Background Although Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) has now been disseminated in many areas of the United States (US), much remains to be discovered about the training outcomes of non-physician professional trainees such as nurses, physician assistants, physical therapists, occupational therapists, and psychologists following SBIRT training. Methods Training in SBIRT, an evidence-based approach to screening substance use, was embedded into five health science graduate curricula: Physician Assistant Studies, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, and Psychology. The SBIRT curriculum was adapted for each profession to include a brief introductory module addressing SBIRT's relevance for each profession, as well as profession-specific case examples and terminology. Using a nonequivalent group design, participants completed pre-and post-training assessments of substance use related attitudes, perceived competency and knowledge. Data were analyzed using a parametric test to compare pre- and post-differences. Results Findings suggest improved attitudes as well as increased perceived competencies and core knowledge following the graduate-curriculum embedded SBIRT training, as well as between group differences on the same variables. Conclusions SBIRT training of non-physician healthcare graduate student-trainees is a feasible training activity and results in improved trainee attitudes, perceived competency, and knowledge. SBIRT training embedded into graduate health science curricula offers an early foundation to this well-established, universal screening approach.

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Based on training efforts at two universities, this article explores considerations when mental health professionals (MHPs) are trained to work effectively in primary care settings. It first outlines the curriculum of an advanced doctoral level course in health psychology practice. To better refine the experiences of trainees, it then describes a qualitative pilot study of counseling psychology practicum students (N = 4) in a primary care setting. Six themes from the interviews and focus groups are identified: mental health culture, primary care context, challenging entry, adapting to the primary care context, managing complex cases, and results of the collaborative process. Finally, it provides recommendations for future training and research direction.

This study investigated the relationship between life satisfaction, self-esteem, and perceived health for an ethnically diverse, low SES sample of primary care patients. Results indicated that several specific domains of health-related quality of life (HRQL), including health perception, social functioning, mental health, and energy/fatigue, significantly predicted life satisfaction in this sample of 60 patients. Self-esteem mediated this relationship, partially with health perception and fully with the remaining three domains. The results of this study underscore the importance of healthcare interventions that consider the bidirectional relationship between physical and emotional well-being.

This article describes a unique format for graduate education in professional ethics that integrated doctoral-and master's-level instruction in "ethics laboratory" activities for the mutual benefit of both groups of graduate psychology students. Students enrolled in concurrently offered sections of doctoraland master's-level professional ethics courses participated in periodic small group discussions facilitated by the doctoral students. A mixed quantitative and qualitative outcome evaluation provided preliminary support for this instructional method as an effective supplement to traditional classroom pedagogy in providing students with knowledge of ethics codes and models of ethical reasoning. The method was not effective in increasing students' self-reported confidence in their ability to resolve ethical dilemmas. The significance of these findings is discussed.