Cy B. Nadler, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Department(s) of Pediatrics
Section: Developmental/Behavioral Sciences
Children's Mercy Hospital
816-234-3000
Education and Background

Ph.D. - Idaho State University
Residency - Pediatric Psychology - Munroe-Meyer Institute/University of Nebraska Medical Center
Fellowship - Clinical Child Psychology/Special Needs - Children's Mercy Kansas City

Meet Cy Nadler
Why did you become involved in working with childhood disorders?

I have always been interested in child psychology, and when I gained exposure to children with challenging behaviors, I very quickly gravitated to the developmental disabilities world. These kids have more needs and often receive less support, so it seemed like an important field to land in. I felt that as a profession, we could do more for them and their families.

What is the most rewarding part of your work?

On the clinic side, it’s a pleasure to help kids get headed in the right direction in terms of their development, and reduce stress for the kids and parents as much as possible. On the research side, it’s exciting to contribute to helping us understand these disorders better and improve the quality of care we can offer to kids and their families. I also enjoy mentoring students who are excited about this kind of work.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

My wife and I enjoy doing all kinds of things in town, especially theater, art, music and eating good food. We love going to see shows at the KC Rep or the Unicorn, and Heart of America Shakespeare Festival each summer. I’m a (very) amateur trumpet player, and love going to hear good jazz. I don’t discriminate against any barbeque places in town (BB’s Lawnside is my favorite), and Betty Rae’s Ice Cream is my second home.

Research Focus

Developmental & behavioral medicine

Assessment and treatment of autism spectrum disorder and related neurodevelopmental disabilities, parenting and behavioral intervention for children with difficult behavior and developmental disabilities.

Research Summary

I lead multiple research projects in the areas of Autism Spectrum Disorders and Developmental Disabilities: One series of projects is focused on autism and developmental screening in primary care medical settings. We have an ongoing quality improvement initiate at Children’s Mercy, which has yielded a large health database. We have use this database for additional projects related to health disparities and health outcomes related to screening. I am interested in research related to parenting and autism/developmental disabilities, health care access, health & treatment outcomes, dissemination, and the education and training of healthcare professionals about developmental disabilities. Finally, I am the site PI for a large epidemiological study on autism and developmental disabilities funded by the Centers for Disease Control.