Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

The University of Toronto has a long tradition of training senior residents and fellows in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP), and in 2012 our CAP subspecialty training program was among the first in Canada to receive full accreditation by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

UofT CAP subspecialty residents have access to an extraordinary range of clinical settings and supervisors within the Division of Child and Youth Mental Health (DCYMH), as well as numerous opportunities for research, teaching, administration, and leadership.
For their rotations, CAP subspecialty residents have access to 13 clinical sites across the DCYMH. These include a world-class children’s hospital (The Hospital for Sick Children), Canada’s largest teaching hospital devoted to mental health and addiction (The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health), other superb academic centres, and excellent community hospitals and children’s mental health agencies located throughout the Greater Toronto Area.

Given the large size and academic excellence of the DCYMH, the range of scholarly opportunities available to residents is virtually endless. For example, residents may participate in research programs in areas as diverse as ADHD, anxiety disorders, depression, bipolar disorder, autism spectrum disorders, developmental disabilities, medical psychiatry, street youth, brain imaging, genetics, clinical trials, health services, and implementation science. UofT also has a strong commitment to educational scholarship, and residents are encouraged to develop their teaching and supervisory skills through interactions with junior residents and medical students.

Mindful that residents may be spread out over many sites, our CAP subspecialty program makes a deliberate effort to develop a warm and close-knit training community. Residents come together once per month for an academic day that includes seminars and a meeting with the program director. The program also organizes regular social events for residents and supervisors, including a summer barbeque, pub nights, and an end-of-year celebration. 

In short, the UofT CAP subspecialty program is committed to providing top-notch clinical and scholarly training in CAP, while fostering a training environment that is friendly, supportive, and collegial.

Learn more about applications and program information.

Additional funding pathway

In the event that the University is unable to fund training positions for all deserving candidates, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences could provide additional funding pathways to support two eligible candidates in the child and adolescent psychiatry (CAP) subspecialty program who: a) meet the respective training program’s standards for acceptance; b) meet Ontario Shores’ internal criteria for funding; and c) commit to a two year return of service agreement with Ontario Shores.

Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences (Ontario Shores) is a highly innovative public hospital that provides inpatient, outpatient and consultation services for people with complex mental illness. Patients benefit from a recovery-oriented environment of care built on compassion, inspiration and hope. Engaging in research, education and advocacy initiatives to advance the mental health care system, exemplary patient care is delivered through safe, evidence-based approaches where successful outcomes are achieved using best clinical practices and the latest advances in research. 

Ontario Shores offers an innovative, technologically advanced practice setting that includes: affiliation with the University of Toronto and Queen’s University and the medical students, residents, and fellows that accompany such affiliations; a completely paperless electronic health record system – HIMSS stage 7; an organizational commitment to implementing evidence-based practice including Quality Standards/NICE guidance as part of a sophisticated approach to quality and utilization that supports the sharing and use of patient data to improve performance, quality of care, and patient safety; virtual delivery of care provided through the secure Ontario Telemedicine Network video conferencing; My Health, My Way – Patient Portal facilitating greater access and patient engagement.