Assistant Professor/ Pediatric Neuropsychologist
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist
A. Personal Statement
As a pediatric neuropsychologist with a background in school psychology, I have extensive training in assessment, child development, and the relationship between cognitive performance and medical diagnoses on cognitive performance. This places me in a position to contribute research examining the cognitive functioning of children and adolescents who are medically complex and present with various cognitive concerns. My internship and post-doctoral fellowship were specifically focused on neuropsychology and pediatric psychology, which provided me opportunities to work with children and adolescents with a variety of medical and genetic diagnoses. Throughout my pre-doctoral internship and post-doctoral fellowship, I worked closely with medical providers including, neuro-oncologists, neurologists, cardiologists, developmental pediatricians, and rehabilitation specialists. Clinically, I enjoy working collaboratively to identify children who are at risk of cognitive difficulties and facilitating appropriate assessment. My research is often closely tied to my clinical work. Upon starting my career in academic medicine, I established a clinical database for pediatric neuropsychology assessments. I have worked with one student to develop a research study utilizing the clinically collected data for a subset of children with a particular genetic variant in epilepsy. Within the field of epilepsy, I am site co-investigator on a project that is examining the use of new technology to identify absence seizures. I am also involved in several research projects that are utilizing a database from an outside hospital to examine the impact of a hospital-based school program across a variety of medical diagnoses.
B. Positions, Scientific Appointments, and Honors
2023-Present Member, Synostosis Research Group (SynRG)
2022-Present Member, American Academy of Pediatric Neuropsychology
2021-present Assistant Professor, Pediatric Neuropsychologist, Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, Winston- Salem, NC
2021- present Member, American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology
2021-present Member, International Neuropsychological Society
2020, 2022 Ad Hoc Reviewer for Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology
2019-2021 Student Member, American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology
2012-2014 Post-Doctoral Fellow, Pediatric Neuropsychology, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Seattle, WA
2018-2021 Student Affiliate Member, International Neuropsychological Society
2018-present Member, American Psychological Association
C. Contributions to Science
1. My primary clinical interest includes utilizing clinical data to better understand outcomes for patients across various medical populations. I have participated in projects using clinical data at previous institutions, and once I started at my current position, I created a database to collect clinical data for our pediatric neuropsychological service.
a. Thibodaux, L.K., Bledsoe, J. & Breiger, D. Sex Differences, Academic Outcomes, and the Impact of Cranial Radiation in Pediatric Medulloblastoma. J Pediatr Neuropsychol 8, 149–154 (2022). doi:10.1007/s40817-022-00131-3
b. Fisher EL, Thibodaux LK, Previ D, & Reesman, J. Impact of communication modality on caregiver ratings for deaf and hard of hearing children. Applied Neuropsychology: Child. 2021: 1-12. doi:10.1080/21622965.2021.1916495
2. As part of my involvement in SynRG, I am working with a group of psychologists and neuropsychologists to implement routine developmental screenings and neuropsychological evaluations for infants and children treated for craniosynostosis. Additionally, I am actively working a manuscript that examines the neurocognitive outcomes of children who underwent a specific type of treatment for craniosynostosis.
3. Through my participation within a group examining the impact of a hospital-based school program, I have contributed to studies examining the program’s impact for patients with cardiac disorders, epilepsy, and cystic fibrosis. We currently have one manuscript under review, and we are actively working on two additional manuscripts.
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