Division Focus

The Child and Adolescent Division is part of the Department of Psychiatry and provides care at the Dallas and Plano campuses of Children’s Health System of Texas and with several community partners.

The focus of the Division is on clinical care, education and research. We strive to provide the best evidenced based care to our patients and their families, to educate and train experts in the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry, and to participate in cutting-edge research to help understand the causes of psychiatric illness and to development new and refined treatments 

Patient Care

The Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry provides multidisciplinary assessment and individualized care for children and adolescents with specific psychiatric disorders at Children’s Medical Center, Dallas; Children’s Medical Center, Plano; and UT Southwestern Medical Center.

Services

• Outpatient Psychiatry
  Services for children from birth to age 18. Diagnoses such as depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are treated here with medication management and individual and group psychotherapy. Children with co-morbid medical illnesses are primary area of interest within the program
• Suicide Prevention and Resilience at Children’s (SPARC)
  An intensive outpatient program for patients with a history of suicidal thinking or attempts where they learn coping techniques and tolerance to stress
• Early Childhood Mental Health Clinic
  A program in which very young children with developmental difficulties are evaluated by a team including psychiatry, psychology, and speech therapy
• The Day Treatment Program
  A partial hospitalization program in which patients ages 3 to 17 attend daily to learn coping strategies, behavioral interventions, and family interventions to improve overall functioning
• Inpatient Hospitalization for Eating Disorders
  Patients are in the hospital around the clock for assessment and treatment of severe eating issues and the medical and psychological complications associated with significantly disordered eating
• Partial Hospitalization Program for Eating Disorders
  A daily program in which patients with eating disorders, including avoidant restrictive food intake disorder, receive psychiatric and psychological care
• Intensive Outpatient Program for Eating Disorders
  A less intense service in the eating disorders continuum that helps provide transition from a higher level of care back to the community
• Teen Recovery Intensive Outpatient Program
  An intensive outpatient program that provides care to adolescents with the dual diagnosis of mental health issues and substance abuse and that includes individual group and family care
• The UT Southwestern and Children’s Health℠ Center for Autism Care
  Outpatient psychiatry, psychological testing, and therapy for patients up to age 17 with autism spectrum disorders and other developmental disabilities
• Rees-Jones Center for Foster Care Excellence
  Outpatient psychiatric care for children in foster care who also receive primary pediatric care in the same program
• Consultation/Liaison Service
  Psychiatric, psychological, and therapeutic assessment and treatments for patients in the Emergency Department or hospitalized on medical units

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Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium

The State of Texas supports specialized programs for child mental health in Texas through the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium (TCMHCC).

These programs are delivered at Health-Related Institutions around the state, including Child Psychiatry Faculty at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

Programs

• Child Psychiatric Access Network
  CPAN
  A call-in psychiatry consultation program for area pediatricians and family practitioners
• Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine
  TCHATT
  A program that targets students at risk who are identified by their schools where care is provided by telemedicine to their campuses
• Community Psychiatry Workforce Expansion
  CPWE
  Placement of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Faculty along with Psychiatry residents and fellows in community mental health centers
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowships
  Creation of additional fellowship positions in training programs to increase the number of Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists in practice in Texas
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Research
  Research in the areas of depression and trauma

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Involvement in Education and Training

The Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry provides education and training for many different types of learners, including child psychiatry fellows, psychiatry residents, neurology residents, and medical students, as well as clinical psychology doctoral students, undergraduate and graduate nursing students, master’s-level special education teachers, and psychology, social work, and clinical nutrition interns.

The Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship Program has trained psychiatrists for over 60 years and is one of the largest programs in the United States. Graduates from the Fellowship go on to careers in academic medicine, community mental health, and private practice, among other positions. A Triple Board Program in Pediatrics, Psychiatry and Child Psychiatry will begin training residents in 2023. 

Research in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Depression and associated suicidal thinking is our most prolific area of research. Current studies include research in the areas of pharmacotherapy, including the use of novel treatments, suicide assessment, and treatment and psychotherapy. 

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Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Faculty

James D. Norcross, M.D.

• Professor
• Division Director

David Atkinson, M.D.

• Associate Professor
• Teen Recovery

Rabia Ayvaci, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Outpatient Psychiatry

James Baker, M.D.

• Professor
• CPAN

Sabrina Browne, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Behavioral Health Integration and Guidance (BHIG)

Andrew Diederich, M.D.

• Associate Professor
• Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry

Stephen Elliott, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• The UT Southwestern and Children’s Health℠ Center for Autism Care
• Fellowship Associate Program Director

Graham Emslie, M.D.

• Professor
• Outpatient Psychiatry
• SPARC

Latoya Frolov, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry

Ritu Ghai, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• TCHATT
• CPWE

Joseph Guillory, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Outpatient Psychiatry
• Transitional Age Youth

Medha Iyer, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry

Catherine Karni, M.D.

• Professor
• Outpatient Psychiatry
• Early Childhood Mental Health Clinic

Urszula Kelley, M.D.

• Professor
• Eating Disorders Program

Mohsin Khan, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Rees-Jones Center for Foster Care

Mili Khandheria, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• CPAN

Muruga Loganathan, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• CPWE

Jane Miles, M.D.

• Associate Professor
• Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry

Charles Odom, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry

Laura Stone, M.D.

• Associate Professor
• Day Treatment Program

Kathlene Trello-Rishel, M.D.

• Professor
• Fellowship Training Director

Maria Weidmer Mikhail, M.D.

• Assistant Professor
• Eating Disorders Program

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