UMass Chan DMH/DDS Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry Fellowship

The DMH/DDS Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry Fellowship is a collaborative program between UMass Chan Medical School, UMass Memorial HealthCare, the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health (DMH) and Department of Developmental Services (DDS). The goals of the fellowship are to increase psychiatric practitioners trained to treat individuals with Autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders across the lifespan.

The fellow will conduct specialized evaluations of complex patients at the intersection of mental health and developmental concerns. DDS (Service Coordinators) and DMH (Area Medical Directors) identify individuals (generally adolescents to young adults) with complex developmental and mental health needs with identified service gaps or questions around diagnosis or treatment recommendations. Referrals are sent to the training program for the fellows to conduct evaluations under the supervision of senior faculty Jean Frazier MD (Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center) and David Cochran MD PhD (Medical Director, Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders – CANDO, UMass Chan and Shriver Center). The Fellow conducts comprehensive evaluations directed at specific referral questions and provides an evaluation report to DDS and DMH upon completion.

In addition to these evaluations, fellows will spend at least 0.2 FTE in the CANDO clinic for psychiatric evaluations and psychopharmacologic treatment, with opportunities for direct supervision with Dr Cochran as well as close collaboration with other faculty specializing in mental health treatment for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. The fellows will be given dedicated time for conducting fellowship referral evaluations, including additional administrative time for collateral information/record review/report writing.

Fellows also have the opportunity to meet 8 times a year with senior DMH and DDS staff, as well as expert academic consultants from UMass, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), DMH, and DDS. The sessions provide a collaborative learning series with presentations by DMH/DDS staff as well as case presentations and discussions by fellows from UMass Chan and MGH. Fellows are expected to present 2-3 cases per year for discussion.

Interested applicants should email Dr. Cochran David.Cochran@umassmemorial.org with a CV and brief statement of interest (1 page or less).