planned it well. During my internship, we encountered some problems but we are able to
resolve them immediately.
One of the problems we encountered was when we were at Bahay Pag-asa, on
the orientation day, we were asked to meet with the residents and have to introduce each
other. One of co-interns mentioned that she was a VA at a certain company then one of
the residents got interested in having a job as a VA since he mentioned that he is about
to be released and is waiting for his papers. He repeatedly insisted to get the contact
information of our co-intern but she had no intention of giving it to him since it would be a
conflict of interest and is against the ethical standards of our profession. The resident may
have gotten too comfortable with us that is why he did not hesitate to ask for help for a
job. Consequently, he also asked the contact number of our co-intern to us but we did not
provide the needed information.
The following week, he became uncooperative with us and some of the residents
assigned to us saw how he treated us that is why they tried talking to him and it ended up
in an argument between the residents. We were unable to report immediately what
happened but eventually reported it to Doc Madrid and Sir MJ and we were advised to
have a talk with the resident and clear things with him. Both sides apologized with each
other.
Another problem that I had encountered during the internship program was that I
had conflicts with my work schedule. There had been loads of tasks in my work that had
given me a hard time giving time to commit attending onsite duties or meetings with our
clients at A-max. I usually had to schedule early morning or late evening to conduct some
of our assigned task in A-max. Though it was a problem for me, A-max understood our
situation and had given us ample time to accomplish our tasks. They were very lenient in
terms of our schedule. But we made sure that we accomplish our tasks as soon as we
can and before the deadline.
There will be no perfect journey in life, all things will not go as planned but with a
lot of commitment and dedication we will be able to accomplish these things one-by-one.
This internship program was an exciting experience for me and if given the chance to
have the internship again, I would love to volunteer so I can test
Moving Forward
After the clinical internship program, I was able to confidently handle clients with
various cases and administer the appropriate assessment tools for their needs ana
especially considering their reason for referral. When I was in my undergraduate
internship, I was only given one resident for the whole duration of my internship that is
why I only focused on one case and was not able to test my other knowledge in the field.
But through this graduate internship program, I was able to handle multiple clients and
learn to apply the knowledge and skills taught during my graduate studies’ academic
requirements. I was able to learn that I can adapt to certain situations when needed
especially during interviews and clinical assessment since we cannot really predict how
the client will respond to the testing tool or the interview questions itself.
An intern may be able to be more flexible whenever undergoing internships in different
settings or locations. They will be able to know how to adapt to certain situations and how
they can handle it without sacrificing the rapport between them and the client. However,
an intern must know when and how to react to a given situation because we always need
to consider the needs and the effects of a situation to the client. Again, there is no perfect
journey in life, one must always know how to adapt to the situation.
As for Doc Madrid, I am grateful to her that she is very lenient and approachable
whenever we need something. She never forgets to have an update or checking in with
us. I am thankful for Doc Madrid, her expertise in the field made me pursue more with my
dream of becoming a clinical psychologist someday. I am wishing Doc Madrid good health
and more power.