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Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Residency Training Program

Clinical Rotations: Main Program and Shaffer Scholars Program

First-Year Rotations

  • NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital
  • NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center
  • NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center

1st Year Main and Shaffer Rotation

NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital

Total duration at location: 4 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.

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.

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.

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center

Total duration at location: 4 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.

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.

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.

The 0–3 Infant Psychiatry Experience includes observation in the Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic and participation in the 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.

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

Total duration at location: 4 months

The children’s unit is a 17-bed acute inpatient unit for children ages 5–12 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.

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.

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.

Other Experiences

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.

Residents spend one Wednesday per week in the Pediatric Primary Care Clinic with the goal of facilitating the collaboration and integration between Pediatrics and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. During this experience, residents gain an understanding of components of integrated care that are both knowledge- and skills-based, including psychiatric consultation in the primary care setting and methods for integrating mental health and medical care in treatment planning.

This series of workshops provides first-year child and adolescent psychiatry residents an overview of play therapy. Residents learn the benefits of play therapy for children at various developmental stages and explore the role of the therapist, including how to follow the child's lead and facilitate the development of a child's narrative. They gain exposure to play therapy techniques, including examples of structured play therapy interventions for directive, short-term work. Throughout this series, the residents discuss their play therapy cases.

Second-Year Rotations

  • NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital
  • NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center
  • NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center

2nd Year Main and Shaffer Rotations

Residents in the Shaffer Scholars Program in Child Psychiatry Research complete these clinical rotations at half-time across two academic years.

NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital

Frequency: Two days per week

Residents perform psychiatric evaluations of children and adolescents under direct supervision. An evaluation includes an interview with the child, an interview with parents/caretakers, and the acquisition of collateral history. The differential diagnosis, risk assessment, and disposition of patients are developed with a supervisor.

Residents receive training in the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS), a semi-structured interview instrument used in the evaluation clinic.

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.

Each resident spends 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.

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center OR
NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center

Frequency: Two days per week

Residents perform psychiatric evaluations of children and adolescents under direct supervision. An evaluation includes an interview with the child, an interview with parents/caretakers, and the acquisition of collateral history. The differential diagnosis, risk assessment, and disposition of patients are developed with a supervisor.

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.

Other Experiences

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 either the Weill Cornell Medical Center or the Westchester Behavioral Health Center.

Residents observe children in routine nursery school programs under supervision. Time is provided for discussion of child observations.

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. 

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 a guided observation of actual court proceedings, a discussion/Q&A with presiding jurists, and a 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, are provided by MHS. In the fall, each resident has an experiential component and observes a forensic evaluation of a child or adolescent referred by the Bronx Family Court.

Contact Us

NewYork-Presbyterian Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Residency Training Program

Attn: Shamila Dilmaghani, MPA, Training Program Manager
525 E. 68th Street, Box 140, New York, NY 10065

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212-746-5709

Related Links

Graduate Medical Education

Columbia University Psychiatry

Weill Cornell Medicine Psychiatry

NewYork-Presbyterian Psychiatry

NewYork-Presbyterian Pediatric Services

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP)

New York Council on Child and Adolescent Psychiatry