Clinical-Child Psychology Fellowship

The American Psychological Association (APA) accredited Clinical-Child Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship is pleased to offer 12 full time, advanced training fellowship positions at its newly established department of psychology. The fellowship provides exceptional clinical training within the context of a leading national academic children’s hospital affiliated with the USC Keck School of Medicine. Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) is located in the heart of a high-density, low-income, culturally diverse neighborhood and reflects the community it serves, with over 70% of patients representing ethnic minorities. Our fellowship, which is embedded within the hospital’s Community Mental Health Program, has been a consistent presence in Los Angeles, the state of California, and the nation for decades and provides fellows with advanced training in delivering high-quality care to a wide range of clinical patients with significant medical, developmental, and psychosocial complexity.

The one-year (12 months) program provides advanced training in 6 fellowship tracks. Fellows are recruited for individual tracks and are offered rotations and training opportunities in a variety of departments and clinical services. On the second year of fellowship, it is possible to choose some rotations/ training activities in other tracks. The tracks practice areas include:

1. Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine
2. Child and Family Community Psychology
3. Early Childhood Mental Health
4. Pediatric Psychology
5. Trauma Psychology
6. Combined Early Childhood and Pediatric Psychology

The fellowship is designed to train psychologists to assume expert leadership roles in clinical psychology in pediatric, community and medical settings. Depending on the emphasis area, fellows may gain professional experience in outpatient medical and mental health clinics, community clinics, field-based services, schools, primary care clinics, or in-patient training in pediatric hospital units. Through intensive supervision, didactic lectures and seminars, research and program development activities, and direct patient contact and consultation opportunities, fellows develop advanced clinical skills in their emphasis area.

The fellowship grounded in the philosophy that basic psychological principles and procedures drawn from behavioral, cognitive, family systems and developmental theories should be integrated in a family-centered manner for effective and ethical psychological care. Based on an integrated community mental health and health psychology principles, it provides opportunities to develop and refine advanced professional skills in clinical child and pediatric psychology, as well as an integrated professional identity.

The program uses the scientist-practitioner model of clinical practice. Fellows participate in scholarly projects, critically evaluate research findings relevant to their clinical work, and examine empirical evidence for various assessment and research activities they use in clinical work. Fellows have access to training and education associated with the leading-edge clinical behavioral health research being conducted at CHLA and USC.

Program Aims and Objectives

The goal of the Clinical-Child Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship is to train psychologists to function as pediatric clinical psychology experts in the community and health centers/hospitals. Fellows develop individualized training programs to tailor their experiences to meet their professional development goals and interests. The program provides a comprehensive training experience in an interdisciplinary setting that meets the qualifications of the American Psychological Association.

The fellowship aims are to train fellows to:

• Acquire advanced clinical skills in their track/emphasis area, including assessment and intervention skills.
• Use evidence-based best practices and integrate research activities into their clinical work.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary treatment teams and acquire advanced skills in consultation.
• Grow their skills related to cultural competency and fighting racism in the practice of psychology. Fellows will include all aspects of diversity, equity and inclusion in their practice, and develop competency in advocating for racial and social justice in the context of the psychology profession.
• Gain supervisory and leadership skills.
• Develop personal and professional qualities necessary to function as an advanced, independent psychologist while adhering to all ethical and legal practice guidelines.

Fellowship Structure

The CHLA training year begins September 1 and ends August 31. Applications will be accepted on a rolling bases until all positions are filled.

The postdoctoral fellowship offers a range of clinical training experiences that are involved in all its tracks/ emphasis areas. Within each emphasis area, fellows are integrated into the treatment team and are expected to take on increasingly advanced duties as the training progresses. Specialty focused clinics give emphasis to consultation and intervention services. Fellows work with a diverse population characterized by a variety of clinical presentations and utilize multiple treatment modalities. They receive training in evidence-based practices focused on the population of their track, and match their clinical interest, as well as their research and academic skills. Fellows who choose to stay for a second year may have opportunities to be trained and practice evidence-based practices across tracks. Scholarly or program development / evaluation activities are also integrated into the two-year fellowship-training track making it possible for fellows choosing a two-year fellowship to spend more time in year two working on these content areas. Fellows have the option to participate in numerous hospital rounds and other training opportunities at CHLA and USC.

Fellows in all the tracks receive training and experience addressing the unique needs of a diverse population of children and families. In addition to low-income, ethnically, and culturally diverse families, specialized services are provided to children and youth with developmental disabilities and chronic health conditions, families involved in the foster care system, and sexual minority youth and families.

Program Administration

The Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship at CHLA is under the direction of Sara Sherer, PhD who also serves as the Psychology Training Director at CHLA. Dr. Sherer who has been at Children’s Hospital since her postdoctoral fellowship training in 1989. Dr. Amy West, who joined CHLA in 2017, is the Associate Training Director.

The Director of the Department of Psychology is Anya Griffin, PhD who joined CHLA in 2023 and is the first Director of Psychology for the CHLA Behavioral Health program.

Drs. Sherer, West, and Poulsen are licensed psychologists in the state of California and have academic appointments in the Department of Pediatrics within the USC Keck School of Medicine.

Fellowship Tracks

Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine

Program Area Leader: Mari Radzik, PhD

Anticipated positions: 2

This fellowship track is embedded in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. The Division is a leader in the comprehensive care of adolescents and young adults in the Los Angeles area. The Division’s goal is to promote the health and well-being of adolescents and their families through the provision of youth-specific services, research, and training, and to impact public policy and advocate for the needs of youth, particularly vulnerable, hidden, and disenfranchised youth. The Division offers a wide range of programs aimed at addressing the needs of youth ages 12 through 24. Medical care, mental health services and substance abuse treatment are offered through outpatient clinics at the hospital and in community-based settings easily accessible to youth. Since 1982, the Division has focused on reducing risks for young people through models of prevention and intervention established in partnership with the community.

Fellows have opportunities to collaborate and provide care for youth receiving care from the following programs:

The Teenage and Young Adult Health Center – This medical clinic provides outpatient care to chronically ill youth who are hospitalized at CHLA. The clinic also treats youth from the surrounding community for regular medical follow-up and consultation care. Youth receive specialized care from experts in adolescent medicine, medical fellows, and pediatric residents. The clinic provides well adolescent care as well as care for medical conditions such as spina bifida, eating disorders and genetic conditions. The psychology fellows have a consultation / liaison role with the medical team and build close relationships with the attending physicians and medical fellows who treat their patients.

My Voice Transition Clinic – This program provides interdisciplinary care and support for CHLA patients age 15 and older who will transition out of medical care at CHLA to adult care in the community. Specialty clinics in rheumatology, solid organ transplant, renal disease, and cardiology refer their transitioning youth to the My Voice Transition Clinic for specialized case management, adolescent specific medical/nursing care, and mental health counseling. Motivational Interviewing is a key tool used to help these youth with adherence, transitioning, and follow-up issues.

NATEEN – This program provides case management and support for expecting and parenting teen mothers. Psychology fellows may be involved in providing individual/group psychotherapy and work closely with NATEEN case managers.

The Homeless Adolescent and Young Adult Wellness Center – This program provides health care, mental health, case management and support for runaway and homeless youth in Hollywood and the surrounding communities. The program is part of a larger collaborative in the Hollywood area that focuses on improving the network of care for runaway and homeless youth. Fellows provide services to unhoused youth at the clinic, drop-in centers, youth shelters, through outreach, and more.

The Risk Reduction Program – This program provides health care, mental health counseling, case management and support for HIV positive youth and youth at risk for HIV (including a program serving transgender youth). Psychology fellows could be involved in working with HIV positive or at-risk youth and working at the Transyouth Clinic. Consultation-liaison with the medical and case management team is an important aspect of training with this program.

The Center for Transyouth Health and Development – This program, the largest transgender focused program in the world, provides services that promote healthy futures for transyouth by providing medical care, case management, mental health services, research, training and capacity-building for gender non-conforming children and transyouth, that is developmentally informed, affirmative, compassionate and holistic. Fellows involved with the center provide trauma informed care and lead group as well as partner with scholarly work.

The Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Program – This program specializes in non-residential prevention and treatment of substance related issues affecting adolescents. The services are free of charge and there are no financial requirements for eligibility. Once youth are assessed, they are assigned to prevention or treatment services to receive individual, family, and/or group interventions. Through the GPE grant, the psychology fellows may collaborate with the substance abuse counselors when their clients display symptoms of co-occurring disorders or need intensive substance abuse treatment.

Research and Evaluation – Adolescent Medicine staff and faculty conduct research and evaluation projects to help divisional programs evaluate the impact of their interventions/services with the purpose of improving youth and community outcomes and developing best practices. Fellows who choose to stay for a second year will have opportunities for involvement in a broad range of projects and engage with the research faculty to work on projects of their choosing. Fellows committed to a second-year fellowship may start their research involvement earlier.

The Outpatient Behavioral Health Program in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine is an integral part of a comprehensive treatment team providing adolescents and their families with a range of services to address their unique needs. Fellows are embedded in the program and services include psychoeducational assessment, individual, collateral, family, and group therapy. Individualized training plans are designed with fellows based on fellows’ interests and professional needs. The core fellowship rotation is carrying an outpatient caseload of therapy cases/leading adolescent groups in the behavioral health program. Adolescent medicine fellows are trained in one or more of the following evidence-based practices: Seeking Safety, Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT), and Dialectic Behavioral Therapy (DBT. Additional evidence-based practices may be taught and utilized as needed. Fellows are part of a team that provides multiple group services to support youth with social skills deficits, anger management issues, transition issues, the sequelae of sexual abuse, provide female empowerment, support for parents struggling with parenting adolescents, and more. A wide range of clinical presentations is available including gender care, mood disorders, developmental disabilities, eating disorder, and more. Fellows in this rotation will also be required to conduct at least one comprehensive psychoeducational assessment of an adolescent during the first year of the fellowship.

Additional training opportunities are to rotate through the CHLA Eating Disorders Program, and to engage in a Consultation Liaison rotation in a number of programs at the main campus.

Training and Collaboration

The fellowship in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine offers opportunities for training and interdisciplinary collaboration at multiple locations. The client pool includes a diverse, primarily low-income population of adolescents and families referred by adolescent medicine physicians, health providers at the surrounding communities, schools, the probation department, the Department of Children and Family Services and others. Common diagnostic issues include mood disorders, disruptive behaviors, eating disorders, substance abuse and co-occurring disorders, transitional age issues, mental health issues related to chronic and life-threatening medical conditions, PTSD, family conflicts, developmental disabilities, and more.

Fellows with the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine receive rotation-specific individual and group supervision (including weekly supervision with the medical fellows), All the first-year fellows participate in the LEAH Program (a required rotation). All the fellows participate in weekly didactics (adolescent rounds, advanced behavioral health series, case presentations, journal club), adolescent rounds, as well as seminars involving medical fellows and trainees from multiple disciplines focused on interdisciplinary consultation and liaison services.

Fellows receive supervision from two Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine clinical supervisors, and one assessment group supervisor who leads the Advanced Assessment Seminar - a bi-monthly meeting focused on standardized assessment strategies and methods most appropriate for the evaluation of teens and young adults. Supervisors collaborate to provide evaluations and feedback. Through clinical work, supervision and training fellows hone and mature their clinical acumen and grow to become confident licensed professionals and leaders in the field of adolescent mental health.

By joining the Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine team, fellows will be taking leadership roles in this multidisciplinary environment. For example, fellows will teach pediatric residents about psychosocial issues such as adolescent development, suicide assessment and transference/countertransference. The psychology fellows, in collaboration with medical fellows, also create and facilitate the curriculum of the weekly adolescent rounds. Presentations and conference submissions are also highly encouraged.

Child and Family Community Psychology

Program Area Leader: Dean Coffey, PsyD, MS

Anticipated positions: 2

The Child and Family Community Psychology Fellowship is located within the Child and Family Program Area that provides a wide range of mental health services focused on children ages six to 12 years and their families within the community mental health center. The fellowship provides psychology postdoctoral fellows with an interprofessional training experience in the School Age Clinic, along with a curriculum focused on evidence-based psychotherapy practices and advanced comprehensive assessment training. The primary fellowship training setting in which each fellow participates, is an interdisciplinary, team-based, behavioral care experience in partnership with pediatric specialists, occupational therapists, nurses and related disciplines in the School Age Clinic. Child and family fellows provide psychotherapy, assessment, and consultation services to children and their families from culturally diverse backgrounds in the program’s community mental health center. These services include individual and family psychotherapy, evidence-based group therapy, consultation, and psychological assessment, as well as training to assume interdisciplinary team leadership roles in the School Age Clinic.

Clinical child services address a broad range of emotional, behavioral, cognitive and/or neuro-developmental problems. Child and family clinicians utilize a variety of evidence-based clinical intervention approaches, including the Incredible Years® Parent and Child Training Programs, Coping Cat, Rainbow Therapy, and The Secret Agent Society for children on the autism spectrum. Child and family fellows play key roles in expanding evidence-based practice approaches used in the program. Diagnostic categories include attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders (ADHD), disruptive behavior disorders, mood disorders, adjustment disorders, anxiety disorders, social-skills development and a variety of other chronic, or acute mental health problems. Psychological assessment services include comprehensive psycho-educational and neuro-developmental assessment batteries utilizing a broad variety of tools and strategies, including assessment approaches for bilingual children. Training opportunities are designed based on fellows’ interests and professional skills/training needs.

The Child and Family Community Psychology fellows receive training in providing parent and child groups and have the opportunity to participate in co-facilitating Incredible Years® Parent and Child Group Therapy. The Incredible Years® Parenting Program and Dina Child Group Therapy are evidence-based interventions for the prevention and treatment of early onset conduct problems in young children. The intervention is based on Social Cognitive Theory, which hypothesizes that parents and children learn best from modeling and spontaneously practicing skills. The treatment model employs rehearsal interventions to make each group a fun and positive experience that has been shown empirically to generalize to the parent-child relationship. When leading Incredible Years groups, fellows participate in a learner-centered weekly parent and child group leader supervision, which is conducted using the peer coach model developed by Carolyn Webster-Stratton, PhD, with the goal of facilitating the development of a reflective therapeutic stance.

The Child and Family Area also offers training in Pediatric Mood and Anxiety Disorders, under the mentorship of Amy West, PhD. The fellow choosing to specialize in this area will focus on delivering evidence-based interventions for a range of pediatric mood and anxiety disorders. This fellow will be trained on the Child- and Family-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy/RAINBOW therapy individual and group intervention models for youth with mood disorders developed by Dr. West and co-facilitate the delivery of intervention groups to youth with transdiagnostic mood dysregulation. In addition, this fellow will be trained in the Coping Cat intervention for pediatric anxiety disorders (Also see research opportunities). While this fellow’s work will be focused on delivering interventions for pediatric mood and anxiety disorders through the Child and Family Community Psychology Fellowship and Dr. West’s clinical and research programs, there may be opportunities to participate in the School Age Clinic and the Incredible Years groups with other Child and Family fellows. This opportunity would be ideal for a candidate with interests in a career in academic medicine and/or an interest in the integration of clinical work and research.

In addition to group supervision, fellows participate in a weekly advanced interprofessional didactic series designed to prepare them to practice as clinical child and adolescent psychologists in community mental health clinic settings. The didactics include professional development, discussion of relevant research literature pertaining to mental health service delivery, standardized psychological assessment, and embrace a collaborative learning process through presentations by faculty and fellows. Fellows within the Child and Family Community Psychology Fellowship regularly participate in the following interprofessional consultation/assessment clinics and training seminars, which are also options for fellows in other program areas if staying for a second year of fellowship:

School Age Clinic (SAC) – This is an interprofessional consultation and care clinic coordinated by psychology faculty and staffed by psychologists, developmental behavioral pediatricians, psychiatrists, occupational therapists, nurses, speech language pathologists, social workers and their interns, residents, and fellows. Psychology fellows in SAC are trained to be leaders of interdisciplinary teams conducting diagnostic assessments, improving and overseeing screening systems, and facilitating effective functioning among the patient, interprofessional team and the family. Advanced fellows fulfill leadership and preceptor roles for doctoral psychology interns who are also training in SAC. Fellows also participate in a weekly Didactic and Case Conference Seminar, a weekly interprofessional meeting during which faculty, fellows and interns participate in a didactic series with a focus on behavioral, emotional, developmental and learning needs of school age children. Fellows are both learners and teachers in this seminar. Case presentations and formal didactic presentations are the primary learning and teaching strategies.

Child and Family Fellowship Advanced Assessment Seminar - This is a regularly scheduled meeting twice per month of faculty psychologists and child and family fellows with a focus on school age standardized assessment strategies and methods. This is an advanced assessment seminar with a progressive curriculum. Case conferences, scoring and administration workshops and informal didactic presentations are employed as learning and teaching strategies.

Child and Family Fellows Reading Group – In this group, child and family fellows meet twice per month to read and discuss professional treatment guidelines and seminal research publications. The reading group expands exposure to the best in the research literature to inform clinical care and professional practice in preparation for licensure and practice as an Early Career Psychologist.

Research Opportunities - Child and family fellows can participate in a variety of mentored scholarly projects with Child and Family faculty or faculty from other program areas, depending on interest and faculty projects available.

Early Childhood Mental Health

Program Area Leader: Marian Williams, PhD

Anticipated positions: 2

The Early Childhood Mental Health Program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles provides comprehensive mental health services to children ages birth to 5 and their families. The major referral sources for the program include the CHLA foster care hub (infants and toddlers in out-of-home care); physicians referring children with chronic or acute medical conditions that may be impacting behavior and emotions; and preschools referring children due to disruptive behavior or other concerns. Many of the children served have developmental delays or disabilities (including autism spectrum disorders) in addition to their primary mental health need.

The Early Childhood Mental Health emphasis area is designed to provide advanced training for psychologists interested in pursuing specialized training in infant/toddler and preschool mental health. Early Childhood Mental Health fellows will learn to conduct infant, toddler and preschool age assessment and evaluation, treatment and intervention with very young children and their families and will provide consultation to community providers that serve this population. There are ample opportunities within the program to obtain specialized expertise in assessment and intervention with autism spectrum disorders, young children in the foster care system, and young children with medical conditions. In addition to a general set of competencies, each fellow will develop a specialized area of focus during the fellowship. The intense curriculum allows for in-depth experiences in assessment and intervention. In addition, fellows who choose to stay for a second year will also have opportunities for involvement in research and scholarly publications are available, particularly related to autism spectrum disorders.

The Early Childhood fellowship is designed to meet the competencies required for certification as an Infant-Family Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist and a Reflective Practice Facilitator II for the California Center for Infant-Family and Early Childhood Mental Health endorsement process. The Early Childhood fellowship includes a biweekly seminar focused on learning Reflective Supervision skills, including reflective supervision for their role as intern supervisors. During the first year of fellowship, the early childhood fellows participate in a weekly Early Childhood Seminar, which provides didactic training on a range of topics related to early childhood development, assessment approaches, and intervention models for young children.

Early childhood fellows participate in weekly group supervision, with an alternating focus on Child-Parent Psychotherapy and Floortime. In addition, they participate in weekly individual supervision with two assigned supervisors from the Early Childhood Program, with one supervision session focused on assessment and one on intervention. Supervision uses a reflective supervision approach.

Training in Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) leads to fellows becoming rostered by the CPP developers as a CPP therapist. Training includes a 2½ day training in September of the first year in CPP, a two-day booster session in March of the first year, and a two-day booster session in October/November of the second year (CPP rostering requires more than 12 months so fellows wanting to get rostered will need to stay for the second optional year). Throughout fellowship, fellows provide CPP to at least four families, receive individual supervision in CPP, and participate in twice monthly CPP group supervision with other trainees and staff.

Early Childhood fellows will be involved in the following Early Childhood array of services. Both outpatient intervention and infant & early childhood assessment clinic are required, core activities for Early Childhood fellows. Fellows have flexibility in the types of clients they prefer to focus on and can opt to have fewer therapy cases in order to add a rotation in a different program area of interest, depending on supervisory availability.

• Outpatient intervention – Providing mental health services to young children and families using relationship-based approaches. The services utilize a primary focus on dyadic interventions with caregivers and their children based upon best practice and evidence-based models of treatment. Specific models of treatment taught include Child-Parent Psychotherapy (Lieberman’s model), Floortime-based interventions, as well as developmental guidance, play therapy and family therapy. Consultation to primary care physicians, preschool teachers, early intervention providers, daycare providers, children’s services social workers, and other community providers involved in the child’s life are also provided. Services may be provided in the clinic, in home and in preschools, depending on the clinical needs of the child and family.
• Infant and Early Childhood Assessment Clinic – Provides comprehensive interdisciplinary assessments for children ages birth to 5 years old. Common referral questions include second opinions regarding diagnoses of autism spectrum disorders and intellectual disability, as well as diagnoses related to regulatory and learning difficulties, chronic medical conditions, and trauma exposure. Assessments are conducted by an interdisciplinary team, typically including developmental-behavioral pediatricians, speech-language pathologists, and occupational therapists, in addition to psychologists. Fellows learn best practices approaches to the assessment of young children, including mastery of the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development – IV, clinical use of the ADOS-2 and other autism assessment tools, and measures to evaluate cognitive and social-emotional development.
• Group Therapies for Young children and Their Parents – Fellows in the Early Childhood Program have opportunities to learn and implement the Floortime group model, and the Incredible Years model of parent and child groups (described above under Child and Family emphasis area)

Pediatric Psychology

Program Area Leader: Melissa C. Carson, PsyD

Anticipated positions: 2

The Pediatric Psychology Program at CHLA offers postdoctoral fellowship training that provides the opportunity to develop expertise in psychological intervention for children, adolescents and families impacted by acute or chronic illness. As pediatric psychologists, we specialize in focusing on the psychological, emotional, neurocognitive, and behavioral aspects of illness, and the promotion of health behaviors within the hospital, school, and community settings.

The pediatric psychology fellows work alongside primary and subspecialty medical care providers to support children and families throughout their medical care at CHLA. Pediatric Psychology fellows will gain clinical experience by working with patients referred from the following interdisciplinary pediatric clinics: The Cancer and Blood Disease Institute, the Pediatric Pain Management Clinic, Plastic Surgery/Craniofacial Clinic, the Division of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, the Feeding Clinic, Nephrology, Pulmonology, Cystic Fibrosis Clinic, the Heart Institute, General Pediatrics Clinic, Neurology, Rheumatology, Endocrinology, the Heart Institute, Medical Genetics, Orthopedics, and other specialty medical divisions at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Inpatient consultation liaison activities are available to all pediatric psychology fellows through the Cancer and Blood Disease Institute and through the Inpatient Consultation Liaison Psychiatry service at CHLA. Inpatient consultations may also be received from other specialty medical teams at CHLA. Fellows will choose 1-2 of the previously described subspecialty clinics and/or the inpatient consultation liaison service in which to participate in core training activities, including consultation with medical providers, outpatient and inpatient therapy services, and didactic training.

The pediatric psychology fellow may provide the following: evidenced-based interventions for individuals, families, and groups that target common pediatric psychology concerns; inpatient and outpatient consultation/liaison services for interdisciplinary medical teams; psychodiagnostic assessments; and advocacy. The Pediatric Psychology Program currently offers group interventions to address adherence with diabetes regimens; self-esteem and assertiveness for children with craniofacial diagnoses; and an acceptance and commitment therapy group for patients coping with chronic pain management techniques. The pediatric psychology fellows receive training through a variety of mechanisms, including mentorship in consulting with interdisciplinary medical clinics; advanced pediatric psychology didactics; case conferences; and individual and group supervision. Fellows who choose to stay for an optional second year will also have opportunities take leadership roles in one of their identified areas of clinical interest, as well as opportunities for involvement in research and scholarly publications.

CHLA is currently recruiting two pediatric psychology postdoctoral fellows. Each of the pediatric psychology fellows will have a primary clinical assignment in one or more of the following specialty Pediatric Psychology clinical areas, chosen by the fellow:

Inpatient Consultation and Liaison Psychiatry Service

Psychologist: Heather Kertesz-Briest, PsyD

The Consultation-Liaison Team provides multidisciplinary mental health assessments, treatment interventions and recommendations for patients, ages 0-21, hospitalized at CHLA. The Inpatient Consultation-Liaison Team is comprised of a psychologist, psychiatric social workers, psychiatrists, and psychiatry fellows. This team is available to other divisions of the hospital who admit patients for serious medical injury or illness that could benefit from behavioral health care while hospitalized. The team addresses emotional, behavioral, developmental, and cognitive challenges of hospitalized acutely or chronically ill children and adolescents admitted to CHLA.

The psychology fellow would provide brief psychological assessment, case conceptualizations and practical recommendations to the primary medical team. The psychology fellow will also provide short-term individual and family intervention using evidence-based practices. The psychology fellow will engage in multidisciplinary case consultation to select, plan, and evaluate treatment programs for the patient; provide consultation to other care providers and health educators on matters relating to mental health, health psychology and behavioral medicine; provide support for medical and nursing and ancillary staff in implementation of strategies and plans focused on behavior management; provide effective liaison to the primary medical team requesting psychological/psychiatric support in direct patient care, and with outside therapists or clinicians as appropriate; and work with the multidisciplinary team to develop, coordinate, implement and evaluate clinical treatment for the program. The psychology fellow will have the opportunity to participate in a range of additional training opportunities including attending daily psychiatry rounds, multidisciplinary eating disorder rounds, psychiatry didactic seminars, multidisciplinary meetings, and additional training didactics that take place throughout the rotation.

Pediatric Pain Management Clinic

Psychologists: Alexis Yetwin, PhD, and Jeffrey Gold, PhD

The Pediatric Pain Management Clinic at CHLA is a comprehensive, multidisciplinary program dedicated to the prevention, assessment and treatment of pediatric chronic pain and associated mood, sleep and functional impairment (e.g., academic, social). We provide interdisciplinary care to patients across the lifespan using the biopsychosocial model. The Division of Pain Medicine offers outpatient and inpatient services and is comprised of psychologists, physicians (child/adolescent psychiatrist, pediatric anesthesiologists), a physician assistant, acupuncturists, and a dog therapy program. In the outpatient pain clinic, youth are usually seen jointly by a pain physician and psychologist for appointments. Psychology fellows who rotate through the Pain Clinic will receive clinical training and didactics in pediatric pain assessment/management and pain psychology consultation and can participate in direct clinical care (pain psychology consultation and psychotherapy) and participate in research in pain medicine.

Cancer and Blood Disease Institute

Psychologist: Kathleen Ingman, PhD, ABPP

The Cancer and Blood Disease Institute (CBDI) is one of the premier pediatric cancer and blood disorder treatment centers in the country, providing services to children and teens with cancer and blood disorders, and their families. The HOPE Behavioral Health Service, Neuropsychology and Education Service, a component of the Survivorship and Supportive Care Program, provides psychosocial support services to these patients and their families, and works closely with physicians, nurses, social workers, Child Life specialists and psychiatrists to provide integrated care. Pediatric psychology fellows provide psychological evaluation and treatment of specific behavioral, emotional or adjustment problems related to the patient’s diagnosis and treatment of cancer or a blood disorder. Patients are referred at all stages of illness and treatment, including new diagnosis, ongoing treatment, end-of-treatment into survivorship and end-of-life. Services are primarily provided in an outpatient clinic and via telehealth; however, fellows also provide inpatient consultation-liaison as part of their training. Psychological interventions are evidence-based and generally problem-focused and time-limited in duration, and include individual, family and group approaches. Inpatient consultation-liaison activities include brief evaluation of presenting concerns and recommendations for care, including brief intervention and follow-up as needed for the duration of the inpatient stay. 
The CBDI also offers a potential placement for advanced fellows as embedded consultants in the outpatient neuro-oncology clinic. In this placement, fellows provide brief consultation to patients in the neuro-oncology clinic as part of their medical visits, working collaboratively with physicians, nurses, social workers, and other interdisciplinary providers to meet the complex needs of this population.

The Division of Clinical Immunology and Allergy

Psychologist: Jennifer Hershfield, PhD

The Division of Clinical Immunology and Allergy treats patients with severe allergic disease, asthma, primary immune deficiency disorders, and HIV/AIDS. The Gores Family Allergy Center, housed within the Division, has been designated a Center of Excellence by FARE and provides coordinated interdisciplinary care from a team of allergists as well as a dietitian, nurse coordinator and pediatric psychologist. Common presenting concerns include adjustment to a new diagnosis and/or ongoing treatment, anxiety, depression, behavior problems and suboptimal adherence/inappropriate risk-taking. Pediatric psychology fellows provide individual and family psychotherapy as well as assessment, consultation and advocacy. Services are primarily provided in an outpatient clinic setting. Fellows have the opportunity to provide consultation and brief intervention in the multidisciplinary Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disorder Program, the oral immunotherapy program, and to provide outreach and community education through the Gores Family Allergy Center. Opportunities for problem-focused and time-limited as well as long-term psychotherapy are available.

Division of Plastic Surgery and Maxillofacial Surgery

Psychologist: Alexis Johns, PhD, ABPP

The Division of Plastic Surgery and Maxillofacial Surgery at CHLA includes Care Centers for Craniofacial and Cleft, Craniosynostosis, Facial Paralysis, Orthognathic Surgery, Microtia, and Vascular Anomalies. Over 15 disciplines are represented among the Care Center providers and more than 6,500 patients are seen annually. Several of the Care Centers follow patients across their development from birth through early adulthood, including both typically developing children and patients with genetic diagnoses or other developmental disabilities. Psychology services and training opportunities include individual, family and group therapy, as well as advocacy, assessment and consultation. Services are provided within a biopsychosocial model with an emphasis on cultural sensitivity and interdisciplinary collaboration. There are also ongoing research projects related to craniofacial populations. Additional information about the Division is available here. There may also be training opportunities within the Children’s Orthopedic Center.

Nephrology

A psychology fellow will have the opportunity to provide consultation to CHLA’s interdisciplinary nephrology team. This includes providing services for children who are receiving peritoneal dialysis or hemodialysis, as well as those listed for kidney transplantation. The Kidney Transplant Program has some of the largest pediatric kidney transplant volumes in the nation. The program offers a living donor option to transplant candidates, improving available surgical treatment options. We provide services on the Renal Dialysis Unit, affording our patients access to comprehensive care management. From a psychological perspective, adjustment to a post-transplant medical regimen can be difficult for children and families; therefore, psychosocial support is provided to address obstacles to adherence and promote positive transplant outcomes. Intervention is provided to promote readiness for transplantation and adherence post-transplant. The fellow will provide ongoing intervention to patients and families, both on an inpatient and outpatient basis. Adjustment issues, adherence, school reintegration, body image issues, depression and anxiety are common reasons for referral. Individual and family therapy services are offered.

Pediatric Feeding Development Program

Psychologist: Olivia Hsin, PhD

The Pediatric Feeding Development Program is dedicated to the evaluation and treatment of children with complex feeding problems and comorbid mental health diagnoses, medical diagnoses, and/or developmental disabilities. The interdisciplinary team, consisting of psychology, developmental behavioral pediatrics, nutrition, occupational therapy, and speech and language pathology, provides interdisciplinary outpatient services for children and their families. This position includes both assessment and outpatient treatment opportunities. With respect to assessment, the interdisciplinary feeding team evaluates how a child’s history of anxiety, trauma, emotional functioning, behaviors, child-parent interactions, medical history, oral-motor skills, sensory issues, nutrition, and /or developmental factors may impact each other and the child’s feeding challenges. The evaluation identifies barriers to optimal feeding development and guides treatment recommendations. Family-centered and culturally sensitive outpatient individual, dyadic, family, and/or group therapy is provided for children and their families to address feeding challenges and the impact these challenges have on a child’s life, including mood, child-parent relationships, family functioning, peer relationships or school functioning. Co-treatment with other disciplines is provided when clinically indicated. Additional research opportunities may be available, depending on the fellow’s interest and experience. Previous experience in feeding is not necessary.

Cardiology

Psychologist: Priyanka Doshi, PsyD

The Heart Institute is dedicated to caring for children, adolescents, and young adults with heart conditions. The Heart Institute at CHLA consistently ranks among the top pediatric cardiology and heart surgery programs nationwide according to U.S. News & World Report. The Heart Institute Psychologist provides psychological intervention to children, adolescents, and families who may be experiencing any spectrum of heart disease, ranging from arrhythmias and cardiomyopathy to heart failure requiring a transplant. The Heart Institute psychologist works closely with an interdisciplinary team, consisting of physicians, social workers, child life specialists, nurses and rehabilitation therapists to provide integrated care. A pediatric psychology fellow would have the opportunity to provide outpatient and inpatient consultation and brief or long-term intervention. Fellows would additionally have the ability to participate in multidisciplinary transplant rounds as well as transplant clinic. Common presenting concerns include adjustment to new diagnosis/coping with medical condition, anxiety, depression, behavior problems, and nonadherence.

Cystic Fibrosis

Psychologist: Alexis Yetwin, PhD

The Cystic Fibrosis Center at CHLA provides comprehensive, multidisciplinary care to infants, children, adolescents, and young adults with cystic fibrosis. The CF Center at CHLA is one of only four CF centers nationally recognized as an outstanding partner of the CF Foundation. The CF Center runs two half-day multidisciplinary outpatient clinics each week. The CF Team is comprised of pulmonologists, a nurse practitioner, dietitians, a social worker, a psychologist, respiratory therapists, a nurse care manager, pharmacist, geneticist, and research nurses. As a psychology fellow rotating through this clinic, you would have the opportunity to conduct psychology consultations and to potentially provide individual or group psychotherapy..

Project HEAL-Trauma Psychology

Program Area Leader: Karen Rogers, PhD

Anticipated positions: 2

Project Heal post-doctoral training aims to prepare psychologists to address the complex needs of children of all ages exposed to trauma and adversity and their families. The emphasis is on working with culturally diverse, disadvantaged populations, and training is provided in both English and Spanish. Training aligns with the New Haven Trauma Competencies, providing an array of experiences intended to develop specialty expertise and leadership skills in trauma psychology. Training is sequential and graduated, allowing for increasing independence and the opportunity for fellows to take a leadership role as they advance in their fellowship.

Project Heal training includes a weekly Advanced Trauma Didactic which includes lectures, case discussions and experiential learning. Topics address trauma across the developmental span, special populations, service delivery systems and professional development. Fellows develop professional presentation skills through didactic presentations to the full team, and further hone these skills through a leadership role in the Introduction to Trauma didactic provided to doctoral interns in the program. Trainees in the emphasis area also participate in a biweekly TFCBT group supervision. Rotation-specific didactics include a bi-weekly Advanced Assessment Seminar and Parent-Child Interaction Therapy group supervision.

Weekly supervision for Project Heal fellows includes a minimum of two hours individual trauma focused supervision, and biweekly group supervision focused on Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy. For who chose the PCIT rotation, PCIT group supervision and consultation is provided by a certified PCIT trainer, and group therapy rotations include group supervision for the team of group leaders. Project Heal supervisors are licensed clinical psychologists with advanced training and experience in child trauma. In addition to individualized participant-learning and clinical supervision, the weekly trauma didactic and team meeting provides an opportunity for all the child trauma therapists and trainees to support each other and consult to advance each other’s experiences. As in clinical services, fellows are provided increasing leadership roles within the trauma training program.

Individualized training plans are designed with fellows based on fellows’ interests and professional needs. The core fellowship rotation is in outpatient services in the community mental health clinic, providing opportunities to gain experience working with children, youth and families who have experienced a variety of traumatic events including physical, sexual, or emotional abuse, community violence, natural disasters, accidental traumas, grief and loss, immigration trauma, medical trauma and domestic violence. Many of the children seen in Project Heal have been involved in the child welfare system, and complex trauma and chronic adversity are common, as is exposure to racial trauma and oppression. Bilingual/bicultural supervision in Spanish is available to enhance fellows’ skills in working with Spanish-speaking children and families. The population of children served by Project Heal also includes those with developmental disabilities or other special health care needs.

Rotations within Project Heal include:

Outpatient Treatment Core Rotation – All fellows will obtain training and experience in trauma assessment and conceptualization and the provision of Trauma Focused Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (TFCBT) within a community mental health setting.  Fellow caseloads are designed to provide a variety of experiences with children with and without comorbid developmental, psychiatric, or medical diagnoses. Services provided by fellows include psychotherapy with children, families and parents impacted by trauma, care coordination, interdisciplinary collaboration, advocacy, and case management. Fellows participate in TFCBT training and consultation leading to certification and have the opportunity to develop advanced TFCBT skills working with a variety of cases. Fellows may also have the opportunity to carry additional cases to develop skills in integrative treatment, family therapy, or evidence-based practices other than TFCBT.

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) – Trauma-informed Parent-Child Interaction Therapy is offered to children age 2 to 8 years old with disruptive behaviors and their caregivers. This evidence-based practice utilizes a one-way mirror and “bug in the ear” to enable the therapist to coach caregivers on effective parenting skills. Fellows are provided training and experience in PCIT, including biweekly group supervision and live coaching by a certified PCIT trainer. This training is intended for fellows to complete certification as a PCIT therapist.

Group Psychotherapy – Several group therapy programs are provided through Project Heal. Making Friends and Staying Safe is an abuse risk-reduction program for children with developmental disabilities and their caregivers that is offered regularly in Project Heal. Skills and knowledge regarding body boundaries, safe touch and abuse resistance are taught. Interested fellows may have an additional leadership opportunity to mentor newer trainees in facilitating the group. Depending on availability, fellows may have an opportunity to cofacilitate other trauma-focused psychotherapy groups. Past treatment groups have included a Grief and Growth group for children facing loss, a foster caregiver-focused Attentive Parenting group, and therapy groups for children who experienced foster care. Groups are co-led, and trainees are mentored by an experienced therapist with weekly group supervision of group therapy.

Multidisciplinary Assessment Team (MAT) – This is a comprehensive family assessment for infants, children and adolescents in foster care that generates specific recommendations for services to address the conditions that led to foster care placement. Assessments, which are community- and clinic-based, focus on child and family strengths and needs, and result in referral and linkage to needed services. MAT evaluations are completed by senior clinicians with expertise in addressing the complex needs of children in foster care who support fellows in developing rapid, in-depth evaluations, advanced family engagement and advocacy skills, and the capacity to work effectively with multiple parties who may have opposing viewpoints at a time of intense need. Fellows obtain graduated experience in MAT, with increasing independence and ongoing mentoring by a senior MAT psychologist.

Foster Care HUB Integrated Evaluation – Children at risk of, or newly involved with the foster system attend a single-visit integrated medical and mental health evaluation. In this interdisciplinary setting, psychologists screen children for mental health, developmental and educational needs, and pediatricians complete an initial medical evaluation and developmental screen. The team reviews each case and provides guidance to caregivers, feedback and recommendations to child protective services and children’s court; and advocates for foster children’s access to needed services. Children’s Health Workers provide enhanced care management in consultation with the other professional to link children and families to needed services. Fellows received individual mentoring to support their work within the clinic.

Trauma Informed Psychological Assessment – Fellows participate in a bimonthly trauma-informed assessment seminar focused on using comprehensive assessment for diagnostic clarification and treatment planning and identify the impact of a child’s trauma exposure on cognitive, socioemotional, developmental and relational functioning. Fellows complete a minimum of two assessment batteries in this rotation, including integrated reports and feedback to the client and family.

La Linterna Immigration Clinic – Addressing the needs of children responding to immigration-related stress and their families. An interdisciplinary team consisting of psychologists, pediatricians, social workers and immigration legal counsel that meets with a child and family to identify mental health, medical, advocacy and community resource needs in response to immigration-related distress. While most children and youth seen have migrated from Spanish-speaking countries, those from other regions are also referred.

Fellows who elect to stay for an optional second year will, in consultation with their supervisors, identify clinical skill enhancement and leadership roles for professional development in addition to the opportunity to provide longer-term treatment with select clients.

Research Opportunities – Research collaboration opportunities with Project Heal faculty enable fellows who decide to stay for a second year to become familiar with an area of trauma research literature and develop a scholarly project to meet the requirements of the fellowship program. Current research projects which may be available to fellows include Identification of unique needs and best practice recommendations for infants relinquished through safe haven laws, applications of a trauma competency self-assessment tool for mental health trainees, and case study of a child and caregiver's response to PCIT. Additional research opportunities may be available depending on match between fellow interests and faculty projects underway.

Combined Early Childhood Mental Health and Pediatric Psychology

Program Area Leaders: Melissa Carson, PsyD, and Marian Williams, PhD

Anticipated positions: 2

The Early Childhood Mental Health and Pediatric Psychology combined fellowship position focuses on providing comprehensive mental health services to children aged birth to 5, with a focus on infants impacted by hospitalization or a chronic medical condition. The major referral sources for the program include CHLA physicians and medical teams referring young children with chronic or acute medical conditions that may be impacting behavior and emotions. Many of the children served have developmental disabilities (including autism spectrum disorders) in addition to their primary mental health and medical needs.

Didactic seminars and group supervision include topics related to both infant and early childhood mental health and pediatric psychology.

The combined Early Childhood & Pediatric Psychology Fellow may participate in the following array of services. All EC-Peds fellows are required to participate in the core rotation in one of the two inpatient units and participate in the training in Child-Parent Psychotherapy. The remaining components of the fellowship can be individualized depending on the fellow’s training goals and supervisory availability.

Inpatient Services for Infants (Core, required rotation in one of the inpatient units):

• Newborn and Infant Critical Care Unit (NICCU) – The NICCU at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is a Level IV neonatal intensive care unit with 58 beds, providing a complex level of medical care including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). There are approximately 650 annual admissions of critically ill infants requiring neonatal medical and surgical subspecialty interventions. Approximately 50% of the infants are hospitalized for over 3 months and 80% of the families receive Medicaid insurance. The fellow will have an opportunity to provide trauma-informed infant-family mental health consultations and treatment using a model informed by Child-Parent Psychotherapy. Goals of intervention include strengthening the parent-infant relationship, enhancing bonding and attunement, addressing possible medical trauma, and supporting the relationship with the medical team. The fellow will be able to provide services while the infants are hospitalized at CHLA and following discharge from the hospital through our outpatient mental health program.
• Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit (CTICU) – The hospital’s CTICU has over 1,000 admissions annually and 60% of admissions are younger than 12 months of age. The CTICU cares for infants with the most complex heart and lung diseases, including congenital heart disease. This unit also cares for infants who undergo heart transplantation. The CTICU is staffed with pediatric intensivists, pediatric cardiac registered nurses, respiratory therapists and nurse practitioners, among other disciplines, who provide comprehensive care to children and families during the most medically fragile periods. The fellow will have the opportunity to provide therapy services for families experiencing anxiety related to the infant’s diagnosis; support for families who are separated from their infant while the infant is hospitalized in the CTICU; and intervention to address attachment and attunement that can also be disrupted during this time period. The fellow will also have the opportunity to support families after discharge from the hospital, between the infant’s first and second cardiac surgeries, a period that can be understandably stressful for families.

Outpatient intervention – The fellow will have the opportunity to provide mental health services to young children and families impacted by chronic illness using relationship-based approaches. The services utilize a primary focus on dyadic interventions with caregivers and their children based upon best practice and evidence-based models of treatment.

• Child-Parent Psychotherapy (core, required training for EC-Peds fellows) – Training in Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) includes a 2½ day training in September of the first year, a two-day booster session in March of the first year, and a two-day booster session in October/November of the second year, and twice monthly group supervision (CPP rostering requires more than 12 months so fellows wanting to get rostered will need to stay for the second optional year), and carrying a caseload of outpatient and inpatient young children who have experienced trauma.
• Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases (CBDI) – The CBDI is one of the premier pediatric cancer and blood disorder treatment centers in the country, providing services to children and teens with cancer and blood disorders, and their families. The HOPE Behavioral Health Service, a component of the Survivorship and Supportive Care Program, provides psychosocial support services to these patients and their families and works closely with physicians, nurses, social workers, child life specialists, and psychiatrists to provide integrated care. Pediatric psychology fellows provide psychological evaluation and treatment of specific behavioral, emotional, or adjustment problems related to the patient’s diagnosis and treatment of cancer or a blood disorder. Services are primarily provided in an outpatient clinic; however, fellows also provide inpatient consultation-liaison as part of their training. Psychological interventions are evidence-based and generally problem-focused and time-limited in duration, and include individual, family, and group approaches. The focus will be on providing services for children in the birth-5 age range who have a blood disorder diagnosis or cancer diagnosis.
• Pediatric Feeding Development Program – The Pediatric Feeding Development Program provides a range of interdisciplinary services for children with developmental feeding problems. Outpatient intervention is provided for the child and family. The children evaluated and treated in this program have been unable to acquire independent feeding skills or developmentally appropriate feeding skills due to behavioral difficulties, developmental delays, complex medical histories, oral-motor delays, and/or sensory issues. The feeding assessment clinic conducts a comprehensive assessment of children with feeding problems using an interdisciplinary approach. The team consists of specially trained staff representing the following disciplines: psychology, developmental behavioral pediatrics, nutrition, occupational therapy, speech and language pathology and nursing. The evaluation identifies primary barriers to optimal feeding development and guides treatment recommendations. In addition to interdisciplinary assessment, opportunities exist to provide individual, dyadic, family and group therapy to address feeding difficulties.

Additional Optional Rotations:

• Infant and Early Childhood Assessment Clinic – Provides comprehensive interdisciplinary assessments for children ages birth to 5 years old. Common referral questions include second opinions regarding diagnoses of autism spectrum disorders and intellectual disability, as well as diagnoses related to regulatory and learning difficulties, chronic medical conditions, and trauma exposure. Assessments are conducted by an interdisciplinary team, typically including developmental-behavioral pediatricians, speech-language pathologists, and occupational therapists, in addition to psychologists. Fellows learn best practices approaches to the assessment of young children, including mastery of the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development – IV, clinical use of the ADOS-2 and other autism assessment tools, and measures to evaluate cognitive and social-emotional development.
• Newborn Follow-up Program – This program provides developmental, behavioral and growth assessment and follow-up for infants at high risk for growth and developmental issues due to conditions in the newborn period that required care in a neonatal intensive care unit. The psychology fellow will have the opportunity to work with a multidisciplinary team of experts from neonatology, developmental behavioral pediatrics, social work, nutrition, nursing, occupational therapy and physical therapy. Each member has extensive experience addressing the ongoing needs of families caring for their medically complex infant.
• Fetal Maternal Center and Fetal Cardiology – Individuals with high-risk pregnancies are seen for specialty medical care by an interdisciplinary team. Fellows have an opportunity to work alongside psychologists and psychotherapists from our infant mental health team to provide short-term crisis interventions for families going through difficult experiences and helping them to prepare for the birth of a child with special healthcare needs.

Core Fellowship Activities for All Fellows

In addition to each track specific activities, all the program fellows participate in Core Fellowship didactics and seminars:

• Weekly fellows’ seminar
• Monthly diversity seminar
• Weekly didactics in each track

Fellows are expected to: Training Requirements

Fellows are expected to:

• Obtain licensure in Psychology at the State of California. Fellows are expected to take the EPPP by the end of year.  If time permits the can take the CPLEE and become licensed in California before graduating from the fellowship. Regardless of their licensure status, all fellows participate in all the designated training activities (including supervision) throughout their fellowship training.
• Complete an interdisciplinary training activity at CHLA. Fellows may complete the ‘long-term’ certification program of the:
  • California Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (CA-LEND) interdisciplinary training program.
  • Leadership and Education in Adolescent Health (LEAH) interdisciplinary training program.
  • CHLA Pediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine Center (CHLA PPSMC) or,
  • Complete an interdisciplinary training experience designed specifically for fellows in their track.
• Fellows in some of the specialty areas participate in Graduate Psychology Education (GPE) grant didactic activities and providing Integrated Opioid and Substance Use Disorders Prevention and Treatment service.

California Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (CA-LEND)

Fellows in the Child and Family, Trauma, Early Childhood, and the combines Early Childhood/Pediatric tracks participate in the California Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (CA-LEND) program, a weekly interdisciplinary didactic and experiential program. Fellows complete the CA-LEND long-term certification program. The faculty and trainees of the CA-LEND program represent a wide range of disciplines including but not limited to audiology, communication disorders, dentistry, family support, developmental behavioral pediatrics, health administration, nursing, nutrition, occupational therapy, physical therapy, public health, and social work.

The CA-LEND training program provides fellows with didactic instruction and practical experiences. The program tailors this training to the unique needs of the health care delivery systems within California and the western region, while still providing trainees with a national perspective of critical and emerging issues and trends in health care, research, and public policy. The CA-LEND advanced leadership and policy training requires that fellows consider critical factors, generally outside their area of clinical study, that strongly influence the health status of children with neurodevelopmental and related disabilities. Non-clinical factors such as environmental factors, family lifestyle and cultural values, technological advances and contemporary economic, demographic, legal and political conditions, are explored and routinely addressed as part of the CA-LEND training model. Moreover, by focusing on the importance of prevention and the benefits of coordinated health care, CA-LEND trainees learn to work with parents as partners within their communities, to develop creative approaches for improving the health of children with disabilities.

Leadership and Education in Adolescent Health (LEAH) Interdisciplinary Training Program

Fellows participating in the adolescent psychology track attend the Leadership Education in Adolescent Health (LEAH) Program, funded by the federal Bureau of Maternal and Child Health. The program provides weekly interdisciplinary leadership training in adolescent health for five core disciplines including adolescent medicine, nursing, nutrition, psychology, and social work. The program prepares health professionals for leadership roles in public health practice and clinical care, research, training and advocacy with the goal of improving family- and youth-centered, community-based care for adolescents and enhancing the capacity of programs around the country to improve young people's health.

The CHLA LEAH training program is a one-year integrated, interdisciplinary model that addresses the core competencies of adolescent medicine, nursing, nutrition, social work, and psychology. The didactic training year runs from October through May. The curriculum includes innovative approaches to professional education and patient care; integrates bio-behavioral, bio-psychological, and social determinants concepts; and provides opportunities to demonstrate leadership in improving services for adolescents through clinical and public health approaches. In addition, all long-term fellows (including psychology fellows) will complete a scholarly project to advance the field of adolescent and young adult health and contribute to the translation of research into practice and policy.

CHLA Pediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine Center

The pediatric psychology fellows participate in the CHLA HRSA funded Pediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine Center (CHLA PPSMC) created to addresses the urgent need to train a diverse group of pediatric pulmonology and sleep medicine leaders to care and advocate for a culturally and linguistically diverse population of children and youth with special health care needs in Los Angeles. The CHLA PPSMC Leadership Program trains leaders in Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine in six core disciplines including medicine, nursing, nutrition, social work, psychology, and respiratory care.

The CHLA PPSMC training is a one-year integrated, interdisciplinary model that aims to develop leaders Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine in six core disciplines; design family-centered educational programs and family partnerships; expand virtual care to improve access to care by removing barriers and improve health outcomes; provide expert pulmonary education to the community; and reduce health care disparities and increase recruitment of a diverse health care workforce on par with the culturally, racially, linguistically and ethnically diverse population of Los Angeles County. The competency-based curriculum supports the overall goals of clinical practice, scholarship, teaching, and advocacy / administration.

Graduate Psychology Education (GPE)

In 2022 the program was a recipient of a Graduate Psychology Education (GPE) grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The grant, “Enhancing Capacity to Prevent and Treat Opioid Use Disorders through Expanded Community integrated care Partnerships within an Urban, Underserved Population” funds 5 fellows’ participation in the project activities.

Project Goals:

1. To provide didactic training for doctoral psychologists to enable them to provide in-person and tele-behavioral health integrated interdisciplinary trauma-informed OUD/SUD screening, prevention, treatment, and recovery services focusing on underserved pediatric populations in high need, high demand areas.
2. To enhance doctoral psychologists’ ability to provide integrated interdisciplinary OUD/SUD trauma-informed services in high need and high demand areas to increase access and reduce barriers to care.
3. To focus on sustainability efforts by enhancing the ability of clinical faculty, field supervisors, and interdisciplinary staff to provide integrated trauma-informed OUD/SUD services and supervision, and to develop and implement a sustainability plan.

Fellows participating in GPE grant activities will receive trauma informed OUD/SUD training through collaboration with the UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Training Program and will rotate through hospital and community-based service rotations. Examples of past rotation include a women and children recovery program (in partnership with Didi Hirsch Via Avanta Clinic), a clinic for and American Indian communities (in partnership with United American Indian inc. Seven Generations clinic) and an AltaMed pediatric immigration clinic (La Linterna). The grant capitalizes on CHLA’s Behavioral Health initiatives to expand behavioral health services throughout the hospital including rotations to serve CHLA’s Pain Medicine, Sickle Cell, and Rheumatology clinics.

Clinical Work

Formal requirements for a caseload are established with each fellow at the beginning of the training year. Fellows carry individual, family and/or group therapy cases within their track or in collaboration with members of other tracks to enhance the effectiveness of clinical services. It is expected that fellows spend half their training week providing clinical services, which include therapeutic interventions, psychological assessments, case management activities, consultations, documentation, and other relevant activities. All the program’s fellows can obtain training leading to research certification in the Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale, 2nd Edition.

Scholarly Projects

Fellows who chose to stay for a second year can pursue a mentored scholarly project that results in submission of a manuscript for publication to a peer-reviewed journal. Other scholarly opportunities may be accepted based on fellows’ interest. Depending on the class, second year fellows may participate in a monthly scholarly seminar to support them in meeting their scholarly requirements, and work with mentoring by faculty who are engaged in similar ongoing scholarly activities.

Supervision

Each fellow receives a minimum of two hours individual face-to-face supervision per week. Supervision methods include discussion, clinical observations, videotaping/audio taping sessions, co-leading groups and more. All fellows attend one or two hours of group supervision and participate in two hours of rotation-specific group supervision and/or didactic activities weekly. Fellows typically have two supervisors within their emphasis area and receive additional training from a variety of staff members of multiple disciplines depending on their emphasis area. All supervisors are licensed and employed by Children’s Hospital Los Angeles or USC Keck School of Medicine. Supervision is designed to meet the supervised professional experience requirements for licensure in the state of California, as well as the American Psychological Association (APA), and Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) guidelines for postdoctoral programs.

Evaluation Process

Supervisors and fellows are expected to exchange feedback routinely as part of the supervisory process. Formal evaluations are conducted at orientation, mid-year and at the end of each training year. The evaluation process includes the completion of the following: Orientation – self-assessment by fellows; Mid-year and end-of- year – supervisors evaluate fellows (done by the supervision teams); and Mid-year and end-of-year – supervisors’ evaluations by fellows.

Due Process/Grievance

The Clinical-Child Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship and its training faculty are committed to creating an environment that is professional, responsive to feedback and flexible enough to accommodate individual needs and requirements. During the orientation period, fellows receive and review a document outlining the rights and responsibilities of both the program and the fellows. The document also outlines the procedures established for due process/grievance policies and appeal instructions.

Ethics

All fellows are expected to be familiar with the APA ethics code prior to their training at CHLA. To assure familiarity, the document is also reviewed during orientation. Discussing and resolving ethical and professional issues are integral parts of our work, and it is expected that these issues will be actively discussed in supervision sessions and fellowship seminars.

Program Supervisors

Over thirty licensed psychologists that are formally designated as postdoctoral training supervisors, and a team of staff and faculty representing all the disciplines involved with the CHLA Behavioral Health service, serve as supervisors and/or potential team members across all the track described above.

Adolescent Medicine

• Brammer, Whitney, PhD
• Carrera Diaz, Kenia, PhD
• Conn, Bridgid, PhD
• Glassgold, Sari, PhD
• Lee, Xzania, PhD
• Radzik, Mari, PhD
• Rodriguez, Moises, PhD
• Sayegh, Caitlin, PhD
• Sherer, Sara, PhD

Child and Family Community Psychology

• Coffey, Dean M., PsyD
• Gutierrez, Silvia, PhD, ABPP
• Hall, Heather, PhD
• Haranin, Emily, PhD
• Hudson, Bradley O., PsyD, ABPP
• Rafeedie, Jennifer A., PsyD
• West, Amy, PhD, ABPP
• Carina Vecchi, PhD

Early Childhood Mental Health

• Lakatos, Patricia, PhD
• Matic Tamara, PhD
• Paymon, Holly, PhD
• Perez, Hannah, PsyD
• Quebles, Irina, PsyD, ABPP
• Williams, Marian E., PhD

Project HEAL-Trauma Psychology

• Chavez, Veronica, PsyD
• Cruz, Natalie C., PsyD 
• Hernandez, Rosa, PhD 
• Orliss Micah, PhD
• Rogers, Karen, PhD
• Scholtes, Carrie, PhD

Pediatric Psychology

• Carson, Melissa C., PsyD
• Donahue, Jacqueline, PsyD
• Doshi, Priyanka, PsyD
• Gold, Jeffrey I., PhD
• Hershfield, Jennifer, PhD
• Hsin, Olivia, PhD
• Ingman, Kathleen A., PhD, ABPP
• Johns, Alexis, PhD, ABPP
• Kertesz-Briest, Heather, PsyD
• Marcy, Stephanie N., PhD, ABPP
• Munoz, Cynthia, PhD
• Rodriguez, Reyna, PhD
• Yetwin Alexis, PhD

EC-Peds

• Carson, Melissa C., PsyD
• Harden, Susan, PhD
• Hsin, Olivia, PhD
• Ingman, Kathleen A., PhD, ABPP
• Lakatos, Patricia, PhD
• Matic Tamara, PhD
• Moreyra, Angelica, PsyD
• Williams, Marian E., PhD

Schedules, Stipend, Benefits and Environment of Care

Schedules

Fellows receive a bi-weekly stipend that does not vary with the number of hours worked per week. Like most staff, fellows often spend more than 40 hours per week completing their training obligations. It is expected that fellows work about 45 hours per week. The number of hours fellows work each week depends on multiple factors such as their interest in additional training, clinical and research involvement, time management skills and other personal and professional factors. Supervisors work with each fellow to determine an appropriate schedule. Fellows are expected to work a minimum of one evenings per week.

Stipend

The annual stipend is $70,034. A benefit package including health and dental insurance is also provided to fellows and their dependents/significant others. The stipend for licensed fellows is $75,712 plus benefits.

Time Off

Every training year, fellows receive 12 days of paid vacation, 7 paid CHLA holidays (New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day), up to 5 paid professional days, and 6 days of paid sick leave. Fellows in good standing receive funding for registration and travel to attend professional conferences to which their presentations have been accepted.

Library Services

All fellows receive access to the University of Southern California Health Science electronic resources and computing facilities.

Requirements for Admission/How to Apply

• Prior to the beginning of the fellowship, all applicants are expected to have completed an APA accredited doctoral program and an APA accredited internship.
• Due to HRSA restrictions only applicants who are citizens of the United States, non-citizen nationals of the United States, or foreign nationals who possesses a visa permitting permanent residence in the United States will be able to participate in GPE activities. Individuals on temporary or student visas are welcome to apply but will not be able to participate in GPE activities.

Application Procedure and Selection Processes

The program is using the APPA CAS (APPIC Psychology Postdoctoral Application) online system to receive applications and to adhere to APPIC Postdoctoral Selection Guidelines. For more information about the application process, please go to: http://www.appic.org/AAPI-APPA/APPA-Postdoc-Application-Information.

If applicants experience difficulties, they are encouraged to e-mail the training coordinator, Sheryl Katzovitz, or the Training Director, Dr. Sara Sherer, with questions. The program will start reviewing applications as they are received and start inviting applicants for interviews beginning December 1, 2024. Prospective candidates will be notified via e-mail about whether or not they were granted an interview. Interviews will be offered only to applicants who have submitted a complete application and only after applications have been screened by the faculty. All interviews for the 2025 class will be conducted virtually. Information about the number and length of interviews will be provided with the invitations. The program will continue to accept applications and will continue interviews as long as there are openings.

The following items constitute a complete application:
A complete APPA CAS application which includes all the following:

1. A Current Curriculum Vita
2. A letter of interest - Please submit a separate letter of interest for each postdoctoral track of interest. Please rank your choices in the order that you would like them to be considered.
3. Your letter of interest should include your long-term career goals and a statement about how this fellowship will help you achieve those goals.
4. A psychoeducational evaluation of a child or adolescent with all identifying information removed
5. Three letters of recommendation (one from a clinical supervisor at predoctoral internship).
6. Transcripts of all graduate-level coursework
7. A proof of completion of APA accredited internship by August 2025. If the internship has not yet been completed, please submit a letter from internship training director stating expected completion date prior to August 31, 2025.
8. A proof of completion of dissertation by August 2025. If the dissertation has not been completed at the time of application, submit a letter from the dissertation committee chair indicating the expected completion of the oral defense prior to August 31, 2025.

The track coordinator and the ppsychology training director select the most qualified candidates for each track area using the following criteria:

• Scope and relevance of previous training experiences
• Common clinical, research and program development interests
• Evidence of personal maturity
• Openness and thoughtfulness during the interview process
• Strength of fit between the applicant’s professional goals and the program philosophy, routine practices, and resources
• Availability of strong references from professionals who know the applicant well

For inquiries, please e-mail Sheryl Katzovitz our training coordinator at skatzovitz@chla.usc.edu or Dr. Sherer at ssherer@chla.usc.edu

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles   
USC/UCEDD Mental Health Program, MS #115   
4650 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Postdoctoral Residency Admissions, Support, and Initial Placement Data

Date updated: 11/2023

Postdoctoral Program Admissions 

Financial and Other Benefit Support for Upcoming Training Year* 

Initial Post-Residency Positions

Note: "PD" = Post-doctoral residency position; "EP" = Employed Position. Each individual represented in this table should be counted only one time. For former trainees working in more than one setting, select the setting that represents their primary position.