Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Training

Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Fellowship

The MUSC fellowship program in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics (DBP) is an interdisciplinary training, clinical, and research fellowship encompassing a variety of programs for children, adolescents and young adults with neurodevelopmental and behavioral problems. The fellowship focuses on leadership training of long-term fellows in developmental-behavioral pediatrics, including clinical experience in the variety of specialty clinics in the Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics that are staffed by our interdisciplinary team. In addition to subspecialty resident training in developmental and behavioral pediatrics, our center has graduate and post-doctoral students in psychology. This interdisciplinary emphasis provides a rich environment for pediatric fellows to learn about developmental and behavioral issues from many perspectives within a biopsychosocial framework.

DBP fellows also participate in the South Carolina Leadership Education in Neurodevelopment and Related Disabilities (SC LEND) program, which provides additional interdisciplinary training, preparing future leaders in the field of developmental disabilities. In addition to the SC LEND curriculum, our fellowship program was recently awarded funding from MCHB. MCHB funds 10 Leadership in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Training Programs to prepare fellows with clinical, research, and leadership skills. This designation places our program in the MCH Training Grantee Network, and reflects our program’s mission to train future leaders in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics.

Our developmental-behavioral pediatrics subspecialty fellowship is three years in duration, and includes a total of one year focused on a research/scholarly project, including study of research design and interpretation of data, in addition to clinical and leadership training. Our program offers interested candidates the opportunity to obtain a Master’s of Science in Clinical Research (MSCR).

Pediatric Psychology Internship

The Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics provides a rotation in Pediatric Psychology as part of the Charleston Consortium Psychology Internship Training Program, an APA-accredited collaborative effort between the Medical University of South Carolina and the Psychology Service of the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The year-long, full-time internship provides training for doctoral-level students enrolled in APA-accredited clinical and counseling psychology programs. The Pediatric Psychology rotation comprises a six-month training experience in evidenced-based assessment of a range of developmental conditions and childhood disorders. Current rotations focus on assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorder in children and adolescents and Developmental Delay in infants and toddlers.

South Carolina Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities

The South Carolina Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) program is an interdisciplinary training program funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). SC LEND aims to train future leaders to improve care for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities by offering fellowships at MUSC, USC, and Greenville Hospital Systems and through continuing education opportunities for professionals across the state.

Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Fellowship

Given the broad scope of DBP our program allows for a solid foundation which can then be tailored to a fellows evolving interest. In general, the DBP fellow spends the majority of his or her first year becoming familiar with typical and atypical child development and behavior (through reading, viewing of videotaped material, seminars, and discussions with staff) and gaining a variety of specialized clinical skills through didactic and clinical work with preceptors.

Clinical experience in the first year is focused on the young child (ages 0-5) with a broad range of developmental-behavioral problems. Introductory courses in epidemiology are usually taken during the first year. A personal scholarship oversight committee is formed in the first year and will help guide the fellow through their research and scholarly activities. The Core Curriculum Course for all long-term trainees focuses on a variety of issues related to the following:

• DBP didactics
• Leadership training
• Research issues
• Career development
• Policy issues surrounding learning and developmental concerns
• Early intervention
• School-related program issues

During the second year, the fellow’s research interest and project are more finely honed, and 40% time is devoted to non-clinical activities. The project may be one initiated by the fellow, or a portion of a larger ongoing project under the preceptorship of one of the faculty. Clinical experience becomes more focused on school-age children. Instruction in autism spectrum disorders diagnostic evaluations is offered early in the 2nd year. Elective rotations complete the clinical experience during the 2nd year.

During the third year of fellowship, the fellow again has 40% time devoted to research/non-clinical activities. Clinical experience is targeted toward the fellow’s specific interests. A leadership role for the other trainees is assumed during this year, with exposure to administrative functions.

The DBP fellow also participates in the ongoing activities of the Pediatric section within the division, such as the biweekly meetings (with didactic presentations), supervising medical students and house staff in their assessments of children, and giving teaching presentations to groups of medical and other graduate students. Our ultimate goal is to prepare the DBP fellow for the broad range of clinical, research, and teaching skills called for in any future academic or other leadership position.