Culture-Competence Psychology Clinic

The focus of the Culture-Competence Psychology Clinic is to provide an accessible culture-competence psychological therapy to people in need who live in the periphery of Kiryat Malachi, Kiryat Gat and the surrounding rural settlements, including the Bedouin population in the Negev.

The State of Israel – as a 'melting pot' of Jews from around the world – is characterized by substantial social and cultural heterogeneity. This includes several large minority groups: Ultra-Orthodox Jews (haredim), Arabs, Jews who immigrated from Ethiopia and others.

These population sectors are highly under-represented among:

(1) professionals providing mental health services in general,

(2) clinical psychologists in particular.

In addition, due to traditional reasons and restrictions, mental services have not yet become accesible to these sectors.

Within the framework of a comprehensive national effort, wherein a variety of service providers and national policy makers are involved, Achva has taken upon itself to play a key role aimed at training a new generation of clinical psychologists with an understanding of this situation.

We decided to provide a response to the aforementioned dual national and regional need, and to make the mental health services more accessible to these several large minority groups.

Achva Academic College undertook the challenge and created a first of its kind Master's degree program of Cultural Sensitivity in Clinical Psychology; whose goal is aimed at filling the critical shortage of therapists in the region. This shortage is reflected in the paucity of therapists, as well as long waiting lists of many months.

Alongside with the Master's degree program of Cultural Sensitivity in Clinical Psychology, a Culture-competence psychology clinic is being established at the college.

The focus of the proposed culture-competence psychology clinic is to provide an accessible culture-competence psychological therapy to people in need – preferably members of the afordmentioned several large minority groups – who live in the periphery of Kiryat Malachi, Kiryat Gat and the surrounding rural settlements, including the Bedouin population in the Negev.

Achva students will be able to conduct their practical studies requirements for their practicum and specialization in the proposed clinic when enrolled in the recently announced Cultural Sensitivity in Clinical Psychology Master’s Degree program.