The Department of Clinical Psychology is an independent department at Central Institute of Psychiatry. The department works in the area of patient care, teaching, research, resource development and community service. The department was envisioned in the year 1922 when a separate block for psychological assessment and management was constructed in the hospital. It is the oldest independent Department of Clinical Psychology in India. The Department of Clinical Psychology officially started in 1949 and it happens to have the first Clinical Psychology laboratory in the country. Psychoanalysis was used as a method of treating personality disorders and use of habit formation charts was in vogue since 1924. Over the years, the department has achieved various milestones in the field of teaching, training, research and clinical services.

• Establishment of behavior therapy room in 1950s
• Start of Diploma in Medical and Social Psychology in 1962 which was later named as M. Phil in Medical and Social Psychology and currently called as M. Phil in Clinical Psychology
• Start of Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in 1972
• Initiation of Suicide prevention Helpline and Suicide Prevention Clinic in 2013

Departmental activities:

The department conducts weekly academic exercises for the students of Clinical Psychology. These academic programs include departmental seminars, psychotherapy meetings and regular classes for M. Phil & Ph.D. students as well as for students of other disciplines such as Psychiatry, Psychiatric Social Work and Psychiatric Nursing. These classes are based on the course curriculum and include teaching with the use of audio-visual materials. The trainees are required to present and participate in departmental case conferences, seminars and journal clubs.

Training & Research:

The clinical training includes working with patients in both the in-patient as well as out-patient settings. Training is given to developing competency in diverse psychological assessments and psychotherapies. The trainees receive one-on-one supervision from faculty with respect to patient care, psychological assessments and psychotherapies. The trainees undergo rotation in various specialities to get an exposure to specialty areas in Clinical Psychology. They are also required to submit a dissertation on a research topic under a Guide during which they receive exposure to clinical research. The trainees are also encouraged to participate in various workshops, training and conferences to enhance their skills.

Clinical services:

The department provides clinical services to patients referred from different wards of the institute as well as caters to the out patients at the dedicated Psycho-social Unit. The services include psycho-diagnostic assessments, neuropsychological assessments, psychoeducation, various modes of psychotherapy & rehabilitation. The department also extends its services to the community by being part of the School Mental Health Program run at the community Extension Clinics at West Bokaro & Hazaribagh.

Clinical Psychology Laboratory

Currently, the laboratory provides facilities for conducting experiments, psychological testing and qualitative research. The laboratory enables students to carryout computer based experiments and social experiments. The laboratory is well stacked with various tests for assessment of cognitive functions, personality, and other domains of human behavior. In the last few years some of the new additions to its tools have been the Cambridge Automated Test Battery (CANTAB), Computerized WCST, Computerized Rorschach interpretation, POSIT Science software for Neuro-Rehabilitation, WISC-IV India &WAIS-IV India. The details of the commonly available tools & apparatus are as follows:

Psycho Social Unit

The aim of this unit is to target individuals with psychological and social problems. The clients can directly visit the unit for consultation. The unit also receives referrals from the patients visiting the out-patient department. The services offered are counselling, psychotherapy and psycho-diagnostics. The major diagnoses commonly assessed and/or managed at the unit include childhood depression, Learning problems, Autism, Intellectual Disability, Suicide, Dementia, Anxiety Disorders, Epilepsy, Headache, family conflicts/problems, substances use disorders, Sexual disorders and many more. The unit also has two special clinics dedicated to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) every Wednesday & Suicide Prevention every Saturday.

Data For the year 2019