In the Clinical core, interns visit pediatric clinics and interact with children with ASD and other psychiatric conditions. The experience provides a tangible connection between the patient population and research, informing and fueling a motivation for interns’ laboratory projects.

 

The main site for the clinical visits is the Division of Child Development and Developmental Disorders (CDDD) at DHSU. Visits are coordinated and supervised by REACH clinical faculty and graduate and medical student mentors. During the visits interns are exposed to and interact with patients and learn how to produce diagnostics reports. Specifically, interns are taught how patients with psychiatric conditions are triaged and diagnosed. Before the visits, all interns receive training in HIPAA regulations and professional conduct in a clinical setting by clinical faculty. For each visit, interns are split up into teams of four and carry out the visits in an alternate manner. The Clinical core also comprises seminars with clinicians who specialize in psychiatric disorders.

 

Recitations sessions after each clinical visit with pediatric residents, graduate, and medical students review and help connect the clinical experience with the other REACH cores, particularly the Research core.

 

The main outcome of the Clinical core is for interns to acquire an integrated understanding of ASD and psychiatric disorders, and grasp the impetus behind research in the field.