| Karen M. Falla, Ph.D. |
| Licensed Psychologist
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric |
Dr. Falla founded Neuropsychology Consultants with a vision of bringing together outstanding clinicians offering state-of-the-art evaluation and treatment in the fields of clinical psychology and neuropsychology. She is a licensed psychologist with a specialization in Clinical Neuropsychology, focusing on the evaluation and treatment of individuals across the developmental lifespan who are experiencing cognitive, emotional, social, or behavioral difficulties. She provides services to individuals in the office on an outpatient basis and also on an inpatient basis at the Medical Center of McKinney.
In working with children and adolescents, Dr. Falla helps to enhance understanding of their functioning in several domains. With consideration of their strengths and weaknesses, she works with parents to develop a plan of intervention to help the child or adolescent fulfill their potential in multiple domains of life. Typical referral issues include ADHD, learning disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorder, other neurodevelopmental problems, and traumatic brain injury. She also helps with emotional difficulties, including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and adjustment disorder.
In working with adults, she assists with differential diagnosis of dementia and other neurologically based problems. Typical referral issues include Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body dementia, Frontotemporal dementia, Vascular dementia due to major stroke or microvascular disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, brain tumor, seizure disorder, and traumatic brain injury. She works with individuals and families to help them work toward positive emotional adaptation to life changes associated with a family member’s decline in cognitive or physical functioning. She treats her patients with compassion and respect as they seek to understand the basis of problems they are experiencing, and discusses with them practical and accessible ways of improving their quality of life.
Dr. Falla earned her doctorate in Clinical Psychology (APA-accredited) and her master’s degree in Psychology from the University of North Texas. She earned her bachelor's degree in Psychology from Arizona State University, graduating summa cum laude. Prior to this, she earned a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Arizona State University. Afterward, she worked for five years as a Software Engineer for Honeywell Commercial Flight Systems, collaborating with systems engineers and hardware engineers to produce flight control (autopilot) systems for commercial aircraft.
As she transitioned her analytical skills into the field of clinical psychology, she evaluated children receiving neuro-oncology services at Cook Children’s Medical Center in preparing her dissertation, “The Relationship between Executive and Psychosocial Functioning in Children Treated for a Brain Tumor.” She had a focus on neuropsychological evaluation and treatment of both children and adults during her graduate practice with the Traumatic Brain Injury Program at the Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation in Dallas; Baylor Our Children’s House in Dallas; and Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth.
She furthered her specialized clinical training on internship at the APA-accredited Oklahoma Health Consortium in Oklahoma City (including rotations at the Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Hospital, Neuropsychology Associates at the Mercy Hospital Neuroscience Institute, and the Child Study Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center); and her postdoctoral fellowship in neuropsychology at the Center for Psychological Development in Sherman, Texas, where she conducted in-depth neuropsychological evaluations with both inpatient and outpatient populations. Inpatient settings included acute care, rehabilitation, skilled nursing, and psychiatry.
Dr. Falla currently holds privileges at the Medical Center of McKinney where she sees patients in acute care, rehabilitation, and psychiatric care. She has taught graduate and undergraduate courses at the University of North Texas. She is a member of the American Psychological Association (including Division 40: Division of Clinical Neuropsychology), the National Academy of Neuropsychology, the Texas Psychological Association, and the Collin County Psychological Association.
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| David F. Lerner, Ph.D. | Licensed Psychologist
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric |
Dr. Lerner has a strong clinical interest in evaluation and treatment of individuals with cognitive, developmental, behavioral, social, and/or emotional difficulties. In addition to his work in our office, he currently holds privileges at the Medical Center of McKinney where he sees patients in acute care, rehabilitation, and psychiatric care. He also provides in-home neuropsychological assessment and psychotherapy for rehabilitation patients through Rehab Without Walls.
Dr. Lerner earned his doctoral and master's degrees from the APA-accredited program in Educational Psychology at Arizona State University with a concentration in School Psychology. He completed his APA-accredited predoctoral internship at the Illinois School Psychology Internship Consortium where he worked with an ethnically and economically diverse student body. His focus there was on neuropsychological and social emotional evaluation of children and adolescents.
He went on to complete his two-year postdoctoral fellowship in neuropsychology at Neuropsychology Consultants under the supervision of Dr. Karen Falla. During his fellowship, he completed additional intensive training in clinical neuroanatomy and psychopharmacology, and he participated in the resident lecture series at the Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation in Dallas.
Dr. Lerner had a very unique undergraduate experience. He earned concurrent bachelor's degrees in Asian Languages (Japanese) and Art History at Arizona State University and was a member of the academic honor society Phi Beta Kappa. He worked for two years in the Japanese Exchange and Teaching Program at Yasutomi and Himeji school districts, Hyogo Prefecture, where he taught at Japanese elementary and middle schools. He also taught undergraduate courses in educational psychology and educational technology while a graduate student at Arizona State. He completed his doctoral dissertation entitled The Structure of Cyber-Aggression and his master's thesis entitled Cyberbullying among Japanese and American Middle School Students; he presented the latter at AERA, British Columbia, Canada. He is currently collaborating with a Japanese colleague on a book chapter based on this research which has recently been accepted for publication.
Dr. Lerner's graduate clinical experiences include utilizing applied behavior analysis based interventions for groups of students presenting with extreme attention deficit hyperactive disorder and autism spectrum disorder. Techniques included contingency management with token economies and cognitive behavioral strategies for anxiety reduction. He is a member of the National Academy of Neuropsychology and the American Psychological Association.
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| Valerie Sive-Ramirez, Psy.D. | Licensed Psychologist
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric |
Dr. Valerie Sive-Ramirez earned her doctorate degree from the APA-accredited counseling psychology graduate program at the University of San Francisco, which included a two-year graduate practicum at the Children’s Health Council in Palo Alto, California. She received additional training in the diagnosis and treatment of children and adolescents at the APA-approved Southern Arizona Psychology Internship Consortium in Tucson, Arizona. She earned her master’s degree from the University of San Diego and has been licensed as a marriage and family therapist in California. She is currently a licensed psychologist in Texas.
Dr. Sive-Ramirez completed her post-doctoral training in Clinical Neuropsychology from Fielding Graduate University. As part of this specialized training, she completed a post-doctoral fellowship at St. Mary’s Medical Center, where she worked on the inpatient rehabilitation unit and conducted inpatient and outpatient neuropsychological evaluations for children and adolescents. She further refined her specialization by completing a second post-doctoral fellowship on the brain injury unit at Kaiser Foundation Rehabilitation Center.
She has worked for the Memory Center at Baylor Neuroscience Center in Dallas as well as for the Pain Management Center at Baylor University Medical Center. In both settings, she conducted comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations and pain evaluations, provided individual and group therapy, and assisted in coordination of treatment services to gather outcome data. She provides in-home neuropsychological assessment and psychotherapy rehabilitation patients through Rehab Without Walls. She has worked with children with many different types of conditions, including ADHD, learning difficulties, developmental delay, and neurological problems.
In addition to her clinical experience, she has worked in different research settings, including a study on anger management and substance abuse for the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center in San Francisco. She served as adjunct faculty for Wright Institute in Berkeley, California teaching graduate-level neuropsychological assessment. She is a member of the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Sive-Ramirez is committed to providing high quality evaluations and treatment. An important objective in her clinical work is to provide each individual with an opportunity to obtain optimal functioning in daily life.
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| Katrina E. Belén, Psy.D. | Licensed Psychologist
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric
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Dr. Belén is a clinical neuropsychologist who specializes in the cognitive assessment and rehabilitation of individuals of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Originally from New Mexico, she completed her undergraduate studies at the University of New Mexico and then pursued doctoral training in neuropsychology at Carlos Albizu University in Miami, FL. She completed internship and post-doctoral residency programs at Jackson Memorial Hospital/University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
Dr. Belén has been an invited speaker, presenting nationally and internationally, on topics relating to cultural identity, bilingualism, culturally informed rehabilitation, and neuropsychological assessment with non-English speakers. Specific areas of interest include traumatic brain injury, concussion, multiple sclerosis, stroke and dementia. We are very happy to have Dr. Belén working with us!
| Kristen Cline Belloni, Ph.D. | Licensed Psychologist
Licensed Specialist in School Psychology
Early Childhood, Child, Adolescent, Adult
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Dr. Belloni has a specialized interest in clinical assessment of children with cognitive, emotional or behavioral difficulties and disabilities ,
with particular interests in neuropsychological evaluation for Autism Spectrum
Disorders and ADHD. She
served for five years on the Autism Evaluation Team for the Frisco Independent
School District and has specialized training using the ADOS-2, considered the
gold standard for assessment of autism in young children. She also provided consultation services for teachers, parents,
and school staff, and she developed Functional Behavior Assessments and Behavior
Intervention Plans. She also has experience working with the Denton ISD and
Lewisville ISD as part of her graduate training. Her graduate work also included
service at the Denton County Child Advocacy Center where she provided Group and Individual counseling of
abused children from 3 years to adolescence, including leading social skills
groups, art therapy, play therapy and consulting with parents. She worked for
Collin County Juvenile Detention Center where she provided group therapy for
incarcerated adolescent boys. She also completed a graduate practicum in our
office as part of her doctoral studies in 2008-2009.
Dr. Belloni earned her doctorate at the APA-accredited School Psychology/Neuropsychology
program at the University of North Texas. Her dissertation research is entitled
A Confirmatory Factor Analytic Comparison of the Test of Everyday Attention for Children
(TEA-Ch). She received her master’s degree in Clinical and
Counseling Psychology from Southern Methodist University where she had an
emphasis on individual,
group, marriage, and career counseling, assessment, conflict resolution,
mediation, mental health consulting. She received her bachelor’s degree in
Interdisciplinary Studies: Psychology, Anthropology, English from the
University of North Texas. In addition
to her child experience, she is a Medicare provider and has experience with
adult assessment, including assessment for dementia.
Dr. Belloni also completed the Dispute Resolution Graduate
Certificate Program at Southern Methodist University in which she fulfilled
academic certification requirements for recognition as a Mediator, including
family and divorce mediation. She went on to work as Adjunct Instructor of the Life Span Development
course in the Department of Dispute Resolution and Counseling - Master of
Science in Counseling Program at SMU. She has served as Associate Professor at
Collin College and as adjunct instructor at Brookhaven Community College.
Dr. Belloni has made multiple
presentations across the nation on multiple topics, including Peer Mediation in
Schools, Behavioral Management Strategies for the Classroom, Preschool
Developmental Screening, Assessing Mathematic Skills: A Summary of Common
Mathematic Assessment Instruments, and Evaluation of the Research on the Read
Naturally Reading Fluency Intervention, Bullying in Schools, Asperger Social
Skills Group Outcome Synopsis, and The Neurology of Huntington’s Disease. She
has also won numerous awards in recognition of her clinical, teaching, and
research expertise. We are very happy to have Dr. Belloni working with us!
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| Leslie N. Perez, Psy.D. | Postdoctoral Fellow
Clinical Neuropsychology
Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric
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Dr. Perez
completed her masters and doctoral degrees in Clinical Psychology from the at
the APA-accredited Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and her
bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Biology from Rutgers University. Her
dissertation is entitled The Effects
of Coping styles and Stress Perceptions on Clinical Outcomes in Individuals
with Traumatic Brain Injury in a Post-Acute Rehabilitation Program.
She went on to complete her
predoctoral internship at Utah State Hospital, where she conducted neuropsychological assessments with adult, geriatric, pediatric,
and forensic patients with diverse co-occurring neuropsychiatric, neurological,
medical, and neurodevelopmental disorders. She developed and implemented a
cognitive remediation program for adults and conducted individual and group
cognitive remediation sessions for pediatric and adult patients with cognitive
impairments, and conducted individual therapy using the evidence-based,
comprehensive Dialectical Behavior Therapy model. At Utah State Hospital,
she presented Dementia and Schizophrenia: Comorbidity and
Differential Diagnostics in an Inpatient Setting.
Dr.
Perez has worked in a diverse range of clinical settings during her predoctoral
training. At Fairmount Behavioral Health System in Philadelphia, PA, she
conducted individual therapy sessions for inpatient individuals with schizophrenia
spectrum disorders, eating disorders, depression and anxiety, and personality
disorders, co-facilitated group therapy sessions using Yalom-style process
skills, and worked closely with trauma survivors who had suffered sexual,
physical, and psychological trauma.
At
Penn Medicine/Lancaster General Hospital, she conducted neuropsychological
assessments for individuals referred to the Alzheimer’s and Memory Care Program
and co-facilitated a weekly stroke support group in the rehabilitation unit and
a weekly day treatment support group for individuals with brain injury. She
also conducted Spanish-speaking dementia evaluations and collaborated in the
development of a Spanish speaking dementia battery intended to more accurately
assess Spanish speaking patients using culturally appropriate cognitive
measures.
At
Temple University Hospital –Episcopal Campus: Extended Acute Care Program she provided individual therapy to individuals with severe mental illness
and conducted brief neurocognitive assessments with individuals with
neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative conditions.
At
Devereux Foundation, she conducted individual therapy with
children and adolescents who had emotional and behavioral disorders and developmental
disabilities, including Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Oppositional Defiant
Disorder, depression, anxiety, and self-injurious behaviors. She also
participated in research which was presented at the 63rd Annual Meeting
of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
At Bancroft NeuroRehab, she conducted
individual therapy, group therapy, and comprehensive neuropsychological
assessments for individuals who had sustained
moderate-to-severe brain injury and were receiving treatment at a residential
post-acute rehabilitation program. At Cumberland County Guidance Center in South
Jersey she conducted initial biopsychosocial assessments, mental status
exams, and suicide assessments for new clients, and carried a caseload of
English and Spanish speaking children, adolescents, and adults for individual
therapy services.
Dr.
Perez has affiliations with several professional organizations, including the
American Psychological Association, National Academy of Neuropsychology,
International Neuropsychological Society, American Academy of Clinical
Neuropsychology, Society for Clinical Neuropsychology (APA, Division 40), and
Rehabilitation Psychology (APA, Division 22). We are very happy to have her
completing her postdoctoral fellowship with us!
| Clair Barefoot, Ph.D. | Postdoctoral Fellow
Clinical Neuropsychology
Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric
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Dr.
Barefoot completed her masters and doctoral degrees in Clinical Psychology from
the CPA-accredited program at the University of Regina in the Canadian
province of Saskatchewan. Her dissertation is entitled A Meta-Analysis of Neuropsychological and Subjective Cognitive Outcomes
Following Adjuvant Chemotherapy, and her masters’ level dissertation is
entitled Evaluation of a Self-Management
Program for Older Adults with Chronic Pain. Prior to her graduate studies, she attended the University of New
Brunswick and Macquarie University, completing her bachelor’s degree
with an Honours Thesis in psychology and a minor in Health Science.
She went
on to complete her CPA-accredited predoctoral residency at the Northern Ontario
Psychology Internship Consortium in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Her primary rotation
was at Mental Health and Concurrent
Disorders Programs/Mental Health Outpatient Programs where she conducted
neuropsychological evaluations for clients with mental health concerns
including schizophrenia, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder,
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, brain injury, substance use,
depression, and anxiety.
She also completed a rotation at Mental Health
Outpatient Programs/The Children’s Centre where she saw children and adults for
individual therapy (cognitive behavioral/acceptance and commitment
/brief solution-focused therapy) and group therapy for anger management. She
collaborated on case conceptualization and treatment recommendations during
psychological assessments.
As part
of her graduate studies at the University of Regina, Dr. Barefoot completed a
neuropsychology practicum where she saw adults with concussion, traumatic brain
injury, stroke, probable dementias, mood disorders, anxiety, conversion
disorders, and substance use. To further her clinical training in the specialty
of neuropsychology, she completed
in-depth study in neuroanatomy through the National Academy of Neuropsychology.
She also completed a therapy
practicum in the Counseling Services program where she provided individual therapy
(cognitive behavioral and brief solution-focused therapy) to adolescents and
adults with mental health concerns including mood disorders, anxiety, eating
disorders and personality disorders. She worked with adults at the Mental
Health & Addiction Services conducting cognitive behavioral and dialectical
behavioral therapy as well as exposure based therapy, with children and their
parents with referral concerns including Autism Spectrum Disorder, Fetal
Alcohol Syndrome, Intellectual Disability, depression, and anxiety.
At the Psychology Training Clinic
at the University of Regina, she saw adults, adolescents, and children at for
both individual therapy and group therapy (Wellness Workshop). At the Stan Cassidy Centre for Rehabilitation in New
Brunswick, she worked with adolescents and adults with acquired brain injuries,
central nervous system tumors, and neuromuscular disorders. The focus of her
work in this setting was on rehabilitation during both the acute and chronic
phases of illness and injury.
In
addition to working with children, adolescents, and adults, she has special
areas of interest in working with geriatric populations, individuals coping
with chronic pain, palliative care, and those with intellectual disabilities.
She volunteered with the UNBSJ
Best Buddies program that aims to help those with intellectual disabilities and
served as Coordinator for the program. She has received numerous academic
awards and distinctions, including several Research Graduate Scholarships and Research Graduate Teaching Assistantships.
Her past research topics include
conceptualize, design, administration, and analysis of lie detection
experiments including use of a polygraph, and study of older adults with
chronic pain. She maintains membership
with the National Academy of Neuropsychology and the Canadian Psychological
Association. We are very happy to have Dr. Barefoot completing her postdoctoral
fellowship with us!
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Jesse Smotherman, M.S.
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Clinical Extern
Clinical Neuropsychology
Child, Adolescent, Adult |
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Jesse is a doctoral student in the APA-accredited Clinical Psychology
program at the University of North Texas. He earned his master’s degree in
Psychology from UNT with a GPA of 4.0 and successful completion of his thesis
entitled The Impact of Causative Genes on
Neuropsychological Functioning in Familial Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease: A
Meta-Analysis. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from
Louisiana State University.
His clinical experience
includes assessment and psychotherapy at the UNT Psychology Clinic, including providing
emergency services on an on-call basis. Prior to this, he worked for six years as a
psychometrist for Jefferson
Neurobehavioral Group in Metairie and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he assessed
diverse patient populations ages 3 through 95 years on an inpatient and
outpatient basis. This included neuropsychological
evaluation of inmates at Beaumont Federal Correctional Complex in Beaumont, TX and
Tangipahoa Parish Prison in Amite, LA; out-of-town assessments in
Louisiana,
Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida; in-school administrations of
psychoeducational evaluations at primary, secondary, and college institutions,
participation in depositions, assessment of individuals involved in
Deepwater-Horizon Oil spill, monthly telemedicine evaluations in rural areas,
and evaluations in hospital and in-home settings for severely disabled patients.
Jesse’s experience
includes work with children and adolescents diagnosed with autism
spectrum disorders, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder,
schizophrenia, dyslexia, oppositional defiant disorder, pervasive developmental
disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder and with adults diagnosed with
chronic pain, mood disorders, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain
injuries, concussion, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Jesse also served as a
Care Manager for the Gulf Region Outreach Project through the School of
Medicine, Department of Psychiatry at the LSU Health Sciences Center. Funding for this project was allocated to provide mental health
services in primary care, federally qualified health clinics (FQHCs), and schools
to those areas affected by the Deepwater-Horizon Oil Spill. In this
position, his responsibilities included assessing medication responsiveness, psychological
symptoms, and adherence to behavioral interventions, organizing and
participating in multidisciplinary team meetings to coordinate
services for patients receiving mental health services in primary care clinics,
addressing barriers to treatment and providing community resources and long-term
psychological referrals to patients living in areas affected by the BP oil
spill and Hurricane Katrina.
Jesse has
served as a teaching assistant for several coursed, including Psychophysiology,
Social Psychology, Quantitative Methods, Intro to Perception and Cognition, History
and Systems, Health Psychology, and General Psychology I. We are very happy to have Jesse
completing an external clinical practicum with us!
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WE ARE COMMITTED TO HELPING INDIVIDUALS ACHIEVE THEIR ULTIMATE POTENTIAL AND ENHANCE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE |
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