Stephanie H. Felgoise, PhD, Professor, Vice-Chair, Director of Clinical PsyD Program

 

Dr. Felgoise joined the faculty of PCOM in July 1999. She earned her MA and PhD in clinical psychology from Hahnemann University, after completing an APA-accredited internship in clinical/community psychology at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, in Piscataway, NJ.  Her postdoctoral training in Health Psychology and Research from Hahnemann University, and her private clinical practice positions her to mentor students in clinical work, research, scholarship and professional affiliation. Dr. Felgoise earned her diplomate in clinical psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology in 2003, and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Clinical Psychology.

 

Dr. Felgoise teaches courses that draw upon her scientist-practitioner training. She teaches doctoral courses in Research Methods; Problem-Solving Therapy for Medical Patients; Grief, Loss and Bereavement; Practicum; and Qualitative Methodology, among others.  She teaches informally via mentoring and supervising students for clinical and research work.

 

Dr. Felgoise's research focuses on quality of life in, and psychosocial aspects of, ALS (Lou Gherig's Disease) and Long QT Syndrome (LQTS, a life-threatening cardiac arrhythmia condition). Research on these topics have emphasized factors relating to quality of life, social problem solving, coping and adjustment, resilience factors (hope, optimism, spirituality), and comorbid psychological conditions (i.e., anxiety, depression).  ALS research has focused on adults and their lay caregivers; LQTS research focuses on children and adolescents and their parental caregivers, adults with LQTS, interdisciplinary care of LQTS patients, physicians’ decision making, and emergency care. Her work has been grant supported in part by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, and the Center for Chronic Disorders of Aging. These research projects have been funded by the ALS Association and the Christopher Reeves Foundation, and presented at the Heart Rhythm Society, Society of Behavioral Medicine, and Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies. Dr. Felgoise has been a co-principal investigator for several studies and a program of research focusing on quality of life issues for persons with ALS and their family caregivers. She and her collaborators have published their works in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, Neurology, and Quality of Life journals.  Students are always involved in these research projects, which often serve as sources for dissertation topics, multidisciplinary team experience, and clinical exposure to these populations.

 

Dr. Felgoise has also co-authored numerous national conference presentations in her areas of research, and previously on coping with cancer, including a book published by the American Psychological Association, Helping Cancer Patients Cope: A Problem-Solving Approach.  She is also an associate editor and author for the Encyclopedia of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies by Kluewer, and co-author of a graduate textbook, Clinical Psychology: Integrating Science and Practice.

 

For more than ten years, Dr. Felgoise has been an active member of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT, formerly AABT), by annually attending and presenting in conferences and serving on committees (Chair, Membership Committee, 2000-2004; Nominations and Elections Chair, 2005-2009).  In addition, Dr. Felgoise is a member of APA, Div. 12 (Clinical), Div. 38 (Health), Div. 54 (Pediatrcis), the Society for Behavioral Medicine, the American Academy of Clinical Psychology, and the American Board of Professional Psychology.

 

Dr. Felgoise is Associate Editor of the Journal of Clinical Psychology, and Consulting Editor for Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, and Professional Psychology: Research and Practice. She also serves as an ad-hoc reviewer for Psycho-Oncology and others.

Selected Recent Publications:

Journal Articles:
 
Murphy, V. , Felgoise, S. H., Walsh, S., & Simmons, Z. (2009). Problem solving skills predict quality of life and psychological morbidity in ALS caregivers. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, 10(3), 147-53.

Felgoise, S. H., Stewart, J. L., Bremer, B. A., Walsh, S. M., Bromberg, M. B., & Simmons, Z. (2009).  The SEIQoL-DW for assessing quality of life in ALS: strengths and limitations. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, 10(5-6), 456-62.

Simmons, Z, Felgoise, S.H., Bremer, B.A., Walsh, S.M., Hufford, D.J., Bromberg, M.B., David. W, Forshew, D.A., Heiman-Patterson, T.D., Lai, E.C., McCluskey, L.  (2006). The ALSSQOL:  Balancing physical and non-physical factors in assessing quality of life in ALS. Neurology, 67, 1659-1664.
 
Bremer, B. A., Simone, A.L., Walsh, S., Simmons, Z., & Felgoise, S. H.  (2004). Factors supporting quality of life over time for individuals with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: The role of positive self-perception and religiosity. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 28(2), 119-125.

Nezu, A. M., Nezu, C. M., Felgoise, S. H., McClure, K. S., & Houts, P. S. (2003). Project Genesis: Assessing the efficacy of problem-solving therapy for distressed adult cancer patients. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 71(6), 1036-1048.
 
Walsh, S., Bremer, B. A., Felgoise, S. H., & Simmons, Z. (2003).Religiousness is related to quality of life in patients with ALS. Neurology, 60, 1527-1529.

Books and Book Chapters:

Freeman, A. & Felgoise, S. H., & Davis, D.  (January 2008). Clinical Psychology: Integration of Science and Practice. New York: Wiley.

Freeman, A. (Ed. In Chief), Felgoise, S. H., Nezu, A. M., Nezu, C. M., & Reineke, M. (Eds.). (2005). Encyclopedia of Cognitive and Behavior Therapies, New York: Kluwer.

Felgoise, S. H. (2005). History of Behavioral Medicine.  In A. Freeman et al., (Eds). Encyclopedia of Cognitive and Behavior Therapies, pp. 209-214. New York: Kluwer.

Felgoise, S. H., & Golden, B. A. (2005). Clinical Health Psychology. In A. Freeman et al., (Eds). Encyclopedia of Cognitive and Behavior Therapies, pp. 114-117. New York: Kluwer.

Felgoise, S. H., & Kricher, H. (2005). Terminal Illness. In A. Freeman et al., (Eds). Encyclopedia of Cognitive and Behavior Therapies, pp., 401-405. New York: Kluwer.

Felgoise, S. H., & Olex, K. (2005). Caregivers of medically ill patients. In A. Freeman et al., (Eds). Encyclopedia of Cognitive and Behavior Therapies, pp. 94-98.  New York: Kluwer.

Nezu, A. M., Nezu, C. M., Felgoise, S. H., & Peskin, M. (2003). Psychosocial Oncology. In A. M. Nezu, C. M. Nezu, & P. Geller (Eds.). Comprehensive Handbook on Health Psychology. New York: Wiley; pp. 267-292 .

Felgoise, S. H.,  Nezu, C. M., & Nezu, A. M. (2002).  Problem-solving therapy for treatment of Anxiety: The case of Sandra. In R.A. DiTomasso & E. Gosch (Eds). Comparative Treatments of Anxiety Disorders. New York: Springer.

Nezu, A. M., Nezu, C. M., Friedman, S. H., Faddis, S. & Houts, P.S.  (1998). Helping Cancer Patients Cope: A Problem-Solving Approach.  Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.