Aster Springs Outpatient – Richmond

Executive Director

Melanie Vann, MA

Melanie Vann obtained her master’s degree in counseling psychology from Regent University. She is a licensed mental health provider in the state of Virginia. Melanie started her career treating eating disorders becoming a skilled clinician in trauma-based therapy, dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and experiential therapies. Due to the complexity of eating disorders, Melanie furthered her education by becoming a certified equine-assisted therapist through the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA). She also went on to become a certified life coach through AACC. Melanie has worked in various settings in the mental health field including business and program development, non-profits, podcasting, consulting, outreach, and education. She has held multiple positions including primary therapist, program director, clinical director, and executive director. Melanie’s therapeutic approach is client- and strengths-focused to support her philosophy that full recovery and freedom from an eating disorder is possible. Her passion is to foster hope in individuals so they can live confident, empowered, and authentic lives.

Psychiatrist

Dr. Hart

Dr. Hart completed his undergraduate studies at William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA. He went to Medical School at Marshall University in Huntington, WV. Afterwards, he completed his residency training in Psychiatry at Albany Medical Center in Albany, NY. He is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He is experienced working with adolescent and adult populations, and is experienced working with a wide variety of mental illnesses, particularly refractory anxiety and depression, and addiction.

Director of Nursing

Lemettris Williams, RN

Lemettris is a graduate of Bryant and Stratton College where she received a degree in nursing. She’s always had a passion for helping others and knew at a young age that she wanted to be a nurse. Lemettris has over 20 years of healthcare experience. She’s spent the past four years of her career serving the eating disorder community. She enjoys spending time with family and resides with her husband and two daughters in Chesterfield, VA.

Clinical Director

Leslie Forrest-Brown, LCSW

Leslie earned her bachelor’s degree in Social Work and a Master’s degree in Clinical Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University. Leslie is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in the state of Virginia. She has eight years of experience working in the mental and behavioral health field. Leslie has experience working with a multitude of mental health disorders including Depressive, Anxiety, and Psychotic Disorders. She has extensive training in a number of therapeutic interventions including Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Psychodynamic Therapy. Leslie has spent the past two years working in substance use treatment providing individual therapy and crisis services to individuals experiencing Opioid Use Disorder.

Nurse Practitioner

Kusum Bhetwal, NP

Kusum Bhetwal is a Board-Certified Nurse Practitioner with clinical experience in primary, acute, and post-acute care. She earned her Master’s Degree in Science specializing in Family Medicine from Virginia Commonwealth University and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the Bon Secours School of Nursing. Outside of work, Kusum enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She likes playing board games and watching movies with her seven-year-old daughter. Her favorite hobbies are traveling, hiking, reading books, and volunteering in the community at healthcare events.

Therapist

Tracey Dickens, MSW

Tracey graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with her Master’s in Clinical Social Work and is currently receiving supervision to become a Certified Substance Abuse Counselor. She has over four years of experience working with children and adults with various mental health diagnoses, including substance use disorders. Tracey has a passion for helping others navigate through life’s difficult moments and overcome barriers while utilizing a strength-based, person-centered approach. She believes that breaking down barriers in accessing mental health and addiction treatment is the first step in eliminating the stigma associated with treatment.

Therapist

Sirena Pangelinan, MS, QMHP-C, QMHP-A/T

Sirena obtained her Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Capella University and will soon receive supervision as a resident in counseling. Sirena has over seven years of experience working with a wide array of populations, age ranges, and various mental health diagnoses, including working with children, adolescents, adults, and geriatric populations impacted by severe mental illness, trauma and attachment issues, intellectual disabilities, substance use disorders, and co-occurring disorders. Sirena’s passion lies with meeting people where they are within the difficulties of life and managing these challenges through a strength-based, present moment, client-centered approach. As a Gestalt and Person-Centered therapist, Sirena aims to increase personal awareness and freedom and manage life’s unfinished business within the moment to help people learn to thrive throughout their healing journey. Sirena is also continuing her education in pursuit of her PhD. in Counseling and Supervision through Capella University, as well as a current certificate program in substance abuse counseling.

Chef

Joseph Wilson

Joe is a chef who has spent his entire culinary career within healthcare. He’s worked in adolescent residential care for eating disorders in Durham, NC, as well as partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient eating disorder treatment for adolescents and adult clients in Richmond, VA. A graduate of the Art Institutes Culinary Program in Durham, NC, Joseph also served in the U.S. Navy.

His food philosophy regarding eating disorder treatment is to minimize anxiety surrounding food. This is achieved through food exposures in a guided, fun, less clinical environment where clients can learn fundamental knowledge regarding ingredients, cooking methods, history, and applications. A key component of treatment includes culinary groups where clients learn these skills and the ability to process their relationship with the healing nature of nutrition.

Director of Nutrition Services

Emily Moorefield, RD

Emily is a registered dietician who obtained her undergraduate degree in nutrition and dietetics from James Madison University. She went on to complete her dietetic internship at University of Virginia Health Systems. She’s currently working on her accreditation to be a Certified Eating Disorder Registered Dietitian (CED-RD). Prior to joining the Aster Springs team, Emily served as the Nutrition Manager at an eating disorder facility. Her career has included working at various levels of care for treating eating disorders to help clients improve their relationship with food. She’s also had the opportunity to raise awareness and provide education to the community on eating disorders through presentations and interdisciplinary panel discussions. Her counseling techniques integrate evidence-based nutrition science and motivational interviewing to aid her clients in reaching their full potential. Emily takes a therapeutic approach to nutrition and can connect with clients exceeding far beyond their relationship with food. She utilizes the Health at Every Size and All Foods Fit approaches.

Registered Dietician

Stephanie Walker, RD

Stephanie is a graduate from the University of Maryland where she obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics. She then completed her Dietetic Internship and supervised practice at Virginia Commonwealth University, where she gained experience serving a variety of populations in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. It was through her own recovery from disordered eating and body dysmorphia that she became passionate about helping others heal their relationship with food and their bodies. Stephanie is an advocate for intuitive eating, Health at Every Size (HAES), and an all-foods-fit mindset. It’s her priority to meet clients where they are to support them in their walk toward recovery. In her time outside of work, she loves to spend time outdoors soaking up the sun and being surrounded by loved ones (including her two cats, Waffles and Biscuit).

Registered Dietician

Caroline Knight, RD

Caroline received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Virginia. She then earned her Master of Science degree in Nutrition from Auburn University. After graduation, she completed her dietetic internship at the University of Houston with a focus on sports nutrition and disordered eating. She started her career as a sports dietitian in a Division I collegiate setting working with athletes, and then she transitioned into working with eating disorders and has worked at multiple levels of care since. Her approach is individualized, weight-inclusive, Health at Every Size aligned, and LGBTQIA+ affirming. She enjoys using a therapeutic approach, evidence-based nutrition science, and humor to help clients have a better understanding of how their bodies utilize nutrition and how to take the steps necessary to achieve recovery.

Therapist

Via Cosby

Via Cosby graduated from Lesley University with her Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a focus in Drama Therapy. Via has experience working with children and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder, children and adolescents with anxiety, depression, ADHD, and adjustment disorders, and adults and adolescents with eating disorders. She believes in the power of individualized treatment and the importance of community support and care. Through the use of Drama Therapy and other expressive arts modalities, Via hopes to empower clients to explore their mental health through a new lens, focusing on the ways that the arts can improve their lives and their understanding of themselves.

Therapist

Chiara Shelton, MSW

Chiara obtained her Master of Social Work degree from Capella University and currently receives supervision as supervisee in social work to become Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She has over 3 years of specialized experience assessing, diagnosing, and treating adults experiencing serious mental illnesses, behavioral disorders, substance use disorders, and emotional dysregulation. She relies heavily on evidence-based practices such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, psychotherapy, motivational interviewing, crisis intervention, and dialectical behavior theory. Her universal goal with each client is to establish a safe trusting space that allows them to embrace vulnerability, transparency, & transformation. Her approach is person-centered and always geared to align with the client’s best interests. Chiara’s passion is to continue destigmatizing mental health by encouraging individuals to engage in therapy when faced with overwhelming adversity.

Family Nurse Practitioner

Ogochukwu Obiekwe, FNP-C

Ogochukwu Obiekwe is a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. Ogochukwu obtained her associate degree in nursing from J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, a bachelor’s in nursing from VCU, and her Master of Science in Nursing as a Family Nurse Practitioner from The Catholic University of America. After a couple of years of practice as a Family Nurse Practitioner in Urgent care and family practice, Ogochukwu completed her Post-master’s Certificate as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner from Liberty University. Ogochukwu has extensive nursing experience including but not limited to a background in Cardiology, medical-surgical, geriatric nursing, neurology, and women’s health. She believes in caring for both the physical and emotional well-being of her patients and every patient encounter is an opportunity to help her patients alter their lives through promoting better health practices and being there for them in their times of need.

Therapist

Chelsea Adams, M.S. Resident in Counseling

Chelsea obtained her Master of Science from Longwood University studying Counselor Education with a focus on mental health. She will be receiving supervision toward a professional counseling license. Chelsea has experience in working with children, adolescents, and adults addressing various concerns related to behavior, activities of daily living, and more. She appreciated incorporating evidence-based practices such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing. She also appreciates the concepts and aspects of dialectical-behavioral therapy and hopes to learn and incorporate that in her practice. Chelsea utilizes a person-centered approach and meets clients where they are at. She approaches each conversation with a non-judgmental stance and an open mind. Chelsea appreciates furthering her education in learning the best practices in the therapeutic world, especially those effective for clients with eating disorders.