Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health (CABH)

*This site has no remaining resident slot available for the 2025-2026 cohort. 

The Sanford Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health team consists of a child psychiatrist and psychologist who work closely together to provide care for children and adolescents in Fargo, North Dakota. The behavioral health providers offer evidence-based treatment for the varied diagnoses typically identified in childhood/adolescence and also work with the pediatricians and other service providers to provide for the mental and physical needs of the patient.

Patients are referred by their primary care physician to address behavioral and mental health needs. Patients presenting at the clinic come from a variety of backgrounds, have a range of behavioral health concerns with ages ranging from infancy to 17 years old. Some patients travel from geographically remote regions as child behavioral health specialty services are scarce in this region or utilize telehealth. Patients belong to Caucasian, racial and ethnic minority groups, identify as LGBTQAI+, are from varied economic backgrounds, are adopted or in foster care while other patients are from in-tact families. Common clinical conditions include Social Anxiety, Separation Anxiety, ADHD, Major Depressive Disorder, Adjustment Disorder, Conduct Disorder, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

The postdoctoral resident at Sanford Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health will have an array of training opportunities related psychological services of children, adolescents, and families. Residents will work closely with primary care and pediatrics, social workers, and other professionals to support our patients. Therapeutic services are delivered in traditional office-based and telehealth delivery models. Residents conduct initial intake assessments and provide individual, family, and group therapy interventions. Empirically based treatment modalities typically used to address symptoms include, Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT); Cognitive- Behavioral Therapy (CBT); Exposure Therapy, Play Therapy, Behavioral Therapy and Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT).

The postdoctoral psychology resident at Sanford Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health would participate in a one-year learning experience that develops their clinical practices as clinical psychologist. The resident would have the opportunity to receive and participate in the following:

1. Provide individual therapy with children and adolescents in person and via telehealth. Diagnoses and severity of symptoms vary.
2. Trauma evidence based treatment training – Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT).
3. Clinical practice: clinical assessment and delivery of evidence-based treatment to patients and their families.
4. Outreach and Education: Presenting on behavioral health topics at grand rounds, didactics for psychiatry residents, for community partners, and/or professional conferences.
5. Supervision: Individual Supervision and weekly case consultation.
6. Didactic education: UND psychiatry Grand Rounds, Sanford pediatric Grand Rounds, and TCTY BYOLL Education series.
7. Co-lead Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Group (DBT).
8. Training and supervision for Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT).
9. Training and supervision for CBIT.
10. Autism testing (ADOS/ADIR) (with prior training).
11. Work in primary care and pediatric oncology or with a pediatric specialist such as endocrinology.
12. Consultation in Children’s Hospital setting.
13. Participate in individual and group therapy in the Adolescent Partial hospitalization program.

A typical week at Sanford Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health will include several individual/family therapy sessions per day, attending one or more didactics depending on the week, and spending one day a week at a minor rotation. If your clinical practice includes integrated care (pediatrics/pediatric oncology/pediatric specialty), you will be present in the specific medical clinic to provide consultation and provide individual sessions to care for the needs of the patients seen by those specific providers. Clinical cases will be reviewed in individual supervision and case consultation group. Residents will also be observed live via Webex (a video platform) for at least 3 sessions per quarter and may be asked to record sessions to be reviewed in individual supervision. The goal of the residency at Sanford Health is to provide additional learning opportunities while helping the resident transition into an independent provider who is ready for licensure.

Sample Schedule

*One Thursday per month is for didactics with the cohort.

Site Supervisor: Rebecca Preussler, Psy.D., LP