EXPERIENCE
Experience IS the Best TEACHER
READ about areas of Dr. Federici’s experience and how it can help YOU
Schizophrenia, Severe Depression, Paranoid Psychosis
Dr. Federici lived with twenty adult schizophrenic in a beautiful rural setting, at Earth House. Earth House was run by The Brain Bio-Center of Princeton University. He shared everyday activities with the residents, and came to understand the complexity and inherent difficulties in living with severe mental illness. There are many co-morbid illnesses with Schizophrenia, such as Severe Depression, Paranoid Psychosis, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Suicidal Behavior to name a few, that Dr. Federici worked with on an ongoing daily basis. Living together provided comprehensive insight into the depth of misery and daily struggles of severe mental illness. Dr. Federici devised strategies how to individually reach each resident while also providing significant data to the Brain Bio Center of Princeton University.
"I have a core understanding of severe mental illness, not from textbooks, but from living with these residents. I watched and learned how the brains of schizophrenics function. I instinctively know how to reach and help not only schizophrenics, but people with severe mental illness."
Conduct Disorders, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Crimes
While working at Bonnie Brae, a residential home for minors that had committed serious crimes, Dr. Federici began to better understand the dynamics of troubled juveniles. These challenged youths had a variety of disorders including Conduct Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and Learning Disabilities. Dr. Federici worked directly with the residents, and then as clinical director, he worked with their supervisors, their therapist, medical doctors and nurses, as well as the legal system. Dr. Federici was able to make an impact on their lives.
"I worked with tough children and many were headed for a life behind bars had they not received support. I really helped a lot of those kids. It is vital for children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder to work with a properly trained psychologist. They need to learn to retrain their thinking. I worked within the system, and dealt with the frustrations of the bureaucracy, and the complexities of the legal system. i gained tremendous insight of how psychology and our legal system are intertwined."
Abused, Neglected Children
As the director of Central Jersey Mental Health Center, Dr. Federici was responsible for a 250 patient facility for underprivileged youths with emotional and psychiatric issues. This very young population of children were neglected, abused, emotionally disturbed and profoundly traumatized. In order to advocate for these children, it was necessary for Dr. Federici to deal with the public and political side of psychological care and patient management.
“My vocation as a child advocate grew in ways that I had not imagined previously. The depths of poverty and hypocrisy of politics became real to me in the faces of those sad injured children whom I will never forget.”
Award Winning Instructor, Rutgers University
As an instructor at Rutgers University, Dr. Federici taught classes in Cognitive Psychology, Perception, Psycho-physics, and Statistics. He was voted Best Teacher three years in a row. Dr. Federici also taught psychology courses at the former University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ).
" I love academics. I love learning. I think I was born to teach. I use those abilities every day with my patients."
Prisoners, Effects of Jail, Victims, Legal System
As an expert witness for the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, Dr. Federici administered psychological testing on incarcerated men to determine their fitness to stand trial. Dr. Federici also interviewed the prisoners, and gained a deep understanding of the mentality of prison and the horrible effect it has on prisoners. Additionally, Dr. Federici spoke with victims of crimes, and their families.
"The clang that the cell door makes when it closes is something I will never forget. Back then, interviews with prisoners were conducted in the inmate's cells. It provided me an up-close and personal perspective of what it means to 'do time'. When I speak to young people today that are heading in the wrong direction, I tell them about my experiences with jails and inmates When you speak from your heart, people tend to take what you say seriously."
Learning Disabilities, Child Advocate, IEP, 504
At Center for Evaluation and Counseling at Morristown Memorial Hospital Dr. Federici reviewed cases for possible errors by school systems. When needed, he administered psychological testing, to determine an accurate profile of the child. By meticulously analyzing test results, along with interviewing the teachers and parents, Dr. Federici was able to more preciously isolate any problems. Dr, Federici then ascertained if the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or the 504 Accommodation Plan, were actually meeting the child’s needs adequately. If more services were required, Dr. Federici worked with the family to successfully advocate for the child with The Child Study Team of both Public Schools and Private Schools.
"I still work with families and schools, advocating for children if they aren't getting the right services or accommodations to meet their needs. It is essential that children have an appropriate IEP or 504 Plan, and for adults in college to have Accommodations, if needed."
Trained Judges How to Interview Children
Dr. Federici trained Family Court judges to question children in both custody cases and in abuse cases. Dr. Federici taught the judges how to more effectively communicate with children during the interviews. Dr. Federici taught the judges specifically how to help the child relax, and be forthright,He taught the judges how to interpret body language, how to detect when a child is being deceitful, or is just afraid, and most importantly, how to assure that the interview isn’t another trauma to the child.
“When interviewing children, it is imperative that judges truly hear what children are trying to say, and to communicate with them on their level. When children are frightened, they often say what they think the adults want to hear. Abused children appear to be compliant, but distant. Making the right decisions for those children is often based on what they do not say. There are many factors that a judge needs to take into consideration including the age and circumstances that brought the child to the judge. Judges decisions can be life altering, so equipping them with the best tools is critical."
Discovery Health Channel Programming
Dr. Federici was fortunate to become involved with programming at Discovery Health, a part of Discovery Channel when it was in its infancy. He worked with producers to develop programing to promote mental health issues.
"It is exciting to see how your ideas can be produced into videos and documentaries that can be seen around the world."
Sports Psychology, Olympic Medal Winners
Dr. Federici has been personally involved in sports and fitness his entire life. Using the techniques of cognitive therapy, relaxation therapy and mindfulness training, Dr. Federici developed a technique to work with amateur as well as professional athletes in training them to attain peak performance in their game. He has worked with Olympic Medal Winners, and athletes from football to gymnastics with very positive results, especially in effectively eliminating the negative influence of performance anxiety. In February 2019, Dr. Federici completed a week long seminar given by Harvard Medical School, titled Exercise and Other Medical and Complementary Ground Breaking Techniques for the Treatment of ADHD, Aggressions, and Autism Spectrum Disorders.Dr. Federici has found even better results with integrating exercise in his treatment of some mental health conditions.
"Sport Psychology is an exciting field. The influence of exercise and mindfulness can enhance performance on the playing field, and in life in general."
Multidisciplinary Board Profiling Sexual Offenders
Dr. Federici served as the psychologist on a Board of professionals studying Sexual Offenders. The board, which consisted of medical, psychological and legal experts, attempted to determine the characteristics of repeat sexual offenders. This type of analysis aids in creating an instrument to help professionals develop a profile to identify serial sexual offenders.
"Often it is necessary to get professionals in diverse fields to collaborate to make progress on difficult issues."
Psychology of Trial Preparation
Dr. Federici worked as a consultant to a New York based company devoted to handling trial presentations for very high profile cases. The nature of his work is strictly confidential, but Dr. Federici gained a more lucid understanding of the world of trial preparation and forensic psychology.
"Information is Power."
Reunification Therapy, Children of Divorce, Family Therapy
Dr. Federici provided Reunification Therapy for divorced families when one parent became estranged from their child(ren). Dr. Federici successfully assisted many families to mend their relationships and find suitable solutions for all parties.
"Divorce is a traumatic experience for everyone involved, particularly the children. Relationships with both parents are essential to children's psychological development. When parents use the child as a pawn in the war between them, it can result in psychological damage to the child that can last for the rest of their lives."
Court Ordered Therapy, Child Psychology
Dr. Federici worked on ‘Court Ordered’ Therapy for minors, ordered by the Superior Court of New Jersey. The conflict between parents had to be severe and significantly damaging to the child for a judge to order mandatory therapy. Divorce brings out the worst in most people, and when children are involved, an irrational emotional element often escalates the situation to extraordinary levels. In those cases, inevitably, one parent would undermine the therapy, making it difficult to help the child.
“It was wonderful to see the progress children made while in therapy. Court ordered cases are complex since there is usually one parent opposing the therapy. I stopped accepting these type of cases and prefer to spend my time with families that legitimately want my services."
Safe Driving Assessment for Seniors
After researching twenty years of driving studies and conferring with top experts in the field, Dr. Federici established a comprehensive evaluation program to profile each component of driving ability. Driving requires the coordination of mental and physical functions. Though the testing was able to be completed in less than two hours, it encompassed a wide range of testing. It was comprised of cognitive testing, reaction timing, sign recognition, motor assessment, field of vision and visual evaluations and more. The evaluation can determine very specific functional deficits, and provide suggestions and modifications to diminish the dangers associated with those impairments.
"As people age, their cognitive and perceptual capabilities inhibit their driving abilities. Physicians are often afraid to say anything because they don't have the data to back their recommendations. I developed a protocol to do just that."
Speaker, Presenter, Lecturer
Dr. Federici has been a guest speaker, presenter and lecturer at universities and forums nationally and internationally. Dr. Federici enjoys sharing his ideas, and knowledge with others, in diverse topics.
"The most recent topic is Integrated Interoceptive Therapy. This form of therapy aims at improving our ability to feel our embodied self from within. High interreceptive accuracy is related to empathy and a stable concept of self. It is exhilarating to share my ideas and knowledge with people of diverse cultures."
Dr. Federici has had a wide range of training and extensive experience in diverse capacities, usually concurrent with his private practice. Dr. Federici is able to draw upon those decades of experience, along with his exceptional intuition and education, he is able to comprehensively diagnose and to successfully treat patients in many areas of mental health.
“While I enjoy my private practice, I always have seeked professional growth and challenges. As I became a more seasoned psychologist, I was impressed at how much of my past experiences I was using on a daily basis, and I learned to find ways to give back to the world that enabled that wisdom”.
HOW DOES THIS BENEFIT YOU?
The extraordinary combination of a strong academic background coupled with Dr. Federici’s notable employment history encompassing many types of disorders, empowers him to readily recognize and accurately diagnose a wide array or mental disorders. Instead of diagnosing patients into hackneyed classifications, Dr. Federici, hones in on the root of the problem. Once the issue is pinpointed, Dr. Federici has the advantage of vast experience and can select the most effective treatment modality for the best results.
THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR EXPERIENCE
EFFECTIVE THERAPY BEGINS WITH AN ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS AND A PSYCHOLOGIST YOU CAN TRUST
DR. RICHARD FEDERICI
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