Dr. Swedo, former Chief of Pediatrics and Developmental Neuroscience at the NIMH, is Scientist Emerita at NIMH/NIH Intramural Research Program. She earned her MD from the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and completed pediatrics residency at the Children’s Memorial Hospital at Northwestern University. Her extensive research has focused on childhood obsessive-compulsive disorders, completed primarily during her time in the Child Psychiatry branch of the NIMH. Her novel research has led to the development of new, innovative treatments and therapies. Dr. Swedo has served on many Scientific Advisory Boards for pediatric disorders, and she was a member of the DSM5 task force. Her experience in the field has provided her intimate knowledge of the inner workings of federal funding, pediatric disorders, clinical trials, psychiatric research, and what is necessary to get a disorder classified in the DSM.