Dr. Dawn Cuglietto is a Director and licensed psychologist at St. Mary’s Hospital in New York, NY. Following hospitalizations in acute care facilities, children with special needs and life-threatening conditions and their families come to St. Mary’s to receive intensive rehabilitation, specialized care and education in order to learn to manage their illness or injury, and achieve a better quality of life. One such specialty program at St. Mary’s is the Center for Pediatric Feeding Disorders. In this combined day and in-patient treatment program, Dr. Cuglietto oversees a team of interdisciplinary professionals including pediatric gastroenterologists, speech pathologists, occupational therapists, behavioral psychologists, nutritionists, social workers and pediatric nurse practitioners who treat children with dysphagia and/or a feeding aversion. Her specific responsibilities include supervising and conducting comprehensive evaluations, and developing individualized treatment plans aligned with parent’s goals, therapeutic meals, and nutritional implementation. Utilizing a family-centered behavioral approach strategy, Dr. Cuglietto and her team of feeding disorder specialists assist children who present with difficulties such as mealtime tantrums, food refusal, nutritional deficiencies, failure to thrive, dependence on liquids, poor chewing/swallowing skills and extreme weight loss.
Dr. Cuglietto received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Long Island University, C.W. Post, as part of the entering Class of 1995. Beyond her work at the Feeding Disorder Center at St. Mary’s, Dr. Cuglietto supervises a Chronic Illness Management psychology externship program and the second rotation in a Pediatric Neuropsychology/ Child Health Psychology postdoctoral fellowship program at St. Mary’s. She also serves as The Ask The Expert on St. Mary’s nutritional advice column. She has recently received the High-5 Honor Roll Platinum Award at St. Mary’s in recognition of her work and dedication. In addition to her numerous roles at St. Mary’s, Dr. Cuglietto has her own independent practice where she consults with families, schools and medical professionals. Her private practice specialties include child/adolescent development, building emotional/social competence in children, developmental disabilities, chronic illness, and sensory/behavioral treatment of feeding disorders.
Dr. Cuglietto’s core research interests lie in the area of child health psychology, chronic illness and feeding disorders. For further information, Dr. Cuglietto can be reached by email at dcuglietto@stmaryskids.org or through her Ask The Expert Tip Advice column at stmaryskids.org/patients-and-families/family-resources/feeding-and-nutrition-tips.