Neuropsychology services provides linguistically and culturally sensitive outpatient and inpatient evaluations to English-speaking and bilingual/monolingual non-English speaking adults and seniors with a variety of medical, neurological, and psychiatric concerns including vascular risk factors, Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body dementia, dementia due to HIV, and TBI.

A vast majority of San Mateo Medical Center’s (SMMC) patient population either receives publicly-funded health insurance (Medicare, Medi-Cal, or the County’s insurance program for undocumented residents, ACE) or is uninsured. Many of our patients are homeless or have limited income, disabilities, and/or educational backgrounds. Some of our patients have no formal education and are illiterate. The goal of the Neuropsychology service is to provide equitable services to the underserved utilizing a holistic approach to assessment and conceptualization of cognitive deficits. Patients generally present with complex medical and psychiatric histories.

Most of neuropsychology referrals come from SMMC’s Primary Care Clinics, but we also support medical specialties such as Neurology and Cardiology. Neuropsychology Services is embedded within SMMC’s geriatric primary care clinic, the Ron Robinson Senior Care Clinic (RRSCC). Thus, many of the referrals are from RRSSCC and focus on the assessment of neurodegenerative conditions in a medically complex older adult population utilizing an interdisciplinary team model.

The fellow works alongside the neuropsychologists in assessing this diverse population. The fellow will also have the experience of working with a medical interpreter in assessing these patients utilizing normative data and measures (if available) designed for the specific population. Common languages include, but are not limited to, Spanish, Tagalog, Arabic, and Mandarin and Cantonese

Neuropsychology Training History

Neuropsychology has a long history of training psychology students. In 2015, they started training supplemental practicum students. A few years after, a psychology intern rotation was added within neuropsychology services. In 2023, the current two-year postdoctoral program was created.

Placement Information

For the 2025-2027 training year, one Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Fellowship position is available. This is a full-time position (40 hours/week; minimum of 1800 hours/training year). A 12-month agreement is made at that time, with the second year agreement pending successful completion of the first year. Fellows will maintain at least 24 hours of direct clinical services per week. Satisfactory completion of the Fellowship training program meets the postdoctoral supervised practice requirements for licensure with the California Board of Psychology and Minnesota Conference Guidelines 2022 for training in neuropsychology.

Rotations

Training rotations include outpatient neuropsychological assessment, inpatient neuropsychological assessment, geriatric primary care behavioral health and consultation liaison. Please see the training brochure for detailed descriptions. 

Didactics

Didactics (4-6 hours weekly) emphasize professional development, neuroanatomy, and rounds/seminars at local universities, clinics, and hospitals. Didactics will cover topics that are required by ABCN as well as cross-cultural neuropsychology including basic neurosciences, functional neuroanatomy, neuropathology, clinical neurology, psychological assessment, clinical neuropsychological assessment, psychopathology, psychopharmacology, and psychological intervention. A list of didactic experiences available are included in the brochure.

Stipend & Benefits

Fellows receive a stipend annually which is paid as an hourly wage with a 12-month, full-time training commitment. Please refer to the brochure for details of the stipend. Fellows also have access to health care benefits, on-site fitness facility, free parking, and a monthly credit if using public transportation. This position includes full benefits, including health coverage (various medical, dental, and vision plans) for the Fellow and eligible family members.  In addition to 11 paid County holidays, Fellows will accrue paid vacation hours at a rate of 4 hours for each bi-weekly pay period and paid sick leave at a rate of 3.7 hours for each bi-weekly pay period. In addition to the county holidays fellows may take up to 15 days off for vacation, professional leave and sick time. Additional days off will interfere with the necessary accrual of hours required to complete this 12-month fellowship. Additional electable benefits include life insurance, pet insurance, and a flexible spending account. Please refer to the brochure for additional information.

Application Requirements

Candidates must have completed all professional doctoral degree requirements from an APA-accredited doctoral program and have completed an APPIC-member internship or internship that meets APPIC standards, before beginning postdoctoral training. Candidates should have well-established clinical and research interests in neuropsychology. Candidates must also pass county background check and employee health examinations at the time of hiring. 

​Please refer to the brochure for the application submission due date.

• Curriculum vitae with an appendix indicating which assessment measures you have administered, the number of times you have administered each measure, and the number of written reports using those measures, and total number of comprehensive reports written.
• Cover letter stating professional and academic preparation and work experience as well as career goals and aspirations.
• Three letters of recommendation, including at least two from clinical supervisors who are familiar with your clinical work. 
• Two de-identified neuropsychological reports.
• Official or un-official graduate transcripts.

 All application materials should be emailed to:  Aikisha Harley, PhD, at  HS_Neuropsychology@smcgov.org

Selection Process

Applications will be reviewed by clinical staff and selected applicants will be contacted for an interview. Special consideration will be given to bilingual, Spanish-speaking applicants. 

Please note this fellowship will not follow APPIC Common Hold Day or APPCN match date.

For further information or questions please email:  HS_Neuropsychology@smcgov.org

Neuropsychology Attendings

Dr. Aikisha Harley is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and Neuropsychologist. She earned her doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology with a specialization in neuropsychology at Palo Alto University. She completed her pre-doctoral clinical internship training at the VA Loma Linda Healthcare System and a two-year neuropsychology postdoctoral residency at Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center.
 
Through her various training opportunities, Dr. Harley refined her neuropsychological assessment skills of individuals across the lifespan with various neurological, medical, neurodevelopmental, and psychiatric disorders including neurodegenerative diseases, epilepsy, movement disorders, traumatic brain injury, cancer, ADHD, learning differences, depression, and anxiety. During her postdoctoral fellowship, her training also included pre- and post-surgical evaluations for candidates pursuing deep brain stimulation and temporal lobectomies.
​
Additionally, Dr. Harley has experience providing psychotherapy to adults and seniors with mood disorders secondary to neurocognitive disorders. Her research interests include medical neuropsychology, the impact of mood on cognitive functioning, movement disorders, and cognitive aging. Dr. Harley is a member of the International Neuropsychological Society (INS), Hispanic Neuropsychological Society (HNS), Northern California Neuropsychological Forum (NCNF), and the Chair of the CE Programming Committee of the Society for Black Neuropsychology (SBN).

Dr. Saskia DeVaughn is a Board-Certified Clinical Neuropsychologist with specialized knowledge in differential diagnosis of neurodegenerative disease. After graduating from Palo Alto University, she completed her internship in Geropsychology at the Rocky Mountain VA with a focus on dementia care and caregiver support. Her published research focused on memory processes across dementia syndromes and aging with HIV. During her fellowship at the University of New Mexico, she developed expertise in the evaluation of surgical candidates with epilepsy, brain tumors, and those considered for deep brain stimulation. Dr. DeVaughn also performed clinical brain functional MRI studies for lateralization of language dominance and post-operative risk assessment for language and motor functions. In her free time, she enjoys trail running, home improvement, and boardgames.