Running Head: INTERNSHIP CRITIQUE

Internship Critique
Anna Rastatter
The Pennsylvania State University

Internship Critique

Section I: Overview of Internship Activities

Before beginning my internship at Strawberry Fields, Inc. the job duties were clearly
described to me during my interview. In summation, I would be assisting adults who have a
primary mental health diagnosis. This would take place in a rehabilitation program setting. My
job title would be classified as a Psychiatric Direct Support Specialist. The job duties include
assisting the consumers with emotional support, activities of daily living, money and household
management, and social skills. The main job responsibilities were slightly different as an intern.
While full-time Psychiatric Direct Support Specialists, or Goal Managers, are in charge of three
consumers, I would eventually work with one. It was also explained to me in my interview that I
would work up to facilitating meetings and groups on my own. I eventually assumed the
responsibilities for all of the aforementioned job duties.
I took over the role of Goal Manager about halfway through my internship. The consumer
was one of the younger residents in the Community Residential Rehabilitation Program (CRR).
By the end of my internship I was working with my consumer on tasks such as updating his
Residential Service Plan (RSP), creating weekly calendars, and completing his Psychosocial
Assessment. The RSP was an analysis of two to three goals the consumer wanted to focus on
during a two month period. The RSP would list what the consumer and staff would do, both
separately and together, in order to accomplish the goals. Some of these goals could extend over
multiple RSP periods. For the most part, the goals are generally short-term. The Psychosocial
Assessment that I completed with my consumer involved different areas of living that were to be
graded on a scale of 1-5 by both the Goal Manager and the consumer. Some of the areas included
hygiene, nutrition, and finance.

Internship Critique

My other internship duties included running our biweekly Transition Group. The topics
for this group, which included self-advocacy, hospitalization, and physical health, were selected
by my manager. All of the consumers could volunteer to facilitate the group and pick the topic
whenever they wanted. This only happened once during my internship. This group definitely
helped develop facilitation skills. These groups also allowed me to research and discuss many of
the psychiatric principles I learned during my Rehabilitation and Human Services classes. I was
also in charge of running weekly townhouse meetings. These meetings worked to resolve
roommate issues and household concerns. I managed one townhouse with three roommates who
had their fair share of disagreements. I facilitated many discussions between the roommates and
did help them find compromise on many of the issues. I created monthly cleaning calendars as
well as a laundry schedule for my residents.
During the day, I did a lot of work with the medication. I participated in both full-time
and all staff meetings. I also learned the filing system and was able to help with administration
work. I spent a lot of my time with the consumers. Whether it was goal-work or going for
leisurely walks, my afternoons were mostly dedicated to the consumers. I also helped with
household chores and cooking groups. Overall, I felt like I fully dedicated myself to the
Community Residential Rehabilitation program and all of the tasks laid before me.
Section II: Supervision Assessment
Even from the very beginning of my internship, I could tell my supervisor was going to
be wonderful to work with. Throughout my internship I was able to have discussions with my
supervisor about anything from the current state of the mental health field to her suggestions for

Internship Critique

graduate school and further education. She was and will continue to be a great and dependable
resource for me when I have questions regarding the field of mental health.
During training, my supervisor was a very thorough teacher, always insuring that I was
grasping the material. She encouraged me to reach out to any staff member when I had a
question. I took this advice and felt comfortable and secure going to all of the staff with any
questions of concerns. At times, the job admittedly became overwhelming and stressful. My
supervisor and all of the full-time staff were there to discuss and empathize. She was in charge of
many facets of the program, but my supervisor encouraged the staff to take time to check-in with
one another in order to discuss different ways of approaching situations. I greatly appreciated the
work environment. My supervisor was more than willing to be there for us whenever needed. I
could not have asked of a better supervisor, manager, and director. The entire agency provided
more than enough outlets for staff to turn to with whatever they may need.
Section III: Self-Assessment
More than anything, I think the best self-judgment would be based on the progression and
development I made throughout my internship. Initially, I was most intimidated by the
medications and consumer interactions. I was particularly self-conscious of saying something
triggering to the consumers or making a severe mistake with medication administration. By the
completion, I felt most confident in my job duties of managing medication and interacting with
consumers.
The responsibility of controlling so many powerful medications for a dozen people was
overwhelming at first. A severe mistake could put ones life at risk. With the help of my fellow
staff, I was able to gain confidence in my medication management skills. I feel like I learned the

Internship Critique

medication administration quickly. I did everything I could at following exact protocol. The
seriousness of administering medication was and still is always in my mind.
Above all, I kept the best interests of the consumer in mind at all times. With everything I
said or did, I worked to improve the consumers overall quality of life. While at first, I was not
confident in my abilities to reality check and intervene in the case of a crisis, I was eventually
put in situations that required both of these skills. My greatest accomplishment working at the
CRR was definitely the relationships I built with the consumers. This is reflected in the fact that
they are very sad to see me go. Although I will continue to work part-time on the weekends, I
will no longer be there forty hours a week.
I really struggled with handling stress and overwhelming burnout at first. Over the course
of my internship, I developed coping mechanisms to help me with disconnecting my work from
my life. I used my coworkers as a great outlet to discuss the stress I was feeling. I also depended
on my friends and family as a way to establish boundaries at the end of the workday. I will be
sure these resources are in place moving forward in the field.
Section IV: Suggestions for Improving Internship Experience
This most challenging part of this critique is definitely thinking of ways in which my
experience could have been better. There are two minor things that I can think that I would have
liked to have done. This first would have been more exposure to the agencies that the CRR
interacted with. These included Opportunity Centre Clubhouse, Universal Community
Behavioral Help, and hospitals like the Meadows, Mount Nittany Psychiatric Unit, and Danville
State Hospital. Staff at Strawberry Fields was always in contact with these agencies and more. I
would have really enjoyed getting to tour these facilities in order to further my exposure to the

Internship Critique

mental health field. Many of our consumers had connections to these facilities so it would have
been beneficial to have taken tours of these places.
The only other minor improvement I could think to make would have been a more formal
introduction to the consumers. I began my internship during licensing, so it was a very hectic
time for both staff and consumers. This was not something Strawberry Fields or I could have
prevented. I had to introduce myself to many of the consumers while cleaning the staff
townhouse. It was my responsibility to explain to the consumers that I was the new intern, and
describe what that entailed. I would have preferred to have met the residents in a more formal
introduction where time would have been available to get to know one another from the start. I
was not really able to start building relationships with the consumers until the second or third
week on the job. As previously stated, this was not something that could have gone differently
given the situation with licensing. In reflection, it is just something that might have enhanced my
experience.
I am so grateful that my major required this experience of me. Not very many of my
peers are pushed out into their field while still technically in college. My internship experience
was exactly what I wanted it to be. It gave me vast experience in how to better assist people with
mental illness. It was real-world proof that people with mental illness can function independently
and achieve their goals. I am so happy to have been provided with this opportunity. Even more, I
could not be more satisfied that it turned into a job for me. I have met so many wonderful people
and will carry this experience with me as I grow within the field of human services.