Rhea Daruvala, External PhD student India
Consultant psycho-oncologist, Department of psychiatry and psycho oncology Mazumdar Shaw Medical Center, Bangalore, India
My areas of research interest are around psychological factors in pediatric cancers. My PhD research is aimed at improving nutrition in children diagnosed with various malignancies by developing manualized interventions that target behaviors and cognitions around feeding and eating. I am supervised by dr. Lotte Lemmens and prof. dr. Anne Roefs (Maastricht University) and dr. Leandra Desjardins (CHU Sainte Justine, Canada).
Apart from clinical work and research, I teach at a local university and supervise postgraduate students in their clinical training. Furthermore, I am very much in favour of the principles of open science and good academic citizenship.
Publications that I’m most proud of
Emotional exhaustion in cancer clinicians: A mixed methods exploration. Indian Journal of Medical and Paediatric Oncology, 2019.
We explored the associations of emotional exhaustion in oncology clinicians and perceptions of doctors about their work–life balance in a developing country using quantitative semi-structured interviews and qualitative in-depth interviews to explore emotional exhaustion and burnout in doctors in a tertiary care cancer center.
Do Psychological Interventions Work for Psychosis in Adolescents? Schizophrenia Bulletin, 2021.
A cochrane review that examined the effects of various psychological interventions for adolescents with psychosis compared with treatment as usual (TAU) or other psychological interventions. When comparing group psychosocial therapy with TAU, global state scores measured using Children’s Global Assessment Scale (CGAS) were clearly higher in the intervention arm as compared with the TAU group. None of the other interventions were found to be significantly effective for the treatment of psychosis in adolescents
The setting up and running of a children’s activity group and learning center for children with hematological and oncology conditions. Cancer Reports, 2022.
This method report explores the setting up and running of a children’s activity group and learning center for children with hematological and oncology conditions based on experiences from our center. it examines various aspects of the activity group such as setting up of the activity groups, how they are run, the activities conducted in the groups and the effects the group has had on children and their families as reported by them while undergoing treatment.
