MEET OUR DC FAMILY FORUM SPEAKERS – DR. MADISON M. BERL
In this series, we will introduce you to the experts inside and outside of the HH community who will be presenting at the DC Family Forum on December 3rd.
Please meet Dr. Madison M. Berl, Ph.D., ABPP, a board certified pediatric neuropsychologist at Children’s National Health System and Director of Research for the Division of Pediatric Neuropsychology. She is the neuropsychologist for the epilepsy team at Children’s and serves on several committees within the American Epilepsy Society and International League Against Epilepsy.
Dr. Berl’s recent research includes:
- Working memory in Pediatric Epilepsy
- Executive Function across pediatric psychiatric disorders
Also, Dr. Berl co-wrote the chapter in the recently published Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery book on “The Role and Limitations of Cognitive Evaluation” where she describes the goals of presurgical neuropsych evaluations, what they include and guidelines for determining assessment tools within those domains by a child’s age, as well as limitations of the evaluations. She is a proponent for more research aimed at identifying tests that are sensitive to the specific conditions children are experiencing and that reflect changing measurements as children age. She is also a proponent for tests that accurately assess cognitive functions in developmentally delayed children.
Dr. Berl will be presenting on Cognition & Memory for HH Patients. Hope for HH understands many HH patients struggle with cognition and memory both before and after surgery.
Specialty Training & Background
Dr. Berl is Board Certified in Clinical Neuropsychology; 3 year combined research and clinical postdoctoral fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology and neuroimaging specializing in epilepsy.
Where She is Today
Dr. Berl is a pediatric neuropsychologist at Children’s National in DC. Her clinical work includes working with children with epilepsy primarily but also autism, ADHD, and other medical disorders. Also, she is the Director of Research for the Division of Neuropsychology, and has several roles in research Leadership that include training and supporting clinical research throughout the hospital.
Well Published
She is a frequent guest lecturer as well as an author or co-author of many papers and publications on topics including FMRI and brain mapping of critical regions, SUDEP, role of executive functioning in pediatric epilepsy, attention problems and more.
Other Leadership
Dr. Berl is an active member of the American Epilepsy Society and International League Against Epilepsy. Dr. Berl serves on the IRB. She is a research advisor overseeing training of many interns, externs, and fellows at all levels of education from HS through post doc and junior faculty mentorship.
Outside of work Passions
A California girl, Dr. Berl enjoys the outdoors including running, biking, the beach, skiing, and being with her family. She loves to travel, dabble in cooking but do more of the eating, and is up for most adventures.
What questions do you have for Dr. Berl? What cognition and memory challenges does your HH patient experience? Please share personal experiences illuminating deficits and practical strategies.
Register and reserve your rooms for the DC Family Forum TODAY.
DC Hotels fill FAST in December – don’t delay!
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