Nicole Hamp, md, FAAP

Dr. Nikki Hamp is a board-certified pediatrician and is completing her developmental behavioral pediatrics fellowship at the University of Michigan. Following fellowship, Nikki will be staying on as Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor at Michigan Medicine and stepping in as Medical Director at Arbor Autism Centers in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Nikki received her Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from the University of Michigan, and her MD from the University of Michigan Medical School. She completed her pediatric residency training at the University of Chicago.

Nikki has a strong background in advocacy. Over the course of her 3-year residency, Nikki served as the head physician on an Illinois workgroup made up of statewide stakeholders to establish automatic eligibility to Early Intervention (EI) services for children who have been poisoned by lead and to develop guidelines for EI providers to offer services to lead-exposed children across the state. Through this work, she participated in drafting and advocating for legislation that was ultimately passed by the Illinois General Assembly to provide automatic EI eligibility with guaranteed service provision for Illinois children with elevated blood lead levels greater or equal to 5 micrograms per deciliter. This policy change was unique and groundbreaking in that it challenged EI to move from a deficit-driven model to a prevention-driven model and now requires EI providers in Illinois to deliver services to children with a history of lead poisoning, regardless of whether or not they are showing signs of delay. For this work, Nikki received the Anne E. Dyson Child Advocacy Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics as well as the Ann Hilton Fisher Advocate Award from the Legal Council for Health Justice in Chicago, IL. Nikki continues to work on lead-related issues and policy in the state of Michigan.

Nikki’s primary clinical interests include autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and developmental delay/disability (DD) secondary to toxic exposure. Her research interests are related to optimizing systems of care for children and the therapeutic effects of early intervention. Nikki’s advocacy passions are diverse but most of her efforts continue to address early identification and intervention for DD/ASD. To that end, in addition to co-chairing the advocacy committee for the Section on Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics (SODBP), she serves as Michigan’s Early Childhood Champion for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Council on Early Childhood. In this role, Nikki is specifically working to improve connections and communication between the Michigan AAP and Michigan’s Early On system. Additionally, Nikki sits on the Board of Directors for the Autism Alliance of Michigan and the steering committee for the Think Babies Michigan Policy Initiative, a collaborative, statewide initiative to advance a prenatal-to-age three policy agenda.

Nikki lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan with her husband, Kiff, and their 2-year-old son, Max.