Cecily L. Betz, PhD

Professor of Clinical Pediatrics

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Overview

Cecily L. Betz, PhD, RN, FAAN is Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, USC Keck School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Betz serves as the Nursing Director and Research Director of the USC University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. She is a nationally recognized expert in the field of health care transition planning for youth with special health care needs. Dr. Betz co-edited the first text on health care transition planning entitled, Promoting Health Care Transition Planning for Adolescents with Special Health Care Needs and Disabilities. More recently, she co-edited Transition from Pediatric to Adult Healthcare Services for Young Adults with Long-term Conditions: An International Perspective on Nurses Roles and Interventions. She is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Health Care Transitions, an open-access journal. She is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Pediatric Nursing: Nursing Care of Children and Families (JPN) which is the official journal of the Society of Pediatric Nurses and the Pediatric Endocrinology Nursing Society. She has over 200 publications in the field of pediatric nursing and care of children and youth with special health care needs and disabilities. She is the editor of ten pediatric nursing textbooks that have used extensively in pediatric nursing undergraduate and graduate programs and have been translated into several languages. She served as the lead author for the recently published American Nurses Association nursing standards in intellectual and developmental disabilities entitled, Intellectual and developmental disabilities nursing: Scope and standards of practice (3rd ed.). Dr. Betz serves on numerous professional advisory boards at the state and national levels. In 2008, she received the Margaret S. Miles Service Award and in 2018 Barbara A. Larson Humanitarian Award from the Society of Pediatric Nursing for her service and contribution to pediatric nursing.

Research Funding

  • TESTING OF THE TRANSITION PREPARATION TRAINING PROGRAM
    NIH · R21NR009415 · Apr 1, 2006 – Mar 31, 2009 · Role: Principal Investigator

Publications

  • Parents of youth and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities: Barriers experienced during transition. J Pediatr Rehabil Med. 2026 Aug 07; 18758894261476176.. View in PubMed
  • Self-management for youth and young adults with childhood-onset chronic conditions: A scoping review of parent and caregiver perspectives. Health Care Transit. 2026; 4:100148.. View in PubMed
  • Self-management for youth and young adults with childhood-onset chronic conditions: A scoping review of health care transition planning literature. Health Care Transit. 2026; 4:100147.. View in PubMed
  • Nursing standards of practice and persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities: Concepts and competencies. Nurs Outlook. 2026 May-Jun; 74(3):102796.. View in PubMed
  • The Unmet Need of Olfactory Testing in Inflammatory Disorders of the Upper Airways-An EAACI Position Paper. Allergy. 2026 Aug; 81(8):2633-2655.. View in PubMed
  • Editorial: Advancing the science and practice of health care transition. Health Care Transit. 2025; 3:100123.. View in PubMed
  • Novel Retrospective Perspectives of Healthcare Transitions From Emerging Adults With Chronic Conditions: A Quantitative Overview. J Pediatr Health Care. 2026 May-Jun; 40(3):e19-e30.. View in PubMed
  • Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Health Care Transition: Stakeholder Perspectives. Intellect Dev Disabil. 2025 08 01; 63(4):299-314.. View in PubMed
  • An Examination of Health Care Transition Experiences Through Parents’ Reflections About Their Sons or Daughters Who Have Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Children (Basel). 2025 Jul 04; 12(7).. View in PubMed
  • Innovating Nursing Education Through Partnership With Individuals With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. J Nurs Educ. 2025 Feb; 64(2):75-80.. View in PubMed