I’m passionate about helping to improve the quality of life of healthcare workers

My Story

I completed my Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from LaSalle University in Philadelphia in 2011 and my Clinical Internship at Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit, Michigan. I was then a NIDA/NIH Behavioral Science Postdoctoral Fellow at the National Development and Research Institute in New York City.

Since being licensed, I have held faculty positions in both public and private hospitals in New York. I am currently a voluntary faculty member at Mount Sinai Hospital and an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine. 

From very early in my training as a psychologist I loved working with medical teams. I had the great privilege of working as a mental health provider and clinical researcher in a wide range of medical settings, including medical and surgical inpatient services, emergency departments, and numerous outpatient settings: primary care, oncology, pediatrics, ob/gyn, endocrinology, and infectious disease.

The work was challenging and I loved my role as part of a multidisciplinary team, helping medically and psychologically complex patients improve their health. But I slowly realized that I was becoming more and more concerned about someone other than the patients.

Who was taking care of our doctors?

My physician colleagues, many of whom would become dear friends, were stretched to their absolute limits. I’d see them working long hours, carrying too many patients, with too few resources, often while experiencing high levels of workplace trauma. The pressure from the systems we worked in, to always do more, to always do it faster, somehow without ever sacrificing the quality of care was palpable. Perhaps just as powerful were my colleagues' extraordinarily high internal standards for themselves. They would privately express to me that they felt like they were someone failing, despite, outwardly, being the very definition of success in our society. The level of self-sacrifice some of my colleagues engaged in so they could continue to show up for their patients, their families, and their coworkers struck me as unsustainable.

This is when I decided to transition from providing care beside doctors to caring for them directly.

I also co-host the My Psychologist Bestie podcast with Dr. Nicole Young, which focuses on the health and wellness of high achieving women. You can listen here. 

I’m here to help the helpers

What is my background and primary patient?

I have experience providing mental health care to individuals in all levels of medical training, from 1st year medical students to seasoned attendings.

 I have held this role both as a faculty provider at Mount Sinai Hospital’s Student and Trainee Mental Health Center, as well as in my private practice.

Why talk to me about your mental health?

I understand the contexts you’ve trained in intimately. I know how hard you’ve had to work. I know the trauma associated with caring for the ill, dying or behaviorally disturbed.

You won’t have to explain STEP exams, 6-figure student loan debt, RVUs, or night float to me.