Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

The Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP) Fellowship is a 2-year post residency program. The overarching goal of the program is to train residents to become competent specialists in the independent practice of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and to serve as a consultant to other physicians as needed.

Following completion of the fellowship training, graduates will be equally prepared to enter into academic practice (either physician-scientist or clinician-educator) or independent practice. The fellows will assume increasing levels of autonomy and responsibility as they progress through their training; however, will maintain a close interaction with the faculty who are charged with the supervision, education, and evaluation necessary in a training program. Years 1 and 2 are divided between clinical, research and other educational activities as mandated by the ACGME Residency Review Committees (RRC) for Psychiatry and to fulfill ABPN certification requirements.

Fellows participate in a structured, core clinical, research, and educational experience that includes hands-on training in specialty clinics including, ADHD, Mood Disorders, OCD, early psychosis, and pediatric neurology, as well as outpatient clinics, school-collaborated consultations, community clinics and child psychiatry consultation/liaison. We also provide training in brief and long-term psychotherapies from a variety of perspectives and traditions and strategies including supportive, psychodynamic, and family therapies along with crisis intervention combined psychotherapy and psychopharmacology, cognitive, and dialectical behavioral therapies. Direct attending supervision is provided for all clinical experiences with progression to indirect supervision and oversight to foster autonomy of the fellows. Critical thinking skills are enhanced by theoretical and evidence-based seminars and demonstrations by skilled clinical practitioners as role models and consultants.

Curriculum

Goals and Objectives

Our aim is to train innovative physicians from diverse backgrounds in a solid foundation of child and adolescent psychiatry, including neurobiology, development, family, social and school systems, research principles, psychopharmacology, and psychotherapeutics.The didactic and knowledge areas of the program will aim at providing the fellow with the basic knowledge of the following topics:

  • To prepare specialists who provide expert medical care for patients with psychiatric disorders and who can serve as consultants, educators, and physician scientists in ADHD, Mood Disorders, ODD, Schizophrenia, Severe Mood Dysregulation Disorder, Gender Dysphoria, Anxiety Disorder, OCD, PTSD, Child and Adolescent Development, Advanced Psychopharmacology,
  • To provide Psychiatry fellows with cross-training in both pediatric and adult psychiatric disorders because specialists in psychiatry, whatever, their primary specialty, are called on to diagnose and treat individuals of all ages.
    • Knowledge of Emergency Psychiatry: discussion of frequent psychiatry cases presenting in an emergency room, intensive care unit and medical/surgical setting.
    • Knowledge of Depressive Disorders and Suicide
    • Knowledge of Anxiety Disorders, Trauma,
    • Knowledge of Multidisciplinary Treatment approach, Residential Treatment Programs,

Program Design

  • Fellows will rotate longitudinally at an outpatient community clinic, on average one day per week, except during Research months.
  • Fellows will have outpatient clinic two days a week.
  • Fellows will see Inpatient consults while on Outpatient clinics. Outpatient clinics will be a combination of pediatric psychopharmacology and a minimum of 1 psychotherapy cases in the outpatient clinics.
  • Fellows will have 1 month of Research, during the second year.

Teaching and didactic sessions will take place as follows: Board Review and Grand Rounds once per week for 1 hour sessions, Psychiatry Journal Club once per month, Common Fellowship Curriculum Session once per month, Faculty Development Lecture quarterly.

 
  • Site 1: Outpatient Clinic time spent 50/50 in Hospital-Based office clinic and community-based office clinic. Fellows Continuity Clinic takes place two 1/2 day per week year round.
  • Site 2: Community Clinic

First Year Curriculum

Block 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Site 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Rotation C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
% Inpatient 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75%
% Outpatient 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25%
% Research              
Block 8 9 10 11 12 13  
Site 1/3 1/3 2 2 N/A N/A  
Rotation C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
Research Vacation*  
% Inpatient 25% 25% 10% 10%      
% Outpatient 75% 75% 90% 90%      
% Research         100%    

*Vacation is taken as either 2 week blocks (x2) or a 4-week block

Second Year Curriculum

Block 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Site 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3
Rotation Research Research Research Research Research C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
% Inpatient           25% 25%
% Outpatient           75% 75%
% Research 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%    
Block 8 9 10 11 12 13  
Site 1/3 1/3 2 2 N/A N/A  
Rotation C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
C&A
Psychiatry
Elective** Research Vacation*  
% Inpatient 25% 25% 10% 10%      
% Outpatient 75% 75% 90% 90%      
% Research         100%    

*Vacation is taken as either 2 week blocks (x2) or a 4-week block

How to Apply

Applications should be submitted through the ERAS system.

The Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship is a traditional two-year post-residency program. Eligible candidates include postdoctoral trainees (with M.D. or D.O. degrees) who have completed a minimum of 3 years of general psychiatry residency training (including internship) at an ACGME-accredited psychiatry residency program. Program candidates must be U.S. citizens, Permanent Residents (Green Card holders), or holders of a valid work permit. International medical school graduates are eligible to apply but must submit a current valid certificate from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) with their application. International candidates who do not hold a US Citizenship, permanent residency, or a valid work permit; should clearly specify the details of their current visa status in the ERAS application. Please note that Nicklaus Children’s Hospital only sponsors J1 Visas (sponsored by the ECFMG). The program will recruit two trainees per year to start on July 6 or 7 of every academic year.
 

Any questions:
Please contact

Ms Ana Otero, C-TAGME; (Ana.Otero@Nicklaushealth.org) CAP Fellowship Program Coordinator

Salary and Benefits

Compensation is commensurate with ACGME-equivalent programs.