Welcome to the Montreal Children's Hospital

Lily Hechtman

Psychiatry (Inpatients)

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I love working with children and their families because It’s very rewarding to be able to intervene at a critical point in the child’s development and change the trajectory of their lives for the better by doing so.

Hospital information

Academic appointments

Professor of Psychiatry and of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University

Other appointments

PEDIATRICS: Planning committee for hospital ADHD clinic: a) General committee, b) Screening triage subcommittee, c) Treatment subcommittee, d) Assessment subcommittee, e) Review committee for reappointment of head of Adolescent Medicine;

CHILD PSYCHIATRY: a) CAPs preparation for ADHD Psychiatry team, b) CAPs Child Psychiatry Committee, c) Child Psychiatry Management Committee, d) Coordinator, Staff Psychiatrist Journal Club, e) Coordinator, Research Seminars, f) Coordinator, Montreal Children’s Hospital Research Day.

Awards and distinctions

Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder “CHADD” Hall of Fame;
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Elaine Schlosser Lewis Award for research on Attention Deficit Disorder;
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Pilot Award for Attention Deficit Discovery;
Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Paul D. Steinhauer Advocacy Award in testament for work as an exceptional advocate for children, adolescents, and their families at the regional, national and international level;
Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Honorary Member Award;
Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Dalhousie Award for best presentation by a full member on “Recent follow-up findings of the Multisite multimodal treatment study of children with ADHD (MTA)”;
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; invited to provide article for special 50th Anniversary Edition of Journal in recognition of position in the field;
Transcontinental Research Award of Excellence from the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation;
Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Dalhousie Award for best conference presentation by a full member, entitled “Adult functional outcomes in the Multisite multimodal treatment of children with ADHD (MTA)”;
Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Services Award;
Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance Lifetime Achievement Award.

Community Involvement

Canadian ADHD/ADD Resource Alliance (CADDRA);
World Anti-Doping Association (WADA);
Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry;
Providing training to community physicians and pediatricians in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder;
Reviewer of grants for multiple institutions;
On the editorial board and reviewer for many peer-reviewed journals.

Education

University

B.Sc., Physiology and Psychology, McGill University

Medical Degree

McGill University

Residency

Child Psychiatry, Montreal Children’s Hospital, McGill University; Adult Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York

Fellowship(s)

Fun fact about me

I enjoy travelling to exotic locations, going to the theatre, listening to music, and exploring art. I also love playing golf with my grandson.

Psychiatry (Inpatients)

Research

Research interests

Today, effective medication treatments relieve many symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Yet medication alone does not resolve the social, academic and emotional challenges that children with ADHD cope with daily and often carry into adulthood.

I have been involved in a joint study with the Université de Montréal to help children with ADHD who fall between the cracks in the transition from elementary school to high school. The program involves parental training as well as mentoring for the children. I have also developed and am piloting a group cognitive behaviour therapy program that focuses on these areas with adolescents and adults with ADHD.

In terms of academic, social and emotional functioning, two large-scale studies in which I participated clearly showed the benefit of combining medication with psychosocial treatment for children with ADHD, as opposed to either treatment alone. However, these benefits do not last without ongoing treatment and follow-up. Another of my current studies aims to determine the optimal follow-up needed to maintain treatment gains. More recently, we developed and tested the efficacy of cognitive-behavioural therapy group interventions for adults with ADHD, and we are currently doing the same for adolescents.

Our ADHD Research Program has been continuously externally funded by the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) and CIHR since 1988.

Research foci

Multimodal treatment in ADHD;
Cognitive behaviour therapy for adolescents and adults with ADHD;
Optimal follow-up program for children with ADHD;
Long-term (adolescent and adult) outcome in ADHD;
Factors which affect long-term outcome in ADHD.

Keywords

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Selected publications

Hechtman, L. T. (2017). Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: Adult outcome and its predictors. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press.

Greenhill, L., & Hechtman, L. (Fall 2017). Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. In B. J. Sadock, V. A. Sadock & P. Ruiz (Eds.). Kaplan and Sadock’s Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry (Vol. 2, 10th ed.), Baltimore: Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins.

Hechtman, L., Swanson, J. M., Sibley, M., Stehli, A., Owens, E. B., Mitchell, J. T., Arnold, L. E., Molina, B. S. G., Hinshaw, S. P., Jensen, P. S., Abikoff, H., Algorta, G. P., Howard, A., Hoza, B., Etcovitch, J., Houssais, S., Lakes, K. D., Nichols, J. Q. (2016). Functional adult outcomes 16 years after childhood diagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: MTA results. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 55 (11), 945–952. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2016.07.774

Cherkasova, M. V., French, L. R., Syer, C., Cousins, L., Galina, H., Ahmadi-Kashani, Y., Hechtman, L. (2016). Efficacy of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy with and without Medication for Adults with ADHD: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Journal of Attention Disorders. doi: 10.1177/1087054716671197

Klil-Drori, S., & Hechtman, L. (2016). Potential Social and Neurocognitive Benefits of Aerobic Exercise as Adjunct Treatment for Patients with ADHD. Journal of Attention Disorders, published online before print June 10, 2016. doi: 10.1177/1087054716652617