News & Events
Helping Children Thrive: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Evaluating Children Adopted or in Foster Care
Thursday, July 22, 2021
The Adoption Medicine Clinic (AMC) is excited to announce that it will be hosting its very first symposium this summer, Helping Children Thrive: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Evaluating Children Adopted or in Foster Care on Thursday, July 22, 2021 from 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
The virtual symposium is intended for case managers, social workers, adoption and foster care parents or caregivers, medical professionals, and mental health professionals. The symposium is designed to provide more information on the AMC's multidisciplinary approach to helping children who face early adversity and trauma reach their full potential.
If you are interested in attending the webinar, please register here!
Agenda
8:30 a.m. Welcoming Remarks
Kimara Gustafson, M.D., MPH
8:45 a.m. Helping New Foster and Adoptive Caregivers Learn About Their Child: Mental Health Evaluation
Maria Kroupina, Ph.D.
9:15 a.m. Caring (and Caring) for Children who are Adopted or in Foster Care
Kimara Gustafson, M.D., MPH & Megan Bresnahan, OTR/L
10:00 a.m. Break
10:10 a.m. Dentistry & Oral Health: A Checklist for New Parents
Jeff Karp, D.M.D, M.S.
10:40 a.m. Break
10:45 a.m. Multidisciplinary Panel and Q&A Session
11:45 a.m. Closing Remarks
Presenters:
Maria Kroupina, Ph.D.
The overarching goal of Dr. Kroupina's combined research-clinical program is to design a research-based clinic for young children with a history of early adversity and toxic stress, including those with histories of institutional care, multiple foster placements and early emotional trauma. The Birth to Three Clinic and Early Childhood Mental Health Program focuses on early identification of high-risk children in order to prevent long-term negative mental health and neurodevelopmental outcomes by providing early intervention. It is led by Dr. Kroupina and funded by the Masonic gift fund.
Megan Bresnahan, OTR/L
Megan Bresnahan, OTR/L, is an Occupational Therapist at M Health Fairview – University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital. She delivers Occupational Therapy services in the Outpatient Pediatric Rehabilitation Clinic along with the Adoption Medicine Clinic. Megan has a passion for working closely with the patients, families, and caregivers to achieve their goals.
Kimara Gustafson, M.D., M.P.H
Dr. Kimara Gustafson joined the faculty of the University of Minnesota Pediatric Department in 2019 as an Assistant Professor. Drawing on her own lived experience as a transracial international adoptive person, her work focuses on helping children and their families who are impacted by disruptions in caregiver relationships, through foster care and adoption. Her primary research and education interests include special health care needs of children in the adoption and foster care systems, socio-emotional trauma impact on development, racial and cultural social identity development for children in trans-racially composed families, and racial discrimination among historically marginalized youth in the United States.
The Adoption Medicine Clinic Symposium is made possible by the generous donations from the Dana Johnson Sociey.
