Dr. Rider is the Director of Academic Programs, Institute for Professionalism and Ethical Practice, Children’s Hospital Boston, and the Director of Programs for Communication Skills at the John D. Stoeckle Center for Primary Care Innovation, Massachusetts General Hospital.  She designs and leads educational programs at 3 Harvard hospitals and did similar work at Harvard Medical School, where she and colleagues implemented assessment in communication competencies across all 4 years, and a communication skills curricular model in the core medicine clerkships.

Dr. Rider directs the international Harvard faculty development course, "Difficult Conversations in Healthcare: Pedagogy and Practice”,  the Difficult Conversations Program for Residents at Children’s Hospital, and co-directs the year-long psychosocial pediatrics course, "Emotional and Psychological Issues in Children and Families; Pediatrics for the New Millennium”.  She teaches and consults nationally and internationally on communication skills, relationship-centered care, reflective practice, and medical education program and curriculum development.  Dr. Rider has won various teaching awards, and was invited by Taiwan’s Education Ministry to teach leaders from Taiwan’s 11 medical schools about teaching, assessing and integrating communication skills into medical education curricula.

A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Rider completed her pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Boston, and a fellowship in general academic pediatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital.  A former child and family therapist with a master’s degree from Smith College, she is board certified in both pediatrics and clinical social work (LICSW, BCD).  An assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Rider is a fellow of the American Academy on Communication in Healthcare, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the National Academies of Practice.  Dr. serves on the National Board of Medical Examiners’ Communication Skills Task Force, and is co-chair of the Medicine Academy, National Academies of Practice.  She is a section editor for the international journal Patient Education and Counseling, as well as senior co-author of the book, A Practical Guide to Teaching and Assessing the ACGME Core Competencies.  Dr. Rider practices pediatrics at Roslindale Pediatrics Associates in Boston.

Elizabeth Rider, MD, MSW, FAACH (3:09-10)

Director of Academic Programs

Massachusetts General Hospital

Harvard Medical School

1153 Centre Street, Suite 31

Boston, MA 02130-3446

Phone: (617) 795-0385

Fax: (617) 522-6366

elizabeth_rider@hms.harvard.edu