Nina Jaffarzad, MD

Dr. Megan Crochet is board certified in Adult Psychiatry and has completed a fellowship in child and adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Crochet attended medical school at Drexel University College of Medicine and completed her training at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, followed by Tulane University School of Medicine, where she was a chief resident. Dr. Crochet provides a therapeutic medication management visit, which incorporates therapeutic techniques tailored to the individual patient needs while adjusting medication doses. Her goal is to help patients manage their symptoms while working towards, over time, uncovering the root causes. This comprehensive process helps to empower her patients and provides hope and acceptance of their psychiatric challenges. If indicated, Dr. Crochet may believe that additional therapy is also needed and recommend that you bring a therapist into your care team to provide the best outcome. Dr. Crochet has worked in hospital systems, private practice, and most recently telemedicine. When not practicing, she enjoys all things water, cooking and spending time with her daughter and dog.

Dr. Alexandra ("Sasha”) Blaes is a board-certified psychiatrist. Before joining Talkiatry, she practiced consult-liaison psychiatry, seeing medically ill patients with psychiatric problems at the Department of Veterans Affairs, where she also treated veterans in nursing homes. Dr. Blaes graduated from New York University with a B.A. in philosophy and photography and worked in nonprofit marketing in New York before deciding she wanted to pursue a life in medicine. Following a post-baccalaureate, pre-medical program at Columbia University, Dr. Blaes completed medical school at The University of Maryland, followed by a psychiatry residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. While at Johns Hopkins, she mastered clinical assessment and treatment of general psychiatric problems. She also received specialized training in eating disorders, addiction, reproductive psychiatry, chronic pain, and geriatric psychiatry, an interest she pursued further with a fellowship at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. In fellowship and in her subsequent experience at the VA, she developed expertise in caring for the difficulties that can accompany aging, including depression, anxiety, and memory loss, as well as the stress of medical illness. Dr. Blaes' practice focuses on medication management. She works to foster a safe and collaborative space in which patients can address psychiatric illness and other barriers holding them back from the lives they want to lead. Typically, she offers appointments for medication management coupled with supportive or emotionally focused therapy in 30-minute sessions. When Dr. Blaes feels that additional therapy is needed, she will suggest inviting a therapist to join the team for additional support and guidance. She welcomes collaborations with other clinicians, be they therapists or other physicians caring for her patients. She strives to build strong therapeutic relationships that help patients grow and meet their goals - whatever their situation, challenge, or life stage. Dr. Blaes welcomes patients from all walks of life and cultural backgrounds and is LGBTQ+ friendly. In addition to her background in geriatrics, she has experience working with peripartum women and enjoys working with patients navigating major life changes.

Dr. Luna Sanchez Rivera holds the position of Staff Psychiatrist at Talkiatry. After completing residency in 2016 at the Ponce Medical School Psychiatry Residency in Puerto Rico, she then moved to North Carolina to complete a subspecialty in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Duke University Health System. There, she transitioned into an assistant professor position, focused on structuring pediatric emergency psychiatric services, and helped support the consult and liaison pediatric service. Her years of experience have included working as an integrated care child psychiatrist within outpatient clinics at Duke University Health System, and she trained and worked as a staff psychiatrist at the Inpatient State Facility in North Carolina. She also served in the Dayton Children's Hospital outpatient clinics in Dayton, Ohio, the Appalachian Health System outpatient clinics in Linville, North Carolina, and more recently has been serving the Child and Adolescent inpatient population in Bangor, Maine. Dr. Sanchez Rivera has an approachable style aimed at providing a comprehensive evaluation for all age ranges and is comfortable managing various levels of diagnostic complexities. She provides supportive psychotherapy while using psychodynamic therapy skills to clarify her patient's constellation of symptoms, identify unifying themes and provide thorough psychoeducation throughout the process to drive positive outcomes. She integrates psychodynamic medication management approaches and is adept at family therapy interventions.

Dr. Thomas Simeone is Board Certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in Psychiatry.  Following his completion of medical school at Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara, he completed his Fifth Pathway Clinical Training at New York Medical College.  He then completed his Psychiatry Residency at Tuft's University in Boston, MA, and went on to complete a Child and Adolescent Fellowship Program at the University of Florida in Gainesville FL.  He has since worked in both hospital inpatient and outpatient settings, as well as in Residential Treatment for adolescents. Dr. Simeone has treated a wide spectrum of mental health conditions including Anxiety and Depression Disorders, as well as Mood Disorders and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He has also treated ADHD, OCD and Eating Disorders in adults and adolescents. Dr. Simeone has worked in Telehealth Practice for the past 4 years. He is a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and a member of the American Medical Association (AMA).

Dr. Simeone utilizes medication management and psychotherapy practices to achieve treatment goals for his patients.  During an initial assessment and evaluation, a thorough review of the patient's previous mental health treatment is considered.  Dr. Simeone assesses patients' acute symptoms including recent stressors and exacerbating factors and then establishes a comprehensive treatment plan with the patients' goals in mind.  Psychotherapy with medication is incorporated into the treatment plan of all patients.  Dr. Simeone always aims to achieve full remission of symptoms for his patients.

Dr. Simeone's practice focuses on medication management with facets of various psychotherapeutic techniques.  He conducts 30 medication management follow up sessions. Dr. Simeone is a sincere and empathic physician who advocates for patient autonomy and believes in a direct and transparent approach to patient treatment. He encourages active patient participation in their treatment plans.

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Asmita Neupane is a board-certified Post Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP). She received her bachelor’s in nursing degree from Metropolitan state university, master’s in nursing degree from Texas Women’s University which specializes in Adult Geriatric Nurse Practitioner and completed her post-master’s degree as PMHNP from Wilkes University. Asmita Neupane has 20 plus years of experience as a Registered Nurse and almost 10 years of experience as Nurse Practitioner. Asmita Neupane is licensed to practice in Maryland and District of Columbia.

Asmita Neupane has professional interests in treating a wide range of psychiatry conditions including depression, anxiety, OCD, ADHD, PTSD, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and eating disorders. She provides psychiatric assessments and medication management along with brief supportive psychotherapy. She focuses on holistic approaches to treatment and believes in keeping her patients healthy rather than only addressing illness. Asmita Neupane is fluent in Nepali, Hindi and English.

Dr. Mark Sundahl is a board-certified adult psychiatrist. He was born and raised in the suburbs of Kansas City, Kansas. He has always been fascinated by the natural world and received a bachelor’s degree in biology at Kansas State University where he was active in a research lab investigating protein function in the human body. He completed medical school training and residency at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Kansas City, Kansas along with Wichita, Kansas. Dr. Sundahl has experience working with a broad range of mental health symptoms and a diverse patient population

Dr. Mark Sundahl is a board-certified adult psychiatrist. He was born and raised in the suburbs of Kansas City, Kansas. He has always been fascinated by the natural world and received a bachelor’s degree in biology at Kansas State University where he was active in a research lab investigating protein function in the human body. He completed medical school training and residency at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Kansas City, Kansas along with Wichita, Kansas. Dr. Sundahl has experience working with a broad range of mental health symptoms and a diverse patient population

Dr. Sundahl understands the importance of collaboration and the therapeutic alliance when working with patients. He will clearly explain his findings and discuss treatment options he feels are reasonable. Dr. Sundahl thinks it is important for patients to have all the necessary information to make informed decisions when it comes to their psychiatric treatment.

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