"Masters Level Psychologist - Pediatric Feeding Program"

Masters Level Psychologist - Pediatric Feeding Program

Michigan Medicine's Interdisciplinary Pediatric Feeding Program is seeking a full-time Masters-level Psychologist to join our growing team. This hybrid program (in-person and virtual) provides coordinated, interdisciplinary care to some of the most medically complex pediatric cases, including infants and children with feeding tubes and those diagnosed with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID).

The core responsibilities of this position are twofold.

1. The provider will staff the clinic that treats infants born prematurely and with less medical complexity who are discharged from the hospital with a feeding tube. The provider will provide care alongside a RD and an OT or SLP, to support safe and developmentally appropriate feeding progression. This person in this role will take the lead on case conceptualization, preventing oral aversion by monitoring factors that impact the infant's experience when eating including physiological comfort, hunger, stress, and psychosocial factors, and will collaborate with medical providers to identify and address physiological barriers to oral feeding progression (e.g., discomfort from reflux or constipation).
2. This position will expand feeding treatment for toddlers and older children with Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), using a whole-child and family-centered approach. This includes emphasizing core nutrition to support brain and body development, broadening food repertoires with a focus on function and practicality and resetting feeding interactions between parent and child to reduce stress around feeding.
3. This position also offers opportunities to develop group-based interventions, collaborate with pediatricians, and train other professionals, further expanding the reach and impact of feeding care.

Other key responsibilities include:

• Supporting parents and caregivers, incorporating perinatal mental health principles to create a compassionate, family-centered feeding environment.
• Applying behavioral principles in a flexible, individualized manner, avoiding structured, invasive interventions while creatively tailoring strategies to meet each family's values, goals, and needs.
• Minimizing stress on the child and family while promoting feeding progress.
• Applying principles of classical and operant conditioning to support oral feeding while integrating developmentally appropriate attachment-based recommendations.
• Expanding treatment services for toddlers and older children with ARFID through direct care, consultation, and training of other disciplines.
• Developing group programs and collaborating with pediatricians to expand support for children with feeding difficulties.
• Engaging in research and quality improvement projects to advance best practices in pediatric feeding care.

Requirements

• Master's degree in educational or clinical psychology.
• Eligibility for limited licensure as a Clinical Psychologist in the state of Michigan.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with children with neurodivergence (e.g., ASD, ADHD) and an understanding of developmental norms.
• Familiarity with feeding difficulties preferred but not required. Strong behavioral foundations and willingness to learn and collaborate are essential.
• Comfort with blending behavioral and attachment-based approaches to feeding challenges.
• Collaborative mindset and eager to learn from other disciplines and work within a team-based setting.
• Commitment to compassionate care and a family-centered approach.

40 hours per week

This position is covered under the collective bargaining agreement between the U-M and the United Michigan Medicine Allied Professionals (UMMAP), which contains and settles all matters with respect to wages, benefits, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment.