Clinical Rotations: Main Program
First-Year Rotations
- NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital
- NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center
- NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center
NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center Rotation
Total duration at location: 4 months
Adolescent Partial Hospitalization Program—3 months
Residents evaluate and treat adolescents with acute psychiatric illness in an intensive, five-day-a-week program which serves as a diversion from an inpatient level of care for some teens or as a step down from inpatient care for others. This is the first program of its kind in Manhattan. Residents also participate in outpatient immediate follow-up appointments for patients discharged from the emergency department and gain experience with a full complement of services available to acutely ill children.
Pediatric Consultation-Liaison Service—1 month
Residents consult with pediatric inpatient services at NYP/Weill Cornell Medical Center, including the Burn Center. A supervising attending child psychiatrist reviews each consultation. Residents gain experience teaching pediatric residents both informally on the inpatient services and formally during the pediatric morning report. While on this rotation, residents also gain additional experience in the pediatric neurology and neonatal follow-up clinics, outlined below.
Pediatric Neurology Clinic—part-time over 1 month
Residents rotate through the Pediatric Neurology Clinic under the direction of the Pediatric Neurology Service while on the Pediatric Consultation-Liaison Service at NYP/Weill Cornell Medical Center. The clinic population is culturally diverse, with a variety of neurological disorders, including neuromuscular disorders, seizure disorders, tumors, movement disorders, degenerative neurological diseases, strokes, and other neurological syndromes. Many disorders are complicated by neuropsychiatric problems or include a differential diagnosis of a conversion disorder, somatization disorder, or psychiatric factors complicating a neurological condition.
0–3 Infant Psychiatry Experience—part-time over 4 months
The 0–3 Infant Psychiatry Experience includes observation in the Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic and participation in the Sackler Infancy Seminar. The Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic evaluates all infants discharged from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). A multi-disciplinary team of pediatricians, a physical therapist, and a nutritionist completes developmental assessments at regular intervals up to 3 years of age. Residents observe these assessments while on the Pediatric Consultation-Liaison Service at NYP/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
Rapid Linkage Clinic—part-time over 4 months
The Rapid Linkage Service within the Child Psychiatry Outpatient Department provides urgent evaluations and crisis stabilization for children and adolescents seen in our emergency room or referred from Pediatrics who are not in treatment and whose symptoms require that they be seen quickly. Patients can be seen up to three times as a bridge to ongoing services.
NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center Rotation
Total duration at location: 4 months
Children's Inpatient Unit (Nichols Cottage)—3 months
The children’s unit is a 17-bed acute inpatient unit for children ages 4–12 years old with an average length of stay of 2 weeks. Residents care for patients with a wide range of psychopathologies and discharge needs. Residents function as part of a multidisciplinary team, working alongside psychiatrists, social workers, and nursing staff. They are involved in formulating treatment and discharge plans, as well as managing psychiatric emergencies. A biweekly didactic on play therapy accompanies this rotation.
Adolescent Inpatient Unit (2 North)—1 month
The adolescent inpatient unit is a 21-bed acute inpatient unit for adolescents ages 13–17 years old with an average length of stay of 1–2 weeks. Resident roles and responsibilities are similar to those outlined for the Children’s Inpatient Unit.
Adolescent Eating Disorders Service (The Outlook/2 South)—part-time over 2 months
The adolescent eating disorders service is a 6-bed acute inpatient unit for adolescents ages 13–17 years old with an average length of stay of 2–3 weeks. Patients have a principal diagnosis of an eating disorder, such as Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, or Binge Eating Disorder, although co-occurring conditions are common. The unit utilizes a multidisciplinary approach, which includes individual, group, and family therapies. Residents have direct patient care responsibilities, which include comprehensive assessment, oversight of medical issues, evidence-based individual and group treatments, and participation in discharge planning.
Center for Autism and the Developing Brain—part-time over 2 months
At the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain (CADB), residents spend one afternoon for 2 months (either on a Tuesday during the 2 South Eating Disorder rotation or on a Wednesday following didactics) participating in comprehensive assessments of youth with autism spectrum disorders under expert supervision.
Family Medicine Consultation—part-time over 2 months
Residents will spend Wednesday afternoons for 2 months in a Family Medicine Primary Care Clinic providing indirect consultation and psychoeducation regarding child and adolescent mental health to family medicine practitioners seeing youth. During this experience, residents will gain an appreciation of family medicine care, the role of family medicine clinicians in monitoring development and screening for mental health concerns, and effective strategies for providing integrative and collaborative care.
NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital Rotation
Total duration at location: 4 months
Pediatric Consultation-Liaison Service—2 months
Residents consult with pediatric inpatient services and occasionally outpatient services at NYP Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, a tertiary care center serving patients ages 0-21 years old. Liaison services are provided to all subspecialty pediatric teams, including cardiac transplant, pain management, hematology/oncology, among others. Residents gain experience with common psychiatric diagnoses including adjustment disorders, anxiety disorders and affective disorders, as well as rarer conditions such as somatoform disorders, neuropsychiatric disorders, and brain syndromes secondary to psychiatric illness. Treatments provided include preoperative evaluations for transplantation, brief cognitive-behavioral interventions, and acute pharmacological management, as well as psychoeducation and counseling for families.
Pediatric Emergency Service—2 months
Residents provide consultation to the Pediatric Emergency Department. The most common presenting problems are suicidal thoughts and actions, disruptive behavior disorders, anxiety and depressive disorders, child abuse and neglect, and school problems. The types of treatment provided include crisis-oriented interventions, psychopharmacological management, supportive therapy, family therapy, and referrals for psychosocial support services.
Pediatric Neurology Clinic—part-time over 1 month
Residents rotate through the Pediatric Neurology Clinic under the direction of the Pediatric Neurology Service while on the Pediatric Consultation Liaison Service at NYP Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital. The clinic population is culturally diverse with a variety of neurological disorders including neuromuscular disorders, seizure disorders, tumors, movement disorders, degenerative neurological diseases, strokes, and other neurological syndromes. Many disorders are complicated by neuropsychiatric problems or include a differential diagnosis of a conversion disorder, somatization disorders, or psychiatric factors complicating a neurological diagnosis.
Second-Year Rotations
- NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital
- NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center
- NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center
NYP/Weill Cornell Medical Center or NYP Westchester Behavioral Health Center
Frequency: Two days per week at either location
Outpatient Evaluation Clinic—12 months
Residents perform psychiatric evaluations of children and adolescents under direct supervision. Evaluations include interview with the child, interview with parents/caretakers, and acquisition of collateral history. Differential diagnosis, risk assessment, and disposition of patients are done with a supervisor.
Outpatient Clinics—12 months
Residents gain experience in the treatment of patients in a variety of clinics, which are organized by disorder (e.g., Anxiety Disorders Clinic) or treatment modality (e.g., Psychopharmacology Clinic). Faculty with particular expertise in specific psychopathology and treatment modalities provide ongoing supervision to the residents. All residents receive individual or small group supervision in psychopharmacology and in various psychotherapies including Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Parent Training, and Family Therapy techniques (coordinated across the campuses). Additional case-specific supervision in Cognitive Behavioral Interventions for Tics and Exposure Response Prevention for OCD are available.
NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital
Frequency: Two days per week
Outpatient Evaluation Clinic—12 months
Residents receive training in the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS), semi-structured interview instrument used in the evaluation clinic.
Outpatient Clinics—12 months
Residents gain experience in the provision of specialty treatment of behavioral and psychiatric conditions of childhood and adolescence. All residents receive individual or small group supervision in psychopharmacology and in various psychotherapies including Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Parent Training, and Family Therapy techniques (coordinated across the campuses). Additional case-specific supervision in Dialectic Behavior Therapy, Interpersonal Psychotherapy, Child Parent Psychotherapy and Motivational Interviewing are available.
School Consultation—part-time over 1.5 months
Each resident will spend one morning per week for 1.5 months in school consultation experiences at the NYP Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital School-Based Mental Health Program. Residents are exposed to a variety of school consultation experiences, which will give them opportunities to serve as consultants to schools, practice classroom observation, and become familiar with the variety of specialized educational programs for children with medical and psychiatric challenges. A visit to a special charter school for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders supplements this experience.
Other Experiences
Research/Scholarly Activity— part-time over 12 months
Every resident has the equivalent of two half-days per week to pursue research and scholarly activity under direct mentorship by a faculty member of their choosing. One half-day is scheduled during the time at the Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital and one half-day is scheduled during the time at the Weill Cornell site.
Early Childhood Nursery School Observation (Medical Center Nursery School)— part-time over 1.5 months
Residents observe children in routine nursery school programs under supervision. Time is provided for discussion of child observations.
Addiction and Mental Health Experience— part-time over 1.5 months
The Center for Living is a nonprofit, community-based, outpatient program specializing in substance use treatment for adolescents, young adults and their families that operates under the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASIS). During this rotation, residents join the team at The Center for Living and participate in the comprehensive evaluation of adolescents with substance use disorders, attend team meetings, and observe community, treatment and multi-family groups.
Child and Adolescent Forensic Experience— part-time over 1.5 months
This two-part forensic experience begins in the summer of the second year with a day-long visit to the Bronx Family Court. Residents participate in guided observation of actual court proceedings, discussion/Q&A with presiding jurists, and lecture/clinical presentation by Bronx Family Court Mental Health Service (MHS) supervisors and clinical staff. Background literature, including key legal and theoretical concepts and empirical research, will be provided by MHS. This is followed by an experiential component in the fall in which each resident observes a forensic evaluation of a child or adolescent referred by the Bronx Family Court.