Skip to main content
Explore URMC
menu

Jennifer C. West, Ph.D.

(Pronouns: she/her/hers)

Contact Information

Phone Numbers

Office: (585) 275-3607

Fax: (585) 273-1117

URMFGA member of the University of Rochester Medical Faculty Group

groupAn Accountable Health Partner

assignmentNot Accepting New Patients

Faculty Appointments

Biography

Professional Background

Dr. West is an educational leader in the Department of Psychiatry. She is currently the Acting Director of Clinical Psychology Training. She has been the director of the Child and Adolescent Doctoral Internship Track since 2007 and has been the Associate Director of Clinical Psychology Training since 2012. 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 f or 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. In additions 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'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.

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 specializes 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. 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.

Credentials

Education

Post-doctoral Training & Residency

09/01/2002 - 08/31/2003
Fellowship in Pediatric Psychology at Strong Memorial Hospital Rochester University

09/01/2001 - 08/31/2002
Internship in Psychology, Clinical Child & Adolescent at Strong Memorial Hospital Rochester University

Awards

2022
Award for Excellence in Teaching
Location: Department of Psychiatry

2020 - 2022
Dean's Teaching Fellowship
Sponsor: University of Rochester Medical Center

2017
Genesee Valley Psychological Association Outstanding Psychologist
Location: Rochester

2016
Babineau Award for Excellence in Psychotherapy Education
Location: Department of Psychiatry

2012
Emerald Literati Network Award

2009
Award for Excellence in Teaching

2005
Award for Excellence in Teaching
Location: Department of Psychiatry, URMC

2001
Psychology Internship Predoctoral Training Award for Excellence
Location: Department of Psychiatry, URMC

1997 - 2000
National Research Service Award
Sponsor: NIMH

1995 - 1997
Colorado Graduate Fellowship
Location: University of Denver

1995
Teaching Assistantship (merit based)
Location: University of Denver

1992
Sarah Williston Prize
Sponsor: Mount Holyoke College
Location: Mount Holyoke College

1992
Alumnae Scholar Athlete Award
Sponsor: Mount Holyoke Alumanae Association
Location: Mount Holyoke College

1992
Sigma Xi Scientific Honor Society

1991
Phi Beta Kappa
Location: Mount Holyoke College

1991
Psi Chi Honor Society
Location: Mount Holyoke College

VIEW ALL expand_more

Publications

Journal Articles

1/17/2022
Cross WF, West JC, Crean HF, Rosenberg E, LaVigne T, Caine ED. "Measurement of primary care providers' suicide prevention skills following didactic education." Suicide & life-threatening behavior.. 2022 Jan 17; Epub 2022 Jan 17.

2/2021
Pisani AR, Cross WF, West JC, Crean HF, Caine ED. "Brief Video-Based Suicide Prevention Training for Primary Care." Family medicine.. 2021 Feb; 53(2):104-110.

2/14/2019
Cross WF, West JC, Pisani AR, Crean HF, Nielsen JL, Kay AH, Caine ED. "A randomized controlled trial of suicide prevention training for primary care providers: a study protocol." BMC medical education.. 2019 Feb 14; 19(1):58. Epub 2019 Feb 14.

VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS