View the SIG, RIG, and affinity group virtual meeting schedule. 

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

11:00 am – 12 pm

Virtual Service & Outreach Event

Learn more about the SPPAC 2022 Service Projects & participate in a Sharing Circle/Women’s Empowerment Outreach Event with Achieving My Purpose (https://achievingmypurpose.org/). This activity is offered in collaboration with the Student/Trainee Antiracism Subgroup, Diversity SIG, & Student Advisory Board)
Contact: Juliana Yanguas, PsyD (jyangua1@jhmi.edu)

8:00 am

Registration and Check-In (ATRIUM)

10 am – 12:30 pm   

Pre-conference Workshops

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

First-time Attendee Meet up

2:30 pm – 5 pm

Pre-conference Workshops

Anti-racism Efforts in Pediatric Psychology: Implementation of Training, Community, and Clinical Activism Efforts of the Anti-Racism Workgroup

Nicole Fleischer PsyD - St Christopher's Hospital for Children
Amy Hahn PhD - Nationwide Children's Hospital
Siddika Mulchan PsyD - Connecticut Children's
Caitlin Shneider MA - Georgia State University
Sobha Fritz PhD - Emory University School of Medicine
Elizabeth Getzoff Testa PhD - Mt Washington Pediatric Hospital
Monique Germone PhD - Children's Hospital Colorado
Claire Russell PhD - Bright Spark Therapy and Consulting

In response to extensive societal injustices, particularly the death of George Floyd at the hands of police officers, the Society of Pediatric Psychology recognized a need for more deliberate anti-racism work in our organization. As such, the Anti-racism Workgroup was formed in the summer of 2020 and several subgroups have committed to improving our organization through anti-racism efforts. Anti-racism work must be integral in all aspects of pediatric psychology, including research, advocacy, activism, and implementation, in order to address the impact of racism and systemic injustice on youth and families with whom we work. Given our ethical principles of Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity, Justice, and Beneficence and Nonmaleficence, psychologists are ethically responsible for anti-racism work. Therefore, the goal of this pre-conference workshop is to provide education, access to, and training of the anti-racism resources three subgroups (Training, Community, and Clinical) of the Workgroup have developed.First, the Training Subgroup will present the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Supervision Self-Assessment Tool (DEI-SST) for clinical supervisors. Discussion topics will include: 1. The tool development process, 2. Proposed ways to utilize the DEI-SST, and 3. Review of other self-reflective tools to support a supervising psychologist’s antiracism journey as applied to clinical supervision.Second, the Community Subgroup will provide an overview of the current efforts to promote advocacy, policy change, community outreach, education, and promoting anti-racism within the pediatric psychology community.  Presenters will introduce and discuss use of fact sheets on social determinants of health (SDoH), which were created to educate community health care providers, with the goal of targeting other systems affecting children's health (e.g., schools, law enforcement, etc.). Next, an overview of a  program development project will be provided, which focused on a.) conducting a needs assessment among various community organizations devoted to children's needs, and b.) increasing exposure and education on a diverse workforce in pediatric psychology that will be shared with students in various levels of their education.Finally, the Clinical Subgroup will present clinical tip sheets, encompassing topics such as addressing implicit bias and talking about race with patients. Through use of role play, case vignettes,  and discussion, participants will learn ways to implement anti-racism efforts into direct clinical work. Overall, this workshop will encourage and facilitate implementation of anti-racism efforts into several domains of pediatric psychology training, practice, and advocacy.

Developing a Peer Support Program within a Pediatric Healthcare System

Holly Antal PhD ABPP - Nemours Children's Health
Karen Wohlheiter PhD - Nemours Children's Health
Kathryn Godfrey PhD - ChristianaCare Hospital
Caroline Bruce RD LDN CDCES NASM-CPT - Nemours Children's Health
Peggy Greco PhD - Nemours Children's Health
Jennifer Shroff Pendley PhD - Nemours Children's Health
Loren Berman MD - Nemours Children's Health
Maureen Leffler DO MPH - Nemours Children's Health

Healthcare organizations are recognizing the importance of peer support programs in addressing provider burn-out, engagement, and well-being, particularly in the context of the significant and multifaceted stressors facing healthcare providers today. Acknowledging and providing support to colleagues has become more important than ever. While external resources of support (e.g, Employee Assistance Programs, EAP) are available, providers are inclined to talk to peers in stressful situations (Berman et al., 2021; Hu et al., 2012). Peer support programs offer free and confidential emotional support with nonjudgmental, active listening.  Peer support can help provide support to all employees, both clinical and non-clinical, to help decrease workplace stress and burnout (Shapiro & McDonald, 2020). As pediatric psychologists focus on the care of children, their value in contributing to such programs may be initially overlooked. However, they are often the de-facto support system for pediatric medical colleagues and often provide support without a formal program. There are many benefits to establishing a formal program, including helping psychologists use their expertise to lead, train and support the work of peer support. The authors launched an enterprise-wide peer support program in May 2020 in consultation with the director of a well-established program at an affiliate hospital.This pre-conference workshop will 1) define peer support and describe programmatic implementation options; 2) provide attendees with peer support skills and resources to use within their own healthcare setting; 3) introduce pediatric psychologists to leadership opportunities that offer diversification of their traditional role in hospital settings, and 4) identify strategies for advocating with organizational leaders for both the implementation of a peer support program and for the role of psychologists in leading these efforts. This workshop will provide didactic instruction along with moderated breakout groups to facilitate role-play skills practice and feedback. Attendees will leave the session with skills and tools to initiate or expand a similar program of service within their own workplace setting. The content and goals of the proposed workshop align with the conference focus on broad leadership opportunities. The workshop includes specific strategies regarding how such a program addresses needs of underrepresented individuals who are experiencing stress relating to racial, gender, and other forms of micro- and macro-aggressions as well as oppression.

Promoting Health Equity with CLAS: Pediatric Psychology and the National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health and Health Care

Marilyn L. Sampilo PhD MPH - Cleveland Clinic Children's
Maxine Henry MSW MBA - National Latino Behavioral Health Association
Juliet Bui MPA MSW - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health

Advancing health equity means ensuring fair and just opportunities for all to attain optimal health. Unfortunately, structural inequities, including racism and discrimination, are deeply embedded within the system of healthcare manifesting as healthcare policy, procedures, and processes that contribute to a cycle of oppression and persistent behavioral health disparities (Gee & Ford, 2015). In order to move towards a more equitable society, structural inequities in healthcare must be addressed and these systems must move beyond diversity and inclusion to becoming intentionally equitable. Because pediatric psychology is uniquely positioned in its role at the intersection of youth, families, and the healthcare system, efforts must be undertaken to work towards a similar transformation. This means moving beyond the level of individual and interpersonal interactions to considering structural issues at broader levels (e.g. clinic/department/institution, community, policy) and developing structural competency (Metzl & Hansen, 2014). The National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) in Health and Health Care (National CLAS Standards; OMH, 2011) were developed to facilitate equitable and respectful care, thereby providing pediatric psychologists and their departments/agencies with a blueprint for promoting structural competency and implementing CLAS in pediatric psychology settings. Research suggests that after implementing CLAS, there are improvements in provider knowledge and skills, provider attitudes toward diverse patient populations, patient satisfaction, and patient-reported quality of care and trust in organizations (Weech-Maldonado et al., 2013).The proposed workshop will provide an overview of structural competency and the framework’s levels of interventions (Metzl & Hansen, 2014) as it relates to pediatric psychology, and will focus on CLAS as a mechanism to work towards structural competency as outlined by the National CLAS Standards. The workshop is intended to help attendees understand the role and application of structural and cultural competency to promote equity in pediatric psychology, and is intended to address the need for CLAS to improve care quality. The program is designed to 1) facilitate understanding of structural inequity and its manifestation in behavioral healthcare and pediatric psychology, 2) promote structural competency as a relevant framework for addressing disparities in pediatric psychology, 3) increase implementation of CLAS, including the National CLAS Standards, to increase capacity of pediatric psychology to promote equity, 4) provide practitioners and other key stakeholders with information that will help inform the development and implementation of equity strategies within their departments/agencies, and 5) position pediatric psychology professionals to lead equity initiatives at their home institutions.

School Advocacy for Children with Chronic Health Conditions: Opportunities for Pediatric Psychologists to Inform Stakeholders and Change Systems

Stephanie S. Filigno PhD - Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center; University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
Amanda D. Deacy PhD BCB-A - Children’s Mercy Kansas City; University of Missouri Kansas City School of Medicine
Jennifer Lindwall PhD - University of Colorado; Children’s Hospital Colorado
Peter L. Stavinoha PhD ABPP - University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center & Children’s Cancer Hospital
Ginger Birnbaum BA

School engagement and success are important components of health-related quality of life for children with chronic medical conditions.  Suboptimal school engagement can lead to academic underachievement and lower educational attainment, which can subsequently contribute to poorer quality of life in adulthood, including vocational achievement, relative to healthy peers.  Even with clear evidence of significant educational risk related to chronic health conditions, research demonstrates that many, if not a majority, of youth with chronic conditions receive less academic support than they need and to which they are entitled.There is a critical need to attend to academic development of youth with chronic health issues more effectively and comprehensively. Fortunately, efforts are underway, in policy (e.g., Healthy People 2030), pediatrics, and education, to improve care coordination among relevant players in a chronically ill child’s community to support child and adolescent development in the academic arena.  Key stakeholders include medical teams, allied health professionals, parents, educators, and administrators. Among these, pediatric psychologists are uniquely poised to contribute to these efforts, from early screening and in-depth assessment, to advocacy, guidance, innovative programming, and research. Additionally, pediatric psychologists are well-suited to consider barriers to educational advocacy unrelated to the medical condition, such as socioeconomic status and cultural and linguistic factors that may further complicate access to educational supports and services.This workshop will follow a practical, stepped-care model for advocating for the educational needs of youth with chronic health conditions.  Specifically, the workshop will explore opportunities for pediatric psychologists to enhance advocacy for school engagement and success through both proactive assessment of educational risk and in-depth evaluation of cognitive and academic needs when appropriate. We will also discuss how to effectively participate in educational decision-making by refining the learner’s understanding of the eligibility process and identification of appropriate accommodations, problem-solve when school nomenclature and methodology for serving students is seemingly discordant with goals of clinical practice, and help stakeholders decode the language of both school and medical systems.  An innovative hospital-based school program will be presented as an example of a “high-intensity” alternative academic setting for youth with complex medical, psychological, and social needs.  As a final call to action, a parent provides a unique perspective to tie these concepts together and to represent the voice of patients and families.

So You Want to Start a Clinical Program? Best Practices and Considerations for Psychologists across Pediatric Healthcare Settings

Linda Herbert PhD - Children's National Hospital
Jessica Bernacki PhD - UCLA
Claire Ackerman PhD - Olentangy Pediatrics
Randi Streisand PhD - Children's National Hospital

The purpose of this workshop is to equip early career psychologists with skills and best practices for developing clinical programs across pediatric healthcare settings. Topics will include but are not limited to 1) assessing and addressing the needs of the patient population, including patients from frequently underserved populations, 2) working with multidisciplinary team members, 3) developing a business plan, 4) integrating trainees into the clinical program, 5) starting a clinical research program, and 6) adapting healthcare delivery to changing needs over time and making these program sustainable. The structure of this workshop is as follows:1) 1.5 hours of didactics from 4 presenters2) 1 hour of networking, during which attendees will have the opportunity to speak with 10 psychologists, from several sponsoring SIGs, who have started their own clinical programs or developed niche programs within existing clinical programs. This workshop is relevant to this year’s conference theme, Advancing Advocacy and Leadership through Science and Practice in Pediatric Psychology, in several ways. First, equipping early career psychologists with the skills they need to develop clinical programs empowers them to become leaders in their divisions, institutions, and the community. Further, the networking portion of this workshop will directly give attendees advice from psychologists who have “been there”. It will expand the network of psychologists that attendees can reach out to in the future for advice and assistance as they implement what they learned into their everyday work. We anticipate that participants will also be able to go back to their colleagues at their institutions and teach them about best practices for starting clinical programs. Second, this workshop will include best practices for developing clinical programs for patient populations who may not typically receive mental healthcare and advocating for additional support and is therefore relevant to the ‘advancing advocacy’ aspect of the conference theme.

3:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Off-Site Service & Outreach Event at The Society of St. Vincent de Paul

Location: 2120 South 3^rd Street, Phoenix, AZ 85003
Advanced Sign-Up and Masks Required
Join us for an afternoon of service at the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (a short walk from the conference hotel). Activities include assisting with meal service for families and providing after-school support for children.
This activity is offered in collaboration with the Student/Trainee Antiracism Subgroup, Diversity SIG, and Student Advisory Board.
Contact: Desireé Williford, PhD, MPH (desiree.williford@cchmc.org) and Rachel Fisher, MS (Rachel.Fisher10@okstate.edu)

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Network for Campus Representatives (NCR) Meeting

The Society of Pediatric Psychology's Network of Campus Representatives (NCR) Program is hosting an informal event for all current NCRs.  At this meeting, co-chairs Melissa Engel and Mycah Ayala will provide important updates to the NCR Program, followed by Q&A ​and networking among NCRs to provide additional support​ and collaboration in creating events to increase awareness of pediatric psychology.

5:30 pm – 6:30 pm

Welcome Reception 

(refreshments and light snacks)

Poster Session 1: Topics: Complementary and Integrative Medicine, Consultation-Liaison, Diabetes, Diversity, Medical Traumatic Stress, Obesity, Quality Improvement, Rehabilitation Medicine, and Solid Organ Transplant

7:00 am   

Registration and Check-In

7 am – 8 am

CCaPPTC Meeting

Established in 2016, the Clinical Child and Pediatric Psychology Training Council (CCaPPTC) promotes the advancement of graduate and postgraduate education and training in clinical child/adolescent and pediatric psychology.  Members include doctoral, doctoral internship, and postdoctoral programs involved in the education and training of psychologists who work with children and families.  All interested parties are welcome to join the meeting;  Discussion will include: recent Council activities and current issues in training, updates about the activities of the Steering Committee for Training Guidelines, challenges related to postdoctoral selection and more.

8 am – 9 am

Breakfast

Poster Session 2: Topics: Advocacy, Allergic Diseases, Cardiology, Clinical Trials, Gastroenterology, Hematology/Oncology, Intervention Development, and Primary Care

On-Site Service & Outreach Activity - available at all poster sessions!

Lend a helping hand during the poster sessions by assembling to-go coffee kits for local families served by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. Learn more about the Society of St. Vincent de Paul here: https://www.stvincentdepaul.net/.    Contact: Desireé Williford, PhD, MPH (desiree.williford@cchmc.org)

Mid/Late Career Networking Event

Ready, Set, Network! Join us for a networking event for mid/late career professionals and invited speakers.
Chair: Natoshia Cunningham, PhD, on behalf of the SPPAC 2022 Scientific Program Committee

4:00 pm – 4:30 pm   

Break - Sponsored by American Board of Clinical Child Adolescent Psychology, a member board of the American Board of Professional Psychology

7:30 am  

Registration and Check-In

8 am – 9 am

Breakfast

Poster Session 3 - Adolescent & Young Adult, Differences of Sex Development, Digital Health, Gender Health, Measure Development, Pain, Parents, and Patient & Family Voices

On-Site Service & Outreach Activity - available at all poster sessions!

Lend a helping hand during the poster sessions by assembling to-go coffee kits for local families served by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. Learn more about the Society of St. Vincent de Paul here: https://www.stvincentdepaul.net/.    Contact: Desireé Williford, PhD, MPH (desiree.williford@cchmc.org)

Early Career Networking Event: