LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Louisville Pediatrics has been authorized to offer a three-year fellowship in developmental-behavioral pediatrics beginning July 2012. This will be one of 34 developmental-behavioral pediatrics fellowships nationwide.
This accredited training program will prepare pediatricians to specialize in the care of children with developmental and genetic conditions such as autism, developmental delays, learning disability, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Fragile X syndrome, behavior and mood disorders, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorders.
“Training additional developmental-behavioral pediatricians will help us provide needed services to children with developmental issues,” said fellowship director Lisa Craft, M.D. “The demand for access to services at the Weisskopf Child Evaluation Center (WCEC) is high, but there are currently not enough physicians in this specialty to meet the growing needs in our community – or in communities throughout the nation.”
The fellowship will be based at the Weisskopf Child Evaluation Center but fellows also will spend time rotating with genetics, pediatric neurology, child psychiatry and the School of Public Health and Information Sciences. Upon completion of the program, fellows will earn a Master of Science in Epidemiology-Clinical Investigation Sciences and be eligible for certification in developmental-behavioral pediatrics.
Craft said she hopes to recruit one fellow to begin the three-year program in July 2012.