Helen L. Egger, MD

As the chair of the department of child and adolescent psychiatry and the director of the Child Study Center at NYU Langone, I lead a team of specialists whose shared goal is to enable every child to thrive. My clinical and research specialty area is infant and preschooler mental health, particularly the development and neuroscience of anxiety and mood disorders in children ages two through five.

I grew up in a family where there was a lot of commitment to children. My great grandfather was a psychiatrist and advocate for children with intellectual disabilities. My mother took a revolutionary step and, when I was seven, returned to school to become a psychiatrist. I had always been captivated by people’s stories and I knew that I, too, wanted a career in which I could make a big difference in people’s lives.

At NYU Langone, I am developing innovative tools to gather, analyze, and interpret information about children’s behaviors, emotions, and development. Translating these results into evidence-based guidance may help parents and clinicians assess children in different settings. For example, I created a diagnostic interview to help evaluate developmental symptoms and disorders in young children. I also use tools such as brain imaging to understand emotional, social, and brain development and have conducted community-based studies to understand the epidemiology of mental health issues.

My most recent work looks at ways to use technology to help improve children’s access to participation in research studies. I have led teams in developing apps that help parents learn more about their children and get evidence-based guidance in their homes and communities.

Much of the strength I can share with patients and their parents comes from being a parent, myself, who has faced unique challenges. At NYU Langone, my goal is to create more initiatives to help children by building bridges between disciplines and across specialties, such as adult psychiatry and population health. Mental health issues are just as common in young children as they are in older children and adolescents. The earlier we intervene, the better our chance of helping children get back on track with social and emotional development.