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Mariam Rahmani, MD

Education

Medical School: University of Florida

Residency: University of Florida

Fellowship: University of Florida

Certification

American Board of Psychiatry

Child/Adolescent Psychiatry

Bio

Dr. Rahmani, who grew up in Kuwait and Pakistan, moved to the United States for her higher education. After earning her bachelor’s with honors in environmental engineering from the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Fla., she received her medical degree and completed her psychiatry residency and child and adolescent psychiatry (CAP) fellowship from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Fla. At the University of Florida, Dr. Rahmani was a member of the faculty for more than nine years and served more than seven years as the training director of its CAP fellowship program. Dr. Rahmani is excited to make CHKD her new professional home. 

Dr. Rahmani is passionate about education and creating a psychologically safe learning environment. At the University of Florida, she won several teaching awards for teaching PA students, medical students, pediatrics residents, psychiatry residents, and CAP fellows. She was the first psychiatrist faculty to be inducted into the University of Florida College of Medicine Society for Teaching Scholars. 

Dr. Rahmani believes that children exist in the context of families, neighborhoods, and communities. She believes in partnering with patients and their families and treating a child as part of the family system rather than treating the child in isolation. She uses family interventions, various psychotherapy modalities, and psychopharmacology to provide the best outcomes for her patients.

Additional Information

Clinical Interests

Dr. Rahmani's clinical interests include girls' development, depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, trauma and stressor-related disorders, and autism spectrum disorders. She uses psychotherapy and non-pharmacological interventions in addition to psychotropic medications.

Awards and Honors

  • Society of Teaching Scholars, University of Florida COM, to honor and foster teaching excellence and educational scholarship. 202
  • Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (honorary distinction for psychiatrists who continue to make significant contributions to the field of psychiatry). 2023
  • The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Outstanding Mentor Award (for mentoring CAP Fellow Young Jo MD). 2022
  • The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Outstanding Mentor Award (for mentoring medical student Sydney Cabana). 2022
  • The AADPRT Model Curriculum Award, given by the national psychiatry training directors association, to recognize the creation of an innovative model curriculum “psychiatric assessment of pre-school age children.” 2020
  • Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, representing excellence in professional career and positive contribution to the field. 2019
  • The Victor J. Teichner Award, a national award by the AADPDP and AADPRT, to promote the teaching of psychodynamic principles to psychiatrists-in-training, made annually to one residency training program. 2019
  • UF COM Exemplary Teacher Award. 2019-2020, 2018-2019, 2017-2018, 2015-2016, 2014-2015
  • UF Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (DCAP) Faculty Teaching Award (chosen by residents and faculty). 2021, 2018
  • UF COM Dept. of Psychiatry Exemplary Mentor Award. 2016-2017

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Publications

1. Rahmani, M., Silverman, A.L., Thompson, A. et al. Youth Suicidality in the Context of Disasters. Curr Psychiatry Rep (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-023-01454-4

2. Rahmani M, Muzwagi A, Pumariega AJ. Cultural Factors in Disaster Response Among Diverse Children and Youth Around the World. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2022 Aug 12. doi: 10.1007/s11920-022-01356-x. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35953637.

3. Pumariega A, Jo Y, Beck B, Rahmani M. Trauma and US Minority Children and Youth. Curr Psychiatry Rep (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-022-01336-1. PMID: 35286562

4. Rahmani M. (2020). Medical Trainees and the Dunning-Kruger Effect: When They Don't Know What They Don't Know. Journal of Graduate Medical Education. 12(5): 532-534. doi: 10.4300/JGME-D-20-00134.1.

5. Rahmani M, Hoxha A, Huey E. Psychiatric assessment of preschool-age children (2019). Peer reviewed model curriculum by the American Association of Directors of Psychiatry Residency Training (AADPRT).

6. Rahmani M. (2018) Helping Program Directors Effectively Manage Rumors and Gossip. Journal of Graduate Medical Education: December 2018, Vol. 10, No. 6, pp. 616-619. PMID: 30619515

7. Rahmani M. “Using Group Psychotherapy Skills in Small Group Teaching.” Rahmani, M. Acad Psychiatry (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-018-0896-4. PMID: 30619515

8. Ramnaraine L, Rahmani M, Khurshid K. “Sleep Problems and Disorders in Children and Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).” Psychiatric Annals, 2016; 46(7): 401-407

9. Shapiro M, Rahmani M, Eisner A, Nguyen, M. “A Review of the Use of Newer Second-Generation Antipsychotics in the Child and Adolescent Population.” Current Psychopharmacology. 2014; 3(2): 146-150.

10. Nguyen ML, Tharani S, Rahmani M, Shapiro MA. A review of the use of clonidine as a sleep aid in the child and adolescent population. Clinical Pediatrics, 2014; 53(3): 211-216. PMID: 24027233

11. Rahmani M, Paul S, and Nguyen M. Treatment of refractory substance-induced psychosis in adolescent males with genetic predisposition to mental illness. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health, 2014; 26(2): 297-301. PMID: 24762642

12. Nguyen ML, Shapiro MA, Rahmani M. Zonisamide for Attenuation of Weight Gain in a Morbidly-Obese Adolescent on an Antipsychotic. Journal of Obesity and Weight Loss Therapy. 2012; 2(4):1-4. doi:10.4172/2165-7904.1000134

13. Rahmani M, Glener J, Turner AT, Gold MS, Hobbs JA. Thyroid Dysfunction as a contributor to Mood and Psychotic Disorders. Directions in Psychiatry. 2012; 32(2): 123-133. (CME Article).

Peer Reviewed Publications Not Recognized by the National Library of Medicine

1. Rahmani M. “Do You Have to Be a Physician to Get Proper Medical Care? Sadly, sometimes the answer is yes.” Psychology Today. 4 October, 2023. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/psychiatrys-think-tank/202310/do-you-have-to-be-a-physician-to-get-proper-medical-care

2. Hua P, Park V, Sinha SR, Rahmani M, Khan CT, Richards MC, Hajirnis A. 2022. Towards a Culture Shift: Advocating for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Women in Child Psychiatry. JAACAP Connect Volume 9 Issue 2: Special Issue: Women in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. https://els-jbs-prod-cdn.jbs.elsevierhealth.com/pb/assets/raw/Health%20Advance/journals/jaac/Article_3-1657662640207.pdf

3. Cagande C, Marwaha R, Rahmani M, Gogineni RR. 2022. Children Orphaned due to COVID-19 Pandemic: Learning from the Past and Preparing for their Future. Journal of World Social Psychiatry. Volume 4. Issue 2. May-August 2022.

4. Burakgazi-Yilmaz H, Prajapati P, Dalkilic A, Unlu A, Rahmani M, Pumariega A. 2022. Impact of Rural‑Urban Immigration on Substance Use in a Sample of Turkish Youth. Journal of World Social Psychiatry. Volume 4. Issue 2. May-August 2022.

5. Rahmani M, Pumariega AJ, Prajapati P, Dalkilic A, Burakgazi-Yilmaz H, Unlu A. 2022. Anomie, Loneliness, and Psychopathology: Results from the Study of Youth in Istanbul. Journal of World Social Psychiatry. Volume 4. Issue 2. May-August 2022.

6. Copans S, Rahmani M. 2020. What's Wrong With Health Care in the United States? Psychiatric Times. https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/what-s-wrong-with-health-care-in-the-united-states

7. Rahmani, M. “Family’s Gender Bias and Influence on Girls’ Mental Health Vulnerabilities.” AACAP News. May/June 2020; 3(51): 130-131

8. Patel A, Rahmani M. “Family therapy training and focus on the patient – a CAP fellow experience.” AACAP News. May/June 2017; 8(53): 108-109.

Book Chapters

1. Rahmani M, Ivbijaro G, Pumariega AJ. Stigma. In Gogineni AA, Pumariega AJ, Kallivayalil R, Kastrup M, and Rothe EM (Eds). The WASP Textbook on Social Psychiatry: Historical, Developmental, Cultural, and Clinical Perspectives. Oxford University Press. 2023.

2. Reid AM, Flores C, Olsen B, Barthle MA, Rahmani M, Rakhshani AC, Nguyen M, Geffken GR, McNamara JPH. Therapist non-avoidance of sexual obsessive-compulsive symptoms during exposure and response prevention. In EA Storch & A Lewin (Eds.), Clinical Handbook of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders: A Case-Based Approach to Treating Pediatric and Adult Populations. New York: Springer. 2014.

Community Involvement

Dr. Rahmani is an active contributing member of several professional organizations including the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Group for Advancement of Psychiatry, and the American Association of Directors of Psychiatry Residency Training.

Refer to Our Mental Health Program

CHKD is working hard to build a Mental Health Program with care access opportunities for all children in need. We currently have a high volume of requests and partner with mental health agencies outside of CHKD to ensure all children referred receive an appropriate treatment resource. Find inpatient, outpatient, and partial hospitalization referral information here.

Patient with providers in Children's Pavilion

Concerned About Your Child's Mental Health?

If you are concerned about your child's mental health, the best place to start is with your child's primary care pediatrician. Many of CHKD's pediatricians have completed advanced training in the management of disorders such as ADHD, depression, and anxiety.