Parenting & Working from Home During the Pandemic

SCPS Women’s Committee presents an online event:

Parenting & Working from Home During the Pandemic

with our speakers:

Jessica Jeffrey, MD and Brooke Spanos, MD

Please contact us to RSVP. This event is open to SCPS members. Women only, please!

Jessica Jeffrey, MD

Dr. Jeffrey is a child and adolescent psychiatrist at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Dr. Jeffrey obtained her undergraduate education at UCLA, where she graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in psychobiology with minor in developmental child psychology. After completing her undergraduate studies, Dr. Jeffrey had the privilege to work as an in-home behavior therapist at the Center for Autism and Related Disorders. This work inspired her to trek to Northern California to attend University of California at Berkeley and obtain her Master’s Degree in Public Health. While at Berkeley Dr. Jeffrey focused on maternal and child health issues and received a specialization in international health. She is grateful for the opportunity she had to work in rural villages in Tanzania, where she focused on maternal mortality issues.

Deciding to pursue a career in medicine, Dr. Jeffrey attended the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA where she received her MD and MBA. While in medical school Dr. Jeffrey spent a summer working in Bhopal, India with the survivors of the Union Carbide explosion. Additionally, she spent time in Ghana, where she consulted for HIV/AIDS non-profit organizations in West Africa and traveled to Mozambique in order to expand healthcare services and work with non-profit organizations to assist children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Dr. Jeffrey also was a consultant to Head Start in Los Angeles, CA where she worked with this organization to develop culturally sensitive, low-literacy health educational materials. She completed General Psychiatry residency training at UCLA.

Dr. Jeffrey has published several review articles in the fields of psychiatry and academic medicine, spanning topics including anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis, quality of life in depression and use of dopaminergic agents for major depressive disorder. Dr. Jeffrey recently served as the member-in-training representative for the California Academy Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Executive Committee and on the Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Health Care Promotion and Prevention Committee. She is interested in systems of health care delivery, quality improvement and family resilience research. Dr. Jeffrey also has a strong interest in advocacy for child and adolescent mental health.

Brooke Spanos, MD

Dr. Spanos is a past President of SCSCAP’s Executive board and remains active to further promote advocacy and education for children’s mental health. She has had a private practice for adults, children, and adolescents since 2011, which is currently located in Santa Monica. Dr. Spanos is also a staff psychiatrist at Penny Lane Centers, a non-profit for youth, with a focus on children in the foster system. She serves as Assistant Clinical Professor at UCLA medical school, teaching 2nd year medical students. Previous employment has included Destinations for Teens (PHP and IOP for adolescents), UCLA TIES for Families (adoption and foster care), Children’s Institute (youth non-profit), and high risk Transitional Aged Youth programs (ages 16-25) at San Fernando Valley Community Mental Health Clinic. Dr. Spanos graduated medical school from Baylor College of Medicine, and completed her adult psychiatry residency at UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute (NPI). She continued her child and adolescent psychiatry training at UCLA NPI, where she served as Chief Fellow from 2010 – 2011. She feels strongly about emphasizing prevention and early intervention for children and families. Her focus includes parent support, advocating for high quality schooling, public education of child development issues, and ensuring that we continue to decrease the stigma of mental health.