Capital Region Cares Capital Region Cares 2018-2019 | Page 64

UC DAVIS
RED
mind CROSS
institute
Twenty years of life-changing milestones
B
ased at UC Davis Health in
Sacramento and celebrating
its 20th anniversary this year,
the MIND (Medical Investigation
of Neurodevelopmental Disorders)
Institute is an international research
and clinical center committed to
the awareness, understanding,
prevention, care, and treatment
of neurodevelopmental disorders.
This powerhouse combination of
research, clinical services, and training
is a worldwide beacon of answers
and hope, as well as a significant
community resource, welcoming and
empowering families dealing with
neurodevelopmental disorders.
The MIND Institute is unique
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not only because of its important
accomplishments in the realm of
neurodevelopmental disorders, but
for its commitment to families and
community outreach. “This center was
formed by parents who, frustrated
with a void of information and lack
of impetus toward solutions, were
determined to help their children
and the children of others,” says the
Institute’s executive director, Leonard
Abbeduto, Ph.D. “That sets us apart in
the scientific community, and imbues us
with a unique urgency and dedication.”
The Institute’s clinicians work
closely with its researchers. Families
are invited to participate in research
studies, helping to find solutions for
their loved ones and others around
the world. “With genomic medicine
physicians, psychiatrists, developmental
behavioral pediatricians, clinical
psychologists, genetic counselors,
social workers, behavioral analysts,
and more, we’re a very interdisciplinary
asset for families,” notes Abbeduto.
“We have the good fortune to be
at UC Davis, a comprehensive and
multidisciplinary university, which
enables our research to go from cells to
people to communities.”
The MIND Institute utilizes the
field’s top scientists, including those at
UC Davis and collaborators worldwide.
One of the Institute’s goals is to extend
its expertise, advances, and solutions