º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ Our Division
The Division of Psychology and Behavioral Health at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) serves as the academic and clinical arm of Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital.
The Division of Psychology and Behavioral Health delivers comprehensive psychological services across Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital’s inpatient and outpatient settings. These services include psychological evaluations, psychotherapy, behavioral interventions, and consultation for medically complex and acutely ill children. The division works in close collaboration with other hospital-based mental health specialties, including social work, chaplaincy, child life, and the Division of Psychiatry, to ensure integrated, family-centered care.Â
In addition to its hospital-based services, the division supports pediatric behavioral health initiatives at key community partners such as Youth Villages and the Memphis-Shelby County Schools system, helping extend its impact beyond the clinical setting.
Under the leadership of Dr. Donald Bearden, the division is expanding its focus on trauma-informed care, early childhood behavioral health, and the neurodevelopmental consequences of adversity and chronic illness.
Under the leadership of Dr. Donald Bearden, the division is expanding its focus on trauma-informed care, early childhood behavioral health, and the neurodevelopmental consequences of adversity and chronic illness.
The division plays a key role in training graduate students in clinical psychology, and psychology interns and fellows in pediatric behavioral health through UTHSC-affiliated programs and collaborative clinical rotations.
Current destination programs and initiatives include:
- Pediatric psychology
- Consultation-liaison psychology
- Trauma and adverse childhood experiences
- School-based mental health services
- Early childhood behavioral health
- Integrated behavioral health in primary care
- Research on neurodevelopmental outcomes in epilepsy and chronic illness
Future goals include expanding community-based mental health partnerships, developing subspecialty training programs in pediatric psychology and trauma-focused care, and advancing research in personalized behavioral health interventions for children with complex medical and psychosocial needs.
Dr. Donald Bearden is actively developing a Pediatric Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship Program at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and UTHSC. The division will also be joining the UTHSC Professional Psychology Internship Consortium, further expanding its commitment to advanced training in pediatric behavioral health. Program launch timelines and application details will be announced in the coming months.
Le Bonheur/UTHSC is hiring pediatric psychologists! Please consider becoming a part of our team.
For additional information, see the following websites: