Conditions Treated
- Pediatric Psychosocial Issues
- Psychosocial Issues Related to Chronic Disease (General)
Research Areas
- Behavioral and Emotional Correlates of Pediatric Atopic Dermatitis
- Environmental and Psychosocial Contributions to Childhood Asthma
- Pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis: Quality of Life and Psychosocial Impact
- Pediatric Food Allergy Management and Adaptation
- Gender:
- Female
Education & Training
Education
- 1981
- University of Denver (Denver, CO), PhD
Biography
As a pediatric psychologist at National Jewish Health, I specialize in helping children and their families cope with chronic illnesses, most often food allergies, eosinophilic esophagitis, atopic dermatitis, and asthma. Many children with these allergic illnesses experience stress, anxiety, depression, or behavior problems that may be associated with their symptoms, treatments or other management challenges. Parents of children with these conditions also often experience significant stress in the course of seeking effective medical treatment for their children, following physicians’ recommendations, managing the condition, or helping their children to cope effectively. Families may request an appointment to discuss their concerns, or the physician treating the child may refer a child or family for an assessment of their coping. A pediatric Health and Behavior assessment typically involves an initial interview with the child and parents that is focused on the current difficulties and relevant background information, followed by a discussion with the family regarding appropriate behavioral treatment or follow-up care. When indicated, behavioral treatment plans are individualized to address specific problems in a developmentally oriented manner, working with children individually and/or with their families as needed.
Special Interests
Clinical Interests
My clinical interest is psychological factors in pediatric respiratory and allergic disorders (asthma, atopic dermatitis, food allergy, eosinophilic esophagitis), and includes management of chronic illness, children's behavioral health adjustment, coping with children's illnesses, parent counseling, as well as behavior problems in young children.
Throughout my career I have worked with chronically ill children and their families. I have developed a conceptualization for understanding growing children's increasing ability to participate in and then manage their illness, while their parents shift to increasingly less involvement. I help families to minimize the negative impact of illness, and also to recognize ways in which family interaction patterns are exacerbating the illness, so that children and families can have the best quality of life possible.
Research Interests
My current research is focused on children and families management and adaptation to food allergies (FA) and on factors impacting quality of life for children with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) and their families. Additional ongoing research projects involve childhood asthma and atopic dermatitis (AD), which examine environmental and psychosocial contributions to the illness as well as impact of the illness on children's psychosocial functioning.
Board Certification
Licensed by Colorado Board of Psychology Examiners #991
Affiliations with the University of Colorado Denver
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Professional Memberships
American Psychological Association
Society for Research in Child Development
International Society for Research in Child and Adolescent Psychopathology
American Thoracic Society
Publications
Klinnert, M.D. (2011) Psychological Perspectives on Pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis, in C.A. Liacouras and J.E. Markowitz (Eds.), Eosinophilic Esophagitis, Springer, in Press.
Celano, M., Klinnert, M.D., Holsey, C., McQuaid, E.L. (2011) Validity of the Family Asthma Management System Scale with an Urban African-American Sample. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 36, 576-585
Klinnert, M.D., Bender, B.B. (2010) Addressing Psychosocial Aspects of Atopic Dermatitis. Immunology and Allergy Clinics of North America, 30, 385-396. PMID: 2060142
Klinnert, M.D. (2009) Psychological impact of Eosinophilic Esophagitis on children and families. Immunology and Allergy Clinics of North America, 29, 99-107. PMID 19141345
Klinnert, M.D. and Robinson, J.L. (2008) Addressing the psychological needs of families of food-allergic children. Current Allergy and Asthma Reports, 8, 195-200. PMID: 18589837
