Clinical Experiences & Research Options

A fellow in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics (DBP) participates in a variety of clinical programs and settings covering the broad range of DB disorders of childhood and adolescence.  In general, he or she will hone skills in neuro-developmental assessment and use these skills seeing patients in his or her own clinic and as part of interdisciplinary teams. Individual and group precepting by one of the DBP faculty will allow for enhanced learning and generalization of information, skills, and attitudes, for further application to related clinical, research, and teaching roles of the DBP subspecialty resident. 

Required clinical experiences include:

  • 0-36 months clinic
  • Preschool age clinic
  • School Age clinic
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder evaluation/management clinic
  • ADHD assessment and management clinic
  • Developmental Behavioral Evaluation Clinic (developmental pediatrics, psychiatry, psychology, social work)
  • Medication consultation

Additional specialty clinical experiences in which a DBP fellow at MUSC will participate include:

  • Developmental High Risk follow-up clinic (follow up of high-risk newborns from the NICU)
  • Cardiac neurodevelopmental follow-up clinic
  • Myelomeningocele clinic
  • Down Syndrome clinic
  • International Adoption clinic
  • Cochlear Implant

Required outpatient clinic rotations outside of DPB include:

  • Genetics
  • Pediatric Neurology
  • Adolescent Medicine
  • Child Psychiatry

Elective options include:

  • Craniofacial Clinic
  • Spasticity Clinic
  • Movement Disorders, including Tourette syndrome and tic disorders
  • Psychology
  • Neuropsychology
  • Outpatient Pediatric HIV Clinic
  • Ancillary Services, including occupational, physical, and speech therapy

In addition, DBP subspecialty residents participate in consultations to the Pediatric wards and clinics and assume a teaching role for the residents and medical students during their Developmental-Behavioral pediatrics rotation. DBP subspecialty residents are also exposed to community-based clinical programs.

Research Opportunities

Current projects of our pediatric faculty

Fellow research projects have recently included:

  • Polypharmacology in ADHD and comparison of clinic populations
  • Psychosocial Effects of Bullying in Pediatric Clinic Populations
  • Predictors of Social-Emotional Functioning in High Risk Neonates
  • the Effect of an Intensive Day Treatment Program on the Language and Learning skills of Behavior Disordered Children Ages 3-6 Years
  • Developmental Screening Using Parent Questionnaires in the Neuromotor Assessment of Former Preterm Infants

Furthermore, there are support services available to assist in the pursuit research. These include:

  1. Coursework – option of traditional classes or online coursework, including courses related to research design, epidemiology, biostatistics, and grant writing
  2. South Carolina Translational Research Center (SCTR) - an NIH funded Clinical and Translational Sciences Awards program that encourages inter-disciplinary research initiatives across institutions in South Carolina