Abstract
“We couldn't be more thrilled about the birth of this remarkable institution,” said Dr. Koplewicz, who founded the Child Mind Institute after serving for 12 years as the founding director of the Child Study Center at New York University School of Medicine. “We're creating best-in-class, integrated, evidence-based clinical programs, and supporting an extraordinary research agenda, to improve the mental health of children here in the United States and in countries around the world.”
The Child Mind Institute's New York City-based global headquarters, which is planned to open in fall 2010, will offer state-of-the-art evaluation and treatment for psychiatric and learning disorders. Five initial areas of focus will be: attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and behavioral disorders; anxiety and mood disorders; autism spectrum disorders; eating disorders; and learning disorders.
These multidisciplinary, evidence-based clinical programs are supported by the Child Mind Institute's Board of Directors, which is chaired by Ms. Brooke Garber Neidich, as well as the Scientific Research Council, a team of internationally prominent clinicians and scientists who are establishing an expansive, multi-institutional research program to facilitate the rapid discovery and application of new treatments for childhood psychiatric disorders. The Scientific Research Council is currently collaborating on studies designed to deepen our understanding of the brain processes underlying stress-response and resilience in children.
“When we conceived of the Child Mind Institute, we knew we needed an organization with international reach that could scientifically and systematically tackle the crisis we face in child mental health,” said Ms. Neidich, who has supported child mental health programming for more than 13 years and helped found the Child Study Center at New York University School of Medicine. “The Child Mind Institute's clinical programs, Scientific Research Council, and all of our outreach efforts are working together to accomplish our mission.”
That mission, according to Neidich, is to ensure that scientific breakthroughs inform clinical practice, that clinical needs inform research, and that resources and information on child mental health are widely disseminated to the public. This is the pathway to improved identification and treatments for all children with disabling mental health disorders.
This September, the Child Mind Institute will also launch a dynamic, parent-friendly Web site with information and resources on childhood psychiatric and learning disorders. The Web site will be the go-to place for parents, whether they live in New York or in countries around the world, when they need help and answers about their child's mental health and development. In the meantime, you can learn more about the organization and its activities at www.childmindinstitute.com.
The Institute expands the urgent and critical research that is needed to best understand and apply the appropriate therapies for children and adolescents, who for too many years suffered from rigid dogma that negated the biological factors that contributed to depression, anxiety, and other conditions, such as ADHD and autism, that so seriously compromised the lives of children and their families.
Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology broke new ground when it was established two decades ago, during a period of widespread professional disregard and disbelief in such therapeutic interventions.
The Journal is the leading source of evidence-based articles in this field, and we salute Dr. Koplewicz for his leadership as a clinician, a researcher, an educator, and an advocate for children and their families. That he is the Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology is most fitting. The Child Mind Institute will fill a vital role in the continuation of his work and the benefits that will be derived from meticulous research and meaningful and appropriate therapeutic interventions.