We are excited to announce that the Texas Child Study Center at the University of Texas Dell Medical School will be offering 3 Postdoctoral Fellowships in Pediatric Psychology for the 2021-2022 training year. Clinical training activities will take place within hospital, pediatric sub-specialty care clinics, and primary care clinics provided by the Psychology Service at Dell Children’s Medical Center and its affiliated partners.

Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Structure

Fellows will dedicate 60% of their clinical time to their major rotation and 30% to their chosen minor area of concentration. Major rotations are 12-month placements, while minor rotations can consist of either 6- or 12-month placements. In addition to these clinical placements, postdocs will participate in Training and Professional Development Activities 10% of the time. Specifically, these will include didactic seminars focusing on academic medical career tracks and formal training in evidence-based care such as PCIT, Motivational Interviewing, and TF-CBT. Further, postdocs will dedicate a portion of their Training and Professional Development time to group study and preparation for the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP).

This is a 12-month appointment at a salary of $50,004.00. In addition, healthcare benefits will be paid by our organization. The Postdoctoral Fellowship year will begin on the first of September and end twelve months later with the option to apply for a second year of post-doctoral training. Fellows receive the standard vacation and sick time afforded to professional staff at the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School. If you have questions about the position, the financial offer, benefits package etc., please feel free to contact the Director of Psychology Training, Dr. David F. Curtis (dfcurtis@austin.utexas.edu).

Three Training Concentrations are being offered: 

1)     Pediatric Primary Care Integrated Behavioral Health

2)     Medical Inpatient Consultation/Liaison Services

3)     Chronic Disease/Behavioral Medicine and Developmental Disorders

1)     Pediatric Primary Care Integrated Behavioral HealthThe primary care fellowship take place within our hospital-community partnership that extends behavioral health services to primary care settings in the Greater Austin Community. Integrated behavioral health services are provided across four primary care clinics. Clinical services consist of well child co-visits and warm hand-off consultations, diagnostic assessments, psycho-education, parent consultation, brief intervention and problem prevention, as well as direct consultation with pediatricians and the medical team. The fellow learns to adapt evidenced-based mental health assessment and treatment models to meet the needs of a patients presenting within a fast-paced pediatric community clinic setting. In addition to mental health service delivery, the fellow learns to address emerging issues for pediatric patients in need of prevention, early identification, or early intervention. The fellow is also expected to contribute to the training of predoctoral interns, learning primary care applications of evidence-based modular interventions and opportunities for tiered supervision are incorporated. The fellow also participates in co-facilitation of physician psycho-educational seminars, dissemination of behavioral health resources, and program outreach and development.

2)     Medical Inpatient Consultation-Liaison ServicesThe Consultation-Liaison Service Fellow provides integrated behavioral and mental health support to medical teams and their patients at Dell Children’s Medical Center (DCMC). C-L combines psychological and psychiatric care and provides training in assessment, consultation and brief intervention, including the management of psychiatric emergencies. The fellow learns how to apply evidence-based practice principles to pediatric patients presenting primary (and often acute) medical needs accompanied by associated behaviors that are interfering with their medical care. The fellow gains Consultation-Liaison Service experience that includes both direct service to patients and the development of hospital protocols to assist physicians, patients, and staff. The fellow collaboratively works on a team of psychologists and psychology interns, psychiatrists, and medical residents and fellows. The C-L fellow is also expected to contribute to the training of predoctoral interns and opportunities for tiered supervision are incorporated. The C-L Fellow also participates in the hospital’s new “Bridge Clinic,” offering brief, targeted outpatient care individuals and families after discharging from inpatient care. The C-L fellow conducts Bridge Clinic visits with psychiatry to help provide step-down care or to continuity of treatment until long-term community-based care can be accessed.

3)     Behavioral Medicine and Developmental DisordersThe fellow in this training area serves the psychological needs of children ranging in ages from infancy to teens with developmental and/or chronic disease related concerns. The majority of these services take place within the Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics Service of Dell Children’s Medical Group, which provides a specialty outpatient clinic for diagnostic evaluations, consultation, and therapeutic interventions for children with developmental and behavioral concerns. Primary referral needs typically include autism, developmental delay, ADHD and follow-up for infants and children at risk for developmental delay due to premature birth or other perinatal events. The fellow in this program will participate in integrated care teams with Developmental and Behavioral Pediatricians and Psychiatrists as well as speech therapists, occupational therapists, and physical therapists from Dell Children’s Rehabilitative Services. The fellow will also coordinate continuity of outpatient psychological services for her/his patients through the Texas Child Study Center. The fellow works as part a multi-disciplinary team to approach the diagnosis and monitoring of children with neurobehavioral conditions such as ADHD, autism, speech/language disorders, dyspraxia and developmental delay. The fellow will also have opportunities to provide developmental follow-up for NICU graduates and children with Down Syndrome. The fellow will learn to apply evidence-based interventions for this clinical population, including Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) and cognitive-behavioral therapies. The fellow will receive live supervision and see preschool and school-age children presenting neurodevelopmental disabilities and co-occurring internalizing or externalizing disorders. Opportunities to provide supervision to interns, doctoral students and psychiatry fellows is also incorporated within a vertical supervision model.

Eligibility

Employment is through the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School. To be eligible, applicants must come from a strong training background in Pediatric and/or Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology and they must complete an APA Accredited Internship Program, and graduate from an APA Accredited doctoral program prior to the start of the fellowship year.

A Fully Completed Application Includes:

  1. A letter of interest indicating your preferred training track, specific training goals and interests, and eligibility for postdoctoral fellowship (i.e. confirmation of dissertation, internship and graduation completion dates/timelines).
  2. Curriculum Vitae
  3. Three letters of reference. Please send the fully completed application set (including LOR) to Dr. David F. Curtis, c/o Mr. Jeff Daily at Jeff.Daily@austin.utexas.edu. Application materials will be accepted throughDecember 31, 2020; however, interviews will be scheduled on an ongoing basis and may begin prior to this deadline, so earlier submissions are encouraged.https://dellmed.utexas.edu/education/academics/additional-training-programs/postdoctoral-fellowship-in-pediatric-psychology

The Texas Child Study Center strongly values diversity and believes in creating an equitable, hospitable, appreciative, safe, and inclusive environment for all staff, trainees, and families. TCSC welcomes applicants from diverse backgrounds and believes that a diverse training environment contributes to the overall quality of the program. Applicants who are bilingual in English and Spanish are strongly encouraged to apply. TCSC provides equal opportunity to all prospective applicants and does not discriminate because of a person’s race, color, sexual orientation, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or any other factor that is irrelevant to success as a psychology intern. The University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School is the employer for this position and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

About the Texas Child Study Center

The Texas Child Study Center was created in response to the need for pediatric mental health services and training for future mental health practitioners in the Austin area. The Center is a collaboration between Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas and The University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School and all psychologists are faculty of the medical school. The Center resides directly on the Dell Children’s Medical Center campus within a state of the art, newly designed clinical space. The Center provides evidence-based treatment for children and adolescents with emotional, behavioral, and developmental disabilities, ranging from adjustment difficulties to more chronic conditions including major mental health diagnoses, mood, and developmental disorders. Providers collaborate with physicians at Dell Children’s Medical Center to provide psychological support to children coping with acute and chronic medical conditions. Patients seen at the Center come from all socioeconomic strata and ethnic and racial backgrounds.

About Dell Children’s Medical Center

Dell Children’s Medical Center (DCMC) is located in Austin, Texas and it is the only freestanding pediatric facility in the region. DCMC is a member of Seton Family of Hospitals, has 176 beds, and serves a 46-county area. The hospital earned the world’s first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Healthcare (LEED-HC) platinum designation from the U.S. Green Building Council. DCMC values the healing power of the environment and includes a large collection of art, a three-acre multi-level Healing Garden, and several courtyards and gardens that represent eco-systems in the Central Texas Region. The mission of Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas is to improve the quality of life and health of children through family centered and family-oriented care, regardless of the family’s ability to pay for care. Central to this mission is developing partnerships with other organizations that share the mission and vision and providing educational activities that are synergistic with provision of care and meeting community needs.