My career in the Behavioral Health Field first started 19 years ago when I obtained my Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy in 2002. Since then, I have worked as a Family, Couple, Group, and Individual Therapist, Case Manager, Intake Specialist, Charge and Staff Registered Nurse, Patient Medication Educator, Halfway House Staff Educator, Nursing Assistant, Behavioral Health Technician and, for the last 15 years, a Family Psychiatric Nurse Practioner.
My experience includes providing psychiatric care in multiple types of settings and with various patient populations. The settings include state hospital, inpatient, locked dementia unit, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, regional center, halfway house, convalescent home, assisted living, and outpatient clinics. Depending on the setting, I have provided psychiatric services for children, teenagers, adults, geriatrics, military servicemen and families, prisoners, court ordered individuals, immigrants, LGBTQ+, homeless, and patients with severe autism spectrum disorder.