The Vermont Center for Children, Youth, and Families (VCCYF) is the home of the Division of Child Psychiatry at the University of Vermont College of Medicine. The primary teaching hospital of the College is UVM Medical Center, which contains Vermont Children's Hospital.
This health care system is the largest in Vermont and the state's only tertiary care hospital. As such, we receive referrals and requests for consultation across the state in addition to neighboring New England states and Northeastern New York.
The outpatient clinic at the VCCYF has more than 7,000 patient visits annually. Primary diagnoses include disruptive behavior disorders, anxiety and affective disorders, and pervasive developmental disorders. Children of all ages from infancy through adolescents are seen here.
Vermont Children's Hospital at UVM Medical Center and is the site of the Consult/Liaison and Pediatric Neurology rotations. Vermont Children's Hospital is the only dedicated children's hospital in the state and contains 31 general medical beds, a pediatric intensive care unit, a neonatal intensive care unit, as well as general and specialty outpatient services. There is also an affiliated childcare center where some of the child observation didactic takes place.
Affiliated Training Sites
Champlain Valley Physician's Hospital
Champlain Valley Physician's Hospital is a member of the University of Vermont Health Network and is located across the lake in Plattsburgh, NY. There is now a revitalized psychiatry presence at this hospital led by Robert Althoff, MD, PhD which includes both an adult and child inpatient unit, and psychiatry consultation to both the inpatient units and emergency department. Faculty there are also expanding their outpatient services for New York residents.
Northeast Family Institute
Northeastern Family Institute (NFI) is one of the primary sites in northern Vermont for adolescents needing acute stabilization and care. This 6 bed facility is equipped to deliver care to severely affected adolescents as long as they are voluntary admissions. The program is licensed to perform restraints but rarely does so. The program serves adolescents from ages 10 to 18 with an average length of stay is 6-7 days. NFI accepts patients from local crisis centers, emergency departments, and outpatient clinicians. The clinic emphasizes multidisciplinary approach with a strong family emphasis to acutely stabilize the patient and help transition them back to less acute settings. Treatment modalities include individual psychotherapy, family therapy, psychopharmacology, group therapy, CBT, and milieu therapy. It is located in Winooski, Vermont approximately 2 miles from the medical school.
Stern Center for Language and Learning
The Stern Center is a private non-profit center dedicated to helping children and adults with learning differences reach their full potential. It is one of the premier assessment centers of this type in the state. The center conducts cognitive, linguistic, academic, psychological, and neuropsychological assessments in response to requests from schools, clinicians, pediatricians and individual families. It also serves as a consultant to schools in designing specialized curriculum for children with complicated learning needs. The Stern Center specializes in developing innovative learning strategies for students who learn in nontraditional ways. Funding for their services comes from schools or from individual families. Primary diagnoses include learning disabilities, ADHD, cognitive disorders, as well as nonverbal and developmental disorders. Fellows will learn how to use and apply the results of educational evaluations. The Stern Center is located about 7 miles from the medical school.
Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center
Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center is a division of the Vermont Department of Children and Families. It provides an alternate educational and clinical setting for children who are on delinquent status within the justice system. The program serves students from the 6th to 12th grade. Many of these adolescents have been victims of trauma and neglect and are diagnosed with a number of disorders including conduct disorder, substance abuse disorders, as well as affective and anxiety disorders. It is located in Colchester, Vermont about 6 ½ miles from the medical school.