A photo of Shanna Guilfoyle.

Pediatric Psychologist, Clinical, Behavioral Medicine & Clinical Psychology

Clinical Director, Behavioral Medicine and Clinical Psychology

Associate Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics

513-636-4336

"My approach to patient care is to treat the whole child or adolescent, along with their family, to optimize their functioning and help them live their best lives. Our team is here to serve all families and to tailor their care to meet their individual needs."

About Me

Biography

I’m a pediatric psychologist who specializes in caring for children and adolescents with epilepsy and their families. I serve as the clinical psychologist for the Division of Neurology’s New Onset Seizure Clinic. I also lead several psychologists within the Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at Cincinnati Children’s, where we work with our medical, pharmacy, nursing and social work colleagues to provide comprehensive epilepsy care. Our goal is for the child or adolescent to be seizure free, with no side effects from seizure mediations, and that they have the best possible quality of life.

I was drawn to my career by my volunteer work as a teenager, where I saw the resiliency of children and their families. I have studied child, caregiver, and family functioning and their impact on pediatric chronic disease management across a variety of pediatric chronic conditions. These include obesity, cancer, organ transplants, inflammatory bowel disease and type 1 diabetes.

My approach to patient care is to treat the whole child or adolescent, along with their family, to optimize their functioning and help them live their best lives. Our team is here to serve all families and to tailor their care to meet their individual needs.

I was honored to receive the 2016 Society of Pediatric Psychology Carolyn Schroeder Clinical Practice Award. I also received the 2016 O’Grady Residency Outstanding Teaching Award.

In addition to helping patients, I’m involved in research. My colleagues and I are investigating the behavioral health conditions linked to epilepsy. We strive to minimize their occurrence and impact on quality of life.

When I’m not at work, I enjoy all sports with my kids. I also like to walk and run with my dog, Goldie.

Clinical Interests

Childhood depression and anxiety; epilepsy management; behavior modification; cognitive-behavioral therapy; family functioning; parenting stress and distress; self-management; adherence

Academic Affiliation

Associate Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics

Clinical Divisions

Behavioral Medicine, Epilepsy

My Locations

My Education

PhD: Kent State University, 2009.

Residency: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, 2008-2009.

Fellowship: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, 2009-2011.

My Publications

Highlights From AES2020, a Virtual American Epilepsy Society Experience. Jobst, BC; Conner, KR; Coulter, D; Fried, I; Guilfoyle, S; Hirsch, LJ; Hogan, RE; Hopp, JL; Naritoku, D; Plueger, M; et al. Epilepsy Currents. 2021.

The psychosocial impact of COVID-19 within the first six months of the pandemic on youth with epilepsy and their caregivers. Modi, AC; Patel, AD; Stevens, J; Smith, G; Huszti, H; Guilfoyle, SM; Mara, CA; Schmidt, M; Wagner, JL. Epilepsy and Behavior. 2021; 117.

Supporting Treatment Adherence Regimens in young children with epilepsy and their families: Trial design and baseline characteristics. Modi, AC; Glauser, TA; Guilfoyle, SM. Controlled Clinical Trials. 2020; 90.

Estimates of Prenatal HIV, Hepatitis B Virus, and Hepatitis C Virus Testing Among Pregnant People Enrolled in Wisconsin Medicaid, 2011-2015. Watts, T; Stockman, L; Martin, J; Guilfoyle, SM; Vergeront, JM; Zahner, S. Maternal and Child Health Journal. 2020; 24:177-185.

PedsQL™ Cognitive Functioning Scale in youth with epilepsy: Reliability and validity. Varni, JW; Junger, KF; Kellermann, T; Grossman, LB; Wagner, J; Mucci, GA; Guilfoyle, SM; Smith, G; Zupanc, ML; Modi, AC. Epilepsy and Behavior. 2020; 103.

Pediatric epilepsy. Smith, AW; Gutierrez-Colina, AM; Guilfoyle, SM; Modi, AC. Adherence and Self-Management in Pediatric Populations. 2020.

Chapter 9 Pediatric epilepsy. Smith, AW; Gutierrez-Colina, AM; Guilfoyle, SM; Modi, AC. Adherence and Self-Management in Pediatric Populations. 2020.

Current behavioral health and cognitive screening practices in pediatric epilepsy. Wagner, JL; Modi, AC; Guilfoyle, SM; Junger, KF; Weyand, C; Smith, G; Griffin, M; Mucci, G. Epilepsy and Behavior. 2019; 101.

Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B Vaccination Coverage Among Persons Who Inject Drugs and Have Evidence of Hepatitis C Infection. Koepke, R; Sill, DN; Akhtar, WZ; Mitchell, KP; Guilfoyle, SM; Westergaard, RP; Schauer, SL; Vergeront, JM. Public Health Reports. 2019; 134:651-659.

Establishing clinical cutoffs for the PedsQL™ Epilepsy Module. Junger, KW; Modi, AC; Guilfoyle, SM; Smith, G; Wagner, J; Mucci, GA; Huszti, H; Mara, CA. Epilepsy and Behavior. 2019; 99.