N.S. adds 4 more psychology residency seats in bid to increase mental health supports

Nova Scotia is funding a new clinical psychology residency at Dalhousie University in hopes of attracting more mental health professionals to the province.

The new program, which the government is supporting with $311,025, will begin in the fall of 2025 and offer four full-time residency seats for advanced doctoral students in clinical and counselling psychology each year.

Mental Health and Addictions Minister Brian Comer said in a news release Friday that he’s optimistic the new seats will help entice more psychologists to live and work in Nova Scotia.

“There is an ongoing need for more clinical psychologists across the province, and one of the best ways we can address this, while getting immediate results, is by training more people right here in our province,” said Comer.

All doctoral students in psychology are required to complete a residency in their final year, but with just 14 seats in Nova Scotia at present, spread out between the IWK, Nova Scotia Health and the Canadian Armed Forces, many students have previously had to leave the province to complete their studies.

The four additional seats announced Friday will be divided between Dalhousie’s Student Health and Wellness Centre, and the Dalhousie Centre for Psychological Health, a training clinic that aims to provide free, low-barrier mental health support to marginalized groups in the wider community.

“I think the fact that there’s now more options in Nova Scotia — especially at innovative places like the Centre for Psychological Help — to do your residency seat, it’s a strong tool for recruitment,” Comer told CBC News. 

Alissa Pencer, co-director of the Dalhousie Centre for Psychological Help and a senior instructor at the school’s department of psychology and neuroscience, says the additional seats will be a boon to both students and community members alike.

“The more spots the better, in terms of students being able to stay in Halifax,” she said. “And for the centre, residents are at the end stage of their training … and can provide more than some of our junior students in terms of services, and so that’s a benefit to our clients.” 

Doctoral students from all over the country can apply for the residency, the province said, but one of the four seats will be reserved for a student currently enrolled in Dalhousie’s PhD clinical psychology program.

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