Pediatric Psychology Fellowship

The UAMS Pediatric Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship is a multi-site program consisting of three full-time, 12-month positions, with the Fellowship providing 2,000 hours of supervised training (which meets APPIC standards and Arkansas Psychology Board licensure requirements for postdoctoral training hours).  The Fellowship program is part of a comprehensive interdisciplinary training effort within the Department of Pediatrics at UAMS and involves other trainees such as medical fellows, residents, students, social work interns, and speech/language pathology interns. In addition, psychologists are embedded in other sections within the Department of Pediatrics (i.e., Children at Risk, Adolescent Medicine, Behavioral Pediatrics, Center for Applied Research and Evaluation). The Fellowship is under the direction of the Section of Pediatric Psychology and Schmieding Developmental Center (SDC), which consists of 15 doctoral-level psychologists, three postdoctoral fellows and two master’s-level psychological examiners. The Fellowship consists of two tracks: pediatric psychology (Little Rock) and child clinical (Northwest Arkansas, NWA). Please see our handbook for additional information.

Pediatric Psychology Track (two positions)

The Pediatric Psychology track includes rotations in ACH outpatient clinics, inpatient consultation and the UAMS Dennis Developmental Center (DDC) with 60% of the clinical rotations being pediatric psychology focused. Fellows in the Pediatric Psychology Track are housed at the Little Rock site with the Pediatric Psychology Section. Please see the ACH and DDC descriptions below for rotation and training details

Pediatric Neuropsychology Track (one position)

The pediatric neuropsychology track has a focus on assessment with a minimum of 50% assessment per rotation and allows for pediatric and neuropsychology opportunities. This program also satisfies requirements for board certification in pediatric neuropsychology as part of a two year training program through the clinical training and additional structured didactics/seminars. Fellows in the neuropsychology track are housed in Lowell, Arkansas in the SDC. Please see the SDC descriptions below for rotation and training details.

COVID-19 Specific Updates

ACH and UAMS are dedicated to providing safe and patient-centered care. While we anticipate services will return to in-person by the start of the training year, UAMS and ACH have worked hard to build telehealth programs that will continue beyond the COVID-19 crisis. There will continue to be a combination of in-person and virtual clinical and educational experiences.

Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH)

ACH is the primary pediatric medical center and only pediatric Trauma 1 facility in Arkansas. Known for being one of the largest pediatric medical providers in the country with 359 beds and spanning 36 city blocks, ACH proudly provides world-class medical care to children and families throughout Arkansas and surrounding areas. Pediatric Psychology Fellows cover several outpatient medical clinics including Cardiology, CPAP Adherence, Pulmonary/CF, GI/Liver, High-Risk Newborn, Audiology and Hearing Impairment, Weight Management, Sleep, Burn/Plastics, and Chronic Pain. Also, Fellows cover the Inpatient Consultation/Liaison Service for all of ACH. Fellows may select from various elective experiences, which include developmental disabilities, research, medical crisis and loss and various pediatric subspecialty outpatient clinics. ACH takes a patient-family-centered care approach that includes several patient and family-led initiatives and an extensive Family Engagement Center. For more information on specific clinics, resources and programs please see the Arkansas Children’s website.

UAMS James L. Dennis Developmental Center (DDC)

The DDC is an outpatient interdisciplinary evaluation and treatment center that serves a variety of patient populations with a focus on children with developmental, learning, and/or behavioral problems from birth through 18 years of age. In the DDC, Fellows can participate in psychoeducational assessment, autism spectrum disorders, behavioral assessment, multidisciplinary team assessment, and psychotherapy. For more information on specific clinics, resources and programs, please see the UAMS DDS website.

Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND)

The Pediatric Psychology track is partially funded by a grant to the Partners for Inclusive Communities. Fellows in Little Rock participate in the LEND interdisciplinary training program. The LEND program is federally funded through the Maternal Child Health Bureau. The purpose of the LEND program is to provide trainees with experiences to competently apply knowledge and skills to the care of persons with developmental disabilities and their families; effectively participate in an interdisciplinary process of designing, evaluating, and implementing programs; and effectively work in an interprofessional team. In addition to these clinical and training experiences, the fellows are encouraged to initiate research and/or participate in ongoing faculty research efforts. For more information please see the AUCD LEND website.

Living in Little Rock

As the capital city of Arkansas, Little Rock provides many of the benefits of living in a large city, without the negative aspects such as traffic congestion and high cost of living. The population of the greater Little Rock area is approximately 500,000. Fellows enjoy spending time outdoors at Pinnacle Mountain, the River Trail, and Eureka Springs. There are numerous community events and among Fellow favorites are Trivia Nights, Science After Dark, Brew at the Zoo, Shop and Sip, Arkansas Travelers baseball games, and food festivals. The resort city of Hot Springs is a one-hour drive from Little Rock and the Ozark Mountains are a two-hour drive. Stretching along the Arkansas River, Little Rock is truly a wonderful place to live, work and play. Little Rock is also home to the Clinton Presidential Library. The city sits among the gently rolling hills of central Arkansas. Summers can be hot at times while winter remains mild for the most part, with occasional snowfall. Arkansas boasts all her beauty in spring and fall with endless flowers in the spring and vibrant colors in the fall. The weather during these seasons can truly be described as perfect.