Health promotion in the community: Development of a curriculum for predoctoral clinical psychologists.

There is increasing evidence that life-style choices play a major role in premature illness and death from cardiovascular disease and cancer. Skyrocketing health care costs have promoted interest in health promotion activities. Although clinical psychologists appear to be in a unique position to contribute to health promotion activities, predoctoral training programs in clinical psychology have not generally included health promotion as a significant component. My colleagues and I are developing a curriculum for predoctoral clinical psychologists in the area of health promotion. Our emphasis on community interventions, rather than office- or hospital-based interventions, is consistent with the National Institutes of Health's funding of cardiovascular disease prevention programs at Stanford, Pawtucket, and Minnesota and appears valid from both a public health perspective and a psychological perspective. Our curriculum currently includes didactic and research components, as well as two community health promotion projects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)