Margaret Kathryn “Katie” Hoge, M.D. is a current fellow in the Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics (DBP) at UT Southwestern (UTSW). She is serving as the Chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Trainees and Early Career Neonatologists (AAP TECaN) National Advocacy Campaign: "Carousel Care - All Around Support and Wellbeing in the NICU." Throughout her medical school training (Wake Forest School of Medicine ’14), pediatric residency (UTSW ’17 ) and NICU fellowship (UTSW ’20), Katie found a profound passion in taking care of high-risk infants, working to ensure their best developmental outcomes, and advocating for family support in the form of mental health resources and awareness in the NICU and beyond. She and her colleagues have worked hard to create a new standard of care for families and their children during and after a NICU admission which incorporates mental health education to better promote a healthy relationship between child and parent during stressful medical experiences and ensure optimal long-term developmental outcomes for the child. Because of her strong interest in developmental outcomes for NICU graduates, Katie was delighted to start her DBP fellowship in July 2020 to learn more skills to help strengthen children and families far beyond the NICU via advocacy for each child and family in their pursuit of health, development, and lifelong success.

Katie has been internationally recognized for her research in Vulnerable Child Syndrome and novel therapies to address this entity. She has been selected as a lead chapter author for a book addressing Mental Health in the NICU, as a guest editor for a special edition article series surrounding parental mental health in the NICU and impacts on child outcomes, and as a leader within a national advocacy campaign within the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) for mental health awareness in the NICU and beyond. She is beyond thankful for her family, friends, and colleagues for their support and encouragement in her professional and personal aspirations as she strives with others to make the NICU a more resilient place for families and children.