Our first priority is to evaluate and treat primary care patients at Mass General and MassGeneral Hospital for Children, collaborating with your child’s treatment team on all major decisions affecting his or her mental and medical health.
If your child receives care outside of Mass General, we will try to direct you to other clinical resources for assessment and treatment. Depending on your child's situation, he or she also may benefit from taking part in one of our ongoing research studies. For more information, please call 617-726-2725.
Evaluating Your ChildPrior to your child's first appointment, we will mail you a questionnaire to gather information on medical and family history, the child's development and the problems that concern you. Completing this questionnaire and bringing it with you will make the visit more efficient.
At the initial visit, you and your child will meet with a child psychiatrist, child clinical psychologist, child psychiatrist resident or child clinical psychology intern. Depending on the type of evaluation, you instead might meet with a senior staff psychiatrist and third- or fourth-year adult psychiatry resident.
If your child is experiencing particularly complex problems, he or she might benefit from a larger team evaluation. In such cases, a senior staff psychiatrist or psychologist will perform the evaluation while being observed by a group of residents or interns.
Child / Adolescent
Outpatient Services
Yawkey Center for Outpatient Care
55 Fruit St.
Boston, MA 02114
Maps & directions
For more information, call 617-726-2725
Developing a Treatment Plan
A senior staff psychiatrist or psychologist—sometimes with input from various specialists and trainees within the Department of Psychiatry—typically makes a diagnosis after the first or second visit. As a next step, we will discuss with you our recommendations for your child's treatment.
Our long-term goal is to stabilize your child and then refer him or her back to your community for ongoing treatment. Should your local psychiatrist or psychologist have any questions regarding care, we are happy to offer guidance whenever possible.
Emphasis on Training Enhances Patient Care
The Department of Psychiatry has extremely competitive and robust training programs. Most of our clinicians are actively involved in teaching and supervision, often presenting cases to residents and interns for discussion. The interaction between clinicians and trainees means that an enormous amount of thought goes into patient care—especially for those patients with unusually challenging conditions.
