Melissa Santos, PhD
  • Pediatric Psychologist
  • Connecticut Children's Medical Center
  • Hartford, CT United States

Biography

Dr. Melissa Santos is the Division Chief of Pediatric Psychology at Connecticut Children’s and is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Associate Chair for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. In her role within obesity, Dr. Santos oversees the treatment of youth and their families in the Center’s nationally accredited bariatric surgery program and its behaviorally based non-surgical weight management programs. She is the pillar lead for Connecticut Children’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives focused on patient healthcare inequities. Her research is focused on the improvement of obesity treatment outcomes by examining methods to better tailor treatment to presenting comorbidities. She is currently NIH funded to examine a psychological treatment for youth with comorbid obesity and chronic pain. Dr. Santos is President of the Society of Pediatric Psychology.