Director of Clinical Training, Center for Autism Research - The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Posted: Tuesday, March 4, 2008

As a world leader in the advancement of healthcare for children, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) (www.chop.edu) integrates excellent patient care, innovative research (through the Joseph Stokes Research Institute), and quality professional education into all of its programs. In 2007, U.S. News & World Report and Child Magazine ranked it the best pediatric hospital in the United States for the fifth consecutive year. The Center for Autism Research (CAR) at CHOP is affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Pediatrics and the Joseph Stokes Research Institute. The CAR coordinates, sponsors, and supports research into understanding the causes and treatment of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The CAR comprises a highly interdisciplinary faculty that share the goal of understanding why and how children with an ASD differ from one another, and how those differences translate into treatment needs and developmental courses. The CAR's support of a growing array of research projects is guided by the belief that effective treatments will follow from a better understanding of underlying causes. In addition to its research programs, the CAR will also strive to: train the next generation of autism experts by establishing a state-of-the-art postdoctoral fellowship program; serve as a community resource in Southeastern Pennsylvania and beyond for clinical evaluations for research volunteers; and promote dissemination of research findings to the community, thereby reducing the time it takes for research findings to be diffused into practice.

The Director of Clinical Training will report to the Director of the CAR. Major responsibilities for this position will include establishing a postdoctoral clinical training program in autism and developing a curriculum that provides cutting edge training in diagnosis and assessment and fosters a thorough understanding of the efficacy of different treatment and educational interventions. It will be the Training Director's responsibility to quickly establish a track record in training expert clinicians and to build a program that can successfully compete for training grants from the NIH, other federal agencies, and private foundations. The Director also will be responsible for supervision of the fellows and for the management of two to four staff clinicians. The Director will have a faculty appointment in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania.

Qualified applicants will demonstrate:

1. The ability to conduct a successful program of research in any area of inquiry related to autism (treatment research preferred);
2. Expertise in diagnostic evaluations of persons suspected of having an ASD and comfort performing evaluations across all ages;
3. A broad knowledge base of ASD, including assessment, treatment, and service delivery; and
4. Significant supervisory experience of clinical staff.

The successful candidate will be licensed or license-eligible in Pennsylvania and hold a doctoral level degree in psychology, developmental pediatrics, or child psychiatry. The ideal candidate also will possess strong written and verbal communication, interpersonal, and leadership skills and the ability to work with faculty, medical researchers, and staff of various levels. Experience with grant writing and working in a university medical school is preferred.

For more information please contact Patricia Hastie-lane, Executive Vice President, Opus Search Partners at 215 790-1188, ext 237 or at pat.hastie-lane@opuspartners.net

CHOP is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.