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VANESSA ERICKSON

Internship Field: Medicine

Major: Psychology

Host: Tagesklinik für kognitive Neurologie

Location: Leipzig, Germany

Duration: January-March 1998

 

Description: Vanessa spent most of her time either accompanying other therapists with patients or on one-on-one therapy between her and the patient.

Comments: The internship that I held at the Tagesklinik für kognitive Neurologie in Leipzig is perfect for anyone interested in neurology andneuropsychology. Patients at the clinic have been diagnosed with some form of brain damage, the degree of which varies form mild to extreme, depending on the patient. The goal of the clinic is to help these patients function as best as possible within their daily lives, training them to be able to care for themselves (in the most extreme cases) or preparing them for their re-entrance into the work force. The clinic offers therapy and treatment in a variety of categories, including neuropsychological, speech, occupational, physical and optical therapy. Each patient's program at thre clinic is designed to help them in those categories in which they have the severest deficiencies. In the case of neuropsychology, cognitive aspects are focused on for training. These aspects include memoray, attention, problem-solving and comprehension, among others. The neuropsychologists at the clinic have much experience with student interns (and, now, American interns), and know exactly how to incorporate them into thre clinic, so that the intern can gain as much useful experience as possible. The first thing that was done after I arrived was to assign me specific patients, whom I would concentrate on for my time here. I then accompanied these patients during their sessions with neuropsychologists (there are currently six here at the clinic), observing and learning both diagnostic and therapy techniques appropriate to the field of neuropsychology. The more I observed and learned, the more I was then allowed to work individually with patients -- something not easily done in America. The work I did was extremely rewarding, both in what I gained as a personal experience, as well as being able to help patients work towards their goals.

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