Joseph Pepitone, MD is a board-certified child and adolescent and general psychiatrist with 6 years of experience in independent practice. He believes the foundation of care should be patient-centered, and endeavors to model his approach after Carl Rogers’ person centered approach. He fundamentally believes any successful therapeutic relationship requires unconditional positive regard for the patient, clinician congruence (genuineness/authenticity), and empathic understanding.

“I like to listen to my patients when they tell me things, and meet my patients where they are rather than dictate to them how the treatment ought to go. I know I have my expertise, but my job is to make you as informed as you can be, so you can make the decision that’s best for you. And if that doesn’t turn out to work how we hoped, we can always go back to the starting line and revisit our options. My job is to treat you as a person, to make you feel seen and heard, and to help guide and push you in the right direction to best meet your goals, whatever they may be.”

Dr. Pepitone has worked independently in a variety of settings. He has worked in settings ranging from outpatient adult clinics, outpatient child and adolescent clinics, emergency psychiatry, consult and liaison services, inpatient psychiatry, and forensic psychiatry with experience in court testimony as an expert witness. Previously he was a medical director for an an eating disorders program for several years encompassing inpatient, partial hospital, and outpatient levels of care, supervising numerous physician assistants, therapists, dietitians, nurses, and other mental health staff. Currently he is also a medical director for an addictions, trauma, and mental health outpatient treatment program.

Dr. Pepitone is presently an appointed associate clinical professor at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford, associate clinical professor at the Rosalind Franklin Chicago School of Medicine, and is a current active member of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s Eating Disorders Workgroup. Clinical areas he’s passionate about include functional psychopathophysiology of disease, relational psychoanalysis, parent coaching and behavioral interventions in the treatment of the child, and the use of cognitive behavioral therapy in the treatment of eating disorders. Previously, in residency and fellowship, he worked with faculty at the University of Vermont College of Medicine to develop a manualized intervention to improve family resilience and prevent the intergenerational transmission of substance use disorders in children of adults in recovery.

When not in the clinic, Dr. Pepitone enjoys spending time with his family, running, at the gym, reading, cooking, baking, or gardening.