Szigethy to Direct Pediatric Behavioral Health at Akron Children’s

AKRON, Ohio – Eva M. Szigethy, M.D., Ph.D., has been named the Lois C. Orr Endowed Chair in Pediatric Psychiatry and director of pediatric psychiatry and behavioral health at Akron Children’s Hospital.

Szigethy comes to Akron Children’s from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, where she has served as director of behavioral health, and is a consulting faculty member at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. She is also a professor of psychiatry, pediatrics and medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Szigethy to Akron Children’s and excited to see her undertake such as critical role in our community,” says Dr. Robert McGregor, chief medical officer. “It is no secret that mental and behavioral health is a top concern in pediatrics today. Dr. Szigethy brings a stellar record of achievement and innovation in this area and will help take our program to the next level. We are grateful for the leadership of Dr. Steven Jewell as the head of this department these past five years and are grateful he will help with the transition to Dr. Szigethy’s arrival in early March.”

Szigethy has been leading a multi-center research project, a phone app called RxWell, that shows great promise in reducing depression and anxiety in young people.

The study, published in Psychiatric Services and funded by the kids’ mental health nonprofit, YourMomCares, looked at the effects of the app on patients ages 16 to 22. The app provides coping techniques to users in real time, such as relaxation, meditation and how to tolerate stress, with the option to speak to a mental health coach.

She will continue to support this work as she transitions to her leadership role at Akron Children’s.

Szigethy, a Cleveland native, studied neuropsychology as an undergraduate at Princeton University and earned her doctorate in neuroanatomy at McGill University. She earned a medical degree from the University of Rochester, followed by a master of science degree at Harvard University. She completed a child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.