Emma Khatami, PhD

Emma Khatami, PhD is both the Section Chief of Psychology as well as the Associate Division Chief of Psychology at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, where her role includes overseeing the daily operations of the inpatient consultation/liaison service for the hospital, on-call processes amongst all psychologists, and program development with other behavioral health leaders. In addition, she is the dedicated psychologist for the palliative medicine team and spends most of her clinical time engaging in prognostic disclosure and goals of care discussions with individuals aged 5-25 years in the inpatient setting. Through this role, she works collaboratively with other institutional stakeholders to create training experiences, simulations, and didactics focused on streamlining the way in which providers support minors in understanding their diagnosis and participating in surrounding decisions.

Dr. Khatami is also the psychology representative on Phoenix Children’s biomedical ethics committee, where she participates in staffing consults related to medical futility and adolescent decision-making, among other referrals. Additionally, she is an active researcher and currently the Primary Investigator on an ongoing study evaluating trends in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms among youth undergoing bone marrow transplant and their primary caregivers. Lastly, Dr. Khatami is an avid member of the Society of Pediatric Psychology through the American Psychological Association and recently finished serving a term as the Education and Training co-chair for the Palliative Care and End-Of-Life Special Interest Group within this organization.