Ochsner Health is a system that delivers health to the people of Louisiana, Mississippi and the Gulf South with a mission to Serve, Heal, Lead, Educate and Innovate.
Fellow Training Areas and Rotations - Pediatric Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowships
Pediatric Psychology
With an emphasis in Integrated Pediatric Primary Care (2 positions, 2023-24)
Pediatric Psychologists at Ochsner provide consultation and intervention to patients and families while integrated within pediatric medical settings across Ochsner Hospital for Children. We work with medical and allied health partners to increase access to behavioral health services and improve behavioral and physical health outcomes. Each Pediatric Psychology Fellow will have their major rotation experience in Integrated Pediatric Primary Care (IPPC) and will have the opportunity to select minor rotation experiences in Medical Subspecialty Clinics. Fellows will spend 3-4 days rotating across the pediatric primary care major rotations, and 1-2 days rotating in the pediatric medical subspecialty rotations. Schedules will be built to meet fellows individual training needs to prioritize different psychological services (e.g., therapy, assessment, consultation) and patient populations.
Fellows are provided with training in evidence-based practices and education regarding interdisciplinary behavioral healthcare; consultation across medical contexts; prevention and management of primary behavioral health disorders in the primary care setting; and pediatric medical conditions, psychological sequelae, and correlates of such conditions.
Fellows will be expected to participate in multidisciplinary clinics and will receive mentoring in effective work with multidisciplinary teams comprised of physicians, nurses, psychiatrists, licensed master’s therapists, case managers, and other medical/professional staff.
Pediatric Primary Care Psychologists provide consultation and intervention to patients and families within the pediatric primary care setting. The goal of IPPC is the screening and prevention of behavioral health disorders, as well as the promotion of positive health behaviors across the lifespan. IPPC also serves to increase access to and reduce common stigmas associated with behavioral health care in the general population. The Pediatric Primary Care Psychologist is often families’ first encounter with a behavioral health provider. It also provides opportunities for psychologists to provide prevention and early intervention services at a pivotal entry point to psychological services.
Patients and families who present to their general pediatrician for sick visits and annual well visits have the opportunity to consult with the Pediatric Primary Care Psychologist or Psychology Fellow about emotional, behavioral, and developmental concerns. The Pediatric Primary Care Psychologist and/or Psychology Fellow conducts a brief consultation, generates a treatment plan, and provides appropriate recommendations to address the presenting problem. Brief, evidence-based individual and group intervention services, as well as brief diagnostic assessments are offered within the primary care clinics.
In this rotation, fellows will receive consultation requests from the pediatricians in real-time, lead initial consultation visits, and provide brief intervention services, and liaison patients into more extensive treatments as needed. Consultation visits will include screening for developmental delays, academic difficulties, psychosocial stressors, depression, suicidality, anxiety, grief/loss, posttraumatic stress, abuse, adverse childhood experiences, behavior problems, and safety risks. Fellows will gain experience with mandated reporting, suicide prevention, safety planning, and hospitalization. During the consultation visit, fellows will provide families with evidence-based interventions that are tailored to the patient’s presenting problems, psychosocial environment, and cultural context. Fellows will also collaborate with the patient’s primary care physician, family members, school personnel, and other medical or behavioral health providers to promote multidisciplinary care for effective intervention.
Fellows will have the opportunity to follow patients through a model of follow-up visits during future clinic visits, providing brief-interventions, or referral until the patients’ treatment goals have been achieved. Fellows will carry a modest caseload of patients for outpatient therapy and parent management support using evidence-based treatment strategies to help patients achieve goals in a time-limited fashion. Fellows will also have the ability to lead or co-lead groups focused on coping skills, parent management, or lifestyle management for children at risk due to their weight. Brief assessment protocols will be used to diagnose presentations of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) appropriate for diagnosis in this setting to expedite path to treatment.
- Supervision will be provided by licensed psychologists specialized in pediatric primary care including: Yelena Johnson, Ph.D.; Jacqueline Philpot, Psy.D.; and Matthew Donati, Ph.D.
- IPPC takes place at Ochsner Health Center for Children – New Orleans, Ochsner Health Center – Lapalco/Westside Clinics, and Ochsner Health Center for Children-Metairie.
- Patients at these clinics range from birth to age 22.
Pediatric Health Psychologists are integrated into medical subspecialty clinics and acute and intensive-care hospital units. Pediatric Health Psychologists provide consultation and intervention to patients with acute, recurrent, or chronic physical illnesses and symptoms. Through integration into medical teams, Pediatric Health Psychologists work to identify and intervene behavioral health concerns. They conduct regular screening, consultation, and intervention services around psychosocial factors related to their physical illness or symptoms. This provides support and specialized behavioral health services to patients and families who are having difficulty managing emotional or physical symptoms, adapting to chronic/acute medical conditions, or adhering to medical regimens.
The Pediatric Health Psychology Program at Ochsner is designed so that providers follow families throughout their medical treatment and in a variety of settings. Fellows will have the opportunity to provide care to patients in medical subspecialty clinics and may carry a small outpatient therapy caseload of medically complex youth. Referrals are received from a wide array of subspecialties including: Cardiology, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology, Gender Medicine, General Pediatrics, Genetics, Hematology-Oncology, Neurology, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Plastic Surgery, Pulmonology, Orthopedics, and Transplant Services, among others.
The following are minor rotation experiences that may be available for additional training or experience during the monthly seminar pediatric psychology fellowship. These rotations are of shorter duration and intensity to provide exposure to additional populations or settings to assist the fellow in reaching additional training goals. These rotations focus on interdisciplinary care of youth with medical complexity and their families. Each fellow may select two to four minor rotations each lasting 6 months, which will involve time embedded in an interdisciplinary medical subspecialty clinic, and potentially a small outpatient therapy caseload of patients related to that specialty’s population. This allows the fellow to customize their schedules to meet their individual training needs. Below is a list of minor rotations being offered for the 2023-24 year:
- Psychological Assessment with Dr. Emily Crochet
- Diabetes & Endocrinology with Dr. Justin Carreras
- Hematology/Oncology with Dr. Kristin Canavera and Dr. Emily Crochet
- Gastroenterology with Dr. Erin Reuther and Dr. Justin Carreras
- Craniofacial & Chronic Pain with Dr. Erin Reuther
- Gender Medicine with Dr. Clifton Mixon & Dr. Erin Reuther
