about

Dr. Mandy O’Hara is a double-board-certified Pediatrician and Child Abuse Pediatrician, Fellow in Integrative Medicine, and Associate Professor of Pediatrics in New York City.  Her career began as a primary care physician for foster children, which inspired her desire to specialize in Child Abuse Pediatrics and devote her career to addressing child maltreatment.    Her research and teaching efforts focus on trauma informed care, including self-care, with a focus on physician resiliency and secondary traumatic stress in the face of difficult cases, such as child abuse.  Dr. O’Hara has published original research, review, and narrative medicine in her specialty.  She has given national webinars, round table discussions, and created courses to address vicarious trauma and support compassion and self-compassion in the practice of medicine.  

Along the way, Dr. O’Hara paralleled her professional endeavors with deep exploration of integrative healing modalities for her own wellness and to inform her holistic practice as a physician. These have included trainings in Mind Body Medicine at Harvard, Reiki Master Teacher certification, advanced training in Transcendental Meditation, as well as 300-hour certification as a Facilitator of Trauma Sensitive Yoga, among others.  Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. O’Hara has offered live virtual trauma sensitive yoga practices from her office chair in support of wellness for her Departmental colleagues. As a longstanding meditation, yoga, and reiki practitioner, she hopes to lead by example to open the door for others to explore integrative practices to support patient and physician wellness, for the betterment of all. Although urban living is her home in New York City with her three children Sam, Ollie, and Pauline, she brings nature into her life through cut flowers, walks through Central Park, and frequent travels out west.