Jennifer C. West, Ph.D.

Dr. West is an educational leader in the Department of Psychiatry. She is currently the Director of Clinical Psychology Training (doctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship programs). She has been the director of the Child and Adolescent Doctoral Internship Track since 2007 and was the Associat...

Dr. West is an educational leader in the Department of Psychiatry. She is currently the Director of Clinical Psychology Training (doctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship programs). She has been the director of the Child and Adolescent Doctoral Internship Track since 2007 and was the Associate Director of Clinical Psychology Training from 2012-2022. Dr. West received the Dr. Rita Underberg Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2005, 2009 and 2022. In 2016 she received the Ray Babineau Award for Excellence in Psychotherapy Education in the Department of Psychiatry, and in 2017 she received the Genesee Valley Psychological Association Outstanding Psychologist Award. Dr. West has been a presenter at several meetings of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers. Dr. West has led many initiatives in the psychology training program focused on diversity, equity, inclusion and justice and strives to ensure that all voices are welcomed and valued at the Medical Center. In addition to teaching seminars and supervising emerging psychologists in the Department of Psychiatry, Dr. West also teaches in the Pediatric Dentistry Resident program at the Eastman Institute for Oral Health.

Dr. West is co-director of the University of Rochester Firearm Injury Prevention Program. The mission of this program is to significantly reduce the incidence of injury and death due to firearms (assaults/homicides, suicide, unintentional injury/death) in the Rochester region through prevention, intervention, education, and research informed by and in partnership with community members.

Dr. West has extensive experience in the clinical treatment of children, adolescents, and families. As a member of several interdisciplinary teams in the Department of Pediatrics, she has specialized in the assessment and therapeutic treatment of children with acute and chronic medical conditions, especially asthma, vocal cord dysfunction, Type I diabetes, craniofacial anomalies, abdominal pain, and encopresis. She is currently the psychologist for the Cleft and Craniofacial Team at the Golisano Children’s Hospital. Currently, she is partnering with colleagues there on a quality improvement initiative focused on reducing secondhand smoke exposure. Dr. West also has expertise in the treatment of anxiety, mood disorders, bereavement, and adjustment disorders with children, adolescents, and adults. She has specialized training and expertise in the using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help people develop skills to improve their psychological flexibility and build meaningful lives in the face of difficult emotions, thoughts and situations.

Dr. West is a member of the American Psychological Association (Divisions 53 and 54), the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science, the Rome Foundation, and the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association.

Dr. West's research is focused on using innovative educational methodology, particularly standardized patients, to train providers and other interventionists. She was a co-PI on a randomized controlled trial focused on the use of standardized patients for suicide prevention training for providers in...

Dr. West's research is focused on using innovative educational methodology, particularly standardized patients, to train providers and other interventionists. She was a co-PI on a randomized controlled trial focused on the use of standardized patients for suicide prevention training for providers in primary care. In 2020, Dr. West was a Dean's Teaching Fellow and developed a project focused on improving healthcare providers' skills in firearm injury prevention. Dr. West has expertise on observational coding and has collaborated on projects assessing implementer fidelity.