By Ty W. Lostutter, PhD, director of the School of Medicine Psychology Internship Program.
For 64 years, the University of Washington School of Medicine’s Psychology Internship Program, an American Psychological Association (APA)-accredited training program, has been at the forefront of preparing the next generation of doctoral-level clinical psychologists. These highly skilled professionals provide essential mental health care across a variety of healthcare settings. Our program trains psychology residents at University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle Children’s Hospital and Clinics, Seattle and Children’s Autism Centers, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and Harborview Medical Center, a Level I pediatric and adult trauma center. They also train to provide care for rural and underserved communities and specialty medical settings across the five-state WWAMI region (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho), where psychological expertise is critical due to shortages of mental health professionals in these locations.
Our program has long relied on Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funding to support some of our training positions, thereby ensuring that psychology residents receive rigorous, high-quality training and transition into careers serving our nation’s most vulnerable populations.
However, a devastating blow came when the federal government abruptly announced a funding cut with just one week’s notice. This announcement coincided with the national match service deadline, which determines where psychology trainees will complete their intensive clinical training under licensed supervision. With virtually no time to prepare, we faced the stark reality of losing critical training slots, positions that directly translate into patient care. Initially, we stood to lose up to nine internship positions for the upcoming training year, dramatically reducing our capacity to train clinical psychologists at a time when the demand for mental health services has never been greater.
Through an urgent, exhaustive effort, we managed to secure alternative non-federal funding to preserve some of these essential positions. However, despite our best efforts, the loss was still significant: three funded positions were eliminated from next year’s training cohort. This means fewer clinical psychologists trained to work in high-need environments, fewer mental health professionals available to support patients in crisis, and fewer specialists equipped to provide care in hospitals, primary-care clinics, and trauma centers where psychological expertise is vital.
Had we been unable to secure alternative funding, the consequences would have been far worse: up to nine lost positions. This would have been a devastating reduction in training opportunities for future psychologists. The impact of this funding cut is not just academic. It is deeply personal for the patients who rely on our trainees for care. From trauma survivors and oncology patients to individuals with chronic illnesses and those in acute psychiatric distress, the ripple effects of these lost positions will be felt across the healthcare system.
Psychology trainees are not just students. They are front-line providers delivering evidence-based mental health care where it is critically needed. The sudden threat of withdrawal of HRSA funding without sufficient notice undermines the stability of training programs and threatens access to care for communities that need it most. If these funding disruptions continue, the long-term effects will be catastrophic and will further exacerbate the nationwide shortage of clinical psychologists and leave countless patients without access to essential mental health services.
We urge the public and policymakers to recognize the profound impact of these funding decisions and to ensure that essential training programs, especially those serving hospitals, trauma centers, and medically underserved areas, receive stable and sustainable support. Investing in psychology training is not just an investment in education; it is an investment in the mental health and well-being of our nation.
