Dr. Eric Riklin is a pediatric psychologist specializing in care for children with craniofacial conditions. In this interview, he discusses his journey into psychology and his passion for working with children with cleft and other craniofacial disorders. Dr. Riklin reviews the benefits of psychological support within a multidisciplinary cleft team, common challenges such as funding, institutional support, and access to trained specialists, and strategies to overcome these barriers. Lastly, he tells us about a unique online support community that he helped develop - EMBRACE-IT - where kids of all ages with craniofacial conditions can connect via telehealth.

Dr. Riklin can be reached via the below links or by emailing him directly at rikli005@umn.edu.
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/eric-riklin-phd-lp-8927702a
University of Minnesota Cleft/Craniofacial Team: https://linktr.ee/umncleftcraniofacial
Hennepin Healthcare: https://www.hennepinhealthcare.org/provider/eric-riklin-phd-lp/

Online support groups through MyFace: https://www.myface.org/online-groups/

Other resources from this episode:
NCTSN: https://www.nctsn.org/resources
Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us
211 United Way (24/7 hotline for local psychosocial supports and resources): https://211unitedway.org/

Please reach out to the SENTAC Communications Committee if you have interest in sharing your work on the podcast.
Michael McCormick: mmccormick@mcw.edu
Madison Howe: mhowe@uams.edu