Child Study Center

Outpatient Clinical Services Team

We provide assessment and psychotherapy services to children and youth from birth to age 18 and their families. Youth in treatment can access psychiatric evaluations, psychopharmacology services, group therapy and long-term medication management following completion of therapy. Our services include:

• Individual and family therapy
• Parent guidance and Parent Management Training
• Group therapy for parents and youth enrolled in individual or family therapy
• Psychiatric evaluation and medication management for youth enrolled in treatment

Developmental Disabilities Team

Our team consists of a multidisciplinary group of clinical faculty who perform comprehensive evaluations in young children and adolescents suspected of having developmental disabilities. The Yale Medicine Child Study Center has a team that specializes in early diagnosis in infants and toddlers, and a second team that specializes in evaluations of children three years and older.

The evaluations take place over two days, and focus on diagnosis, determination of strengths and vulnerabilities, and informing educational interventions. Evaluations include psychological, speech and language testing, psychiatric and adaptive functioning assessments.

Our teams are especially expert at complex situations, where children have multiple or overlapping diagnoses. Untangling the various components of a child’s development is often the first step in designing an effective treatment plan. Our services include:

• Evaluations for infants, children, and adolescents who have or are suspected of having developmental disabilities
• Educational advocacy to assist parents with getting appropriate, supportive, school programming
• College consultation for high school students/families with Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Interventions designed to build on each individual’s strengths, to maximize development and support the family, including Pivotal Response Therapy.

Common reasons for seeing this team include autism or the suspicion of autism, global developmental delays, Down syndrome, and social and language disorders.

Tic Disorder & Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Team

We evaluate and treat children, adolescents and young adults with tics, obsessive‐compulsive, hair pulling, ADHD symptoms and related difficulties. Our services include:

• Comprehensive evaluations
• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), including CBIT-CBT especially for tics and Habit Reversal Training for the treatment of trichotillomania (hair pulling)
• Psychopharmacological evaluations and ongoing medication management

Childhood Trauma Team

We specialize in the evaluation and treatment of children and youth who have experienced a difficult event. When children and adolescents experience overwhelming events, some of them go on to develop symptoms of trauma, intrusive thoughts, heightened awareness, aggression, or other behavioral problems.

The Childhood Trauma Program offers a range of treatments and interventions for children and adolescents who are struggling with traumatic reactions and disorders following violent or overwhelming events. Our services include:

• Acute Response and Treatment following a potentially traumatic event
• Child and Family Traumatic Stress Intervention
• Long-term trauma treatment, including Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy, and family therapy
• Other complex evaluations

Common reasons for referral include exposure to potentially traumatic events, whether exposure is a single event or chronic, including community violence, domestic violence, motor vehicle accidents, animal attacks, sexual or physical abuse, or rape.

Anxiety and Mood Disorders Team

We specialize in the evaluation, prevention, treatment, and on-going care of children and adolescents struggling with fears, anxiety, selective mutism, school refusal, or unusual worries. Our services include:

• Diagnostic evaluations
• Psychiatric consultations
• Psychotherapy, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, parent guidance, mindfulness
• School consultations
• Computer-based approaches

In-Home Program Team

For some families, treatment in a clinic or office setting is not sufficient, often due to a need for more intensive clinical services. Our In-Home Programs include a number of community-based interventions that are provided in the home. In-home services often provide a bridge for youth at risk of hospitalization, or those who have been recently discharged, and need more intensive and frequent therapy than the outpatient service. Often certain kinds of substance use or abuse, either in children or their caregivers, are better managed with in-home care.

As we get to know your individual needs and better understand your family, we will recommend In-Home Services when appropriate. Our services include:

Intensive In-Home Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Services (IICAPS): An in-home psychiatric treatment for families with children or adolescents who have serious emotional disturbances, and are at risk for hospitalization.

Multi-dimensional Family Therapy (MDFT): A family-based, comprehensive treatment program focused on adolescent and young adult substance abuse and related behavioral and emotional difficulties.

Family-Based Recovery (FBR): In-home, attachment-based, parent-child therapy and contingency management substance abuse treatment.

Intensive Family Preservation (IFP): An in-home program that works with parents and guardians to meet the needs of their children so they can remain safely together in the home.

Positive Interventions for Families with HIV/AIDS (PIFA): A home- and community-based service providing mental health and support services to persons living with or affected by HIV/AIDS in the Greater New Haven Area.

Infancy and Early Childhood Team

We work within our outpatient clinic setting and specializes in serving families with children from birth to age 5. We help children with disruptive behaviors, such as aggression, that are difficult for caregivers to manage or understand. We also help children suffering from anxiety, regression, or other stressful reactions after a change or disruption, such a divorce or a move. Our team also offers evaluations for infants and children whose development seems delayed. Our services include:

• Developmental evaluations
• Psychotherapy services tailored to the unique needs of children and families, including:
  • Non-directive play therapy
  • Child parent psychotherapy (CPP)
  • Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT)
  • Circle of Security parenting

Psychological & Educational Assessment Team

Sometimes children struggle, and parents and teachers don’t understand why. We specialize in finding out why the child is struggling. They use a broad range of tests for school-aged children and teens, to probe each individual’s strengths and challenges.

Evaluations include assessment of a student’s cognitive abilities, educational skills, and social-emotional adjustment through IQ testing, education testing for learning disabilities, neuropsychological testing of executive functioning, memory, and attention; and assessment of personality and social-emotional functioning.

The comprehensive report includes detailed recommendations for educational and/or psychological interventions. Assessments include:

• Intelligence testing
• Neuropsychological testing
• Social‐emotional and personality evaluations
• Highly detailed, individualized reports, recommendations for parents, clinicians, schools, IEP development, behavior strategies, therapy planning