Complementary and Integrative Medicine Special Interest Group

Mission and Goals

The Society of Pediatric Psychology Complementary and Integrative Medicine (CIM) special interest group (SIG) provides a forum for communication and discussion about the role of CIM as it relates to advancing the health and well-being of pediatric populations. Consistent with the mission of SPP, emphasis is placed on the application of psychological principles to the science and practice of CIM. Complementary and integrative medicine is defined by the National Center on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) as a broad range of healing approaches that mainstream Western (conventional) medicine does not commonly use, accept, study, understand, or make available.

The goals of this SIG are to:

  1. advance the evidence-base of CIM modalities in pediatric populations;
  2. foster networking and communication among pediatric psychologists and providers of medical care using or evaluating CIM modalities
  3.  support the training of pediatric psychology students pursuing CIM-related experiences. These goals are met through meetings and symposia at SPP/APA conferences, communication through our listserv and the SPP website, and collaborating with other organizations working to contribute to the science of CIM modalities, and/or toward an integration of evidence-based CIM modalities into pediatric psychology practice.

SIG members have a variety of interests in research, clinical, and education-CIM arenas, with an emphasis on integrating these CIM modalities into models of biospychosocialspiritual care of children and families. SPP CIM SIG membership does not imply nor does it endorse the individual’s ability to practice CIM modalities.

 

Resources

 

Leadership

CIM SIG Chair

Bonnie Essner, PhD
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Pritzker Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Health
Department of Pediatric Anesthesiology

Student Representatives
Megan Shaefer
Melisa Engel

Past Chairs
Brittany Gresl, PhD
Susan T. Tran, PhD
Katherine S. Salamon, PhD
Matthew Myrvik, PhD
Kathleen L. Lemanek, PhD
Keri Hainsworth, PhD

Newsletters

Join

SPP invites members with a shared interest to consider joining one or more Special Interest Groups (SIGs) by logging into the Member Portal and going to "Join a SIG/RIG/Affinity Group" on the dropbox.