With more than 40 years of experience in psychiatric nursing, behavioral health services, and legal nurse consulting, this registered nurse provides analysis in psychiatric nursing, behavioral health care, healthcare documentation, and selected forensic and medico-legal matters. Holding a Bachelor of Science in Nursing with a concentration in psychiatric nursing and a Master's degree in Communication, the expert has extensive experience in mental health counseling, medication reviews, admissions and evaluations, psychiatric case management, home health services, nursing home care, and coordination of care between physicians and healthcare staff. The expert has been qualified as an expert witness in California and has provided consultations, deposition testimony, and courtroom testimony in matters involving healthcare, behavioral health, and psychiatric nursing issues.

Grounded in extensive psychiatric nursing practice, the expert has worked with patients experiencing depression, bipolar disorder, paranoia, suicidal ideation, substance abuse disorders, dual-diagnosis conditions, and other behavioral health concerns. Professional responsibilities have included competency-related evaluations, psychological assessments, individual case management, group therapy, substance abuse counseling, suicide prevention, and development and review of behavioral restraint and patient protection policies. Experience also includes working with court-ordered individuals, assisting with competency-related determinations, and supporting psychiatric and behavioral health programs serving complex patient populations.

Leadership experience encompasses service as a charge nurse, team lead, head nurse, contributor to the development of a psychiatric division, clinical staff supervisor, and coordinator of patient care programs serving adolescent, adult, geriatric, and home-bound patient populations. Additional expertise includes home health nursing, Medicare regulations and coding, utilization review, nursing education, domestic violence counseling, behavioral health and psychology-related consultation, and psychiatric evaluations involving children, adolescents, adults, and older adults. The expert has also provided instruction in neurology and psychiatric nursing and has delivered healthcare consulting involving medical chart review, psychiatric nursing case analysis, medical malpractice screening, interpretation of medical and psychiatric records, and application of Medicare and HIPAA-related requirements.

A significant component of the expert's professional practice involves legal nurse consulting and healthcare-related expert witness work. Areas of expertise include medical chart review, psychiatric nursing case analysis, forensic photography, crime scene investigations, evidence collection, rape investigations, medico-legal death investigations, criminal profiling, victim and witness interviewing, report preparation, and evaluation of self-inflicted versus externally inflicted injuries. The expert has consulted on both plaintiff and defense matters and has provided case evaluations, medical chart review, written findings, and expert witness consultation involving healthcare and behavioral health issues. Professional organization involvement includes longstanding membership in the International Association of Forensic Nurses and membership in the Association of Forensic Nurses Death Investigation Group. Specialized training includes medico-legal death investigation, Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner training, wound ballistics and trauma evidence collection, courtroom communications for forensic examiners, forensic interviewing techniques, criminal profiling, domestic violence investigations, and psychiatric emergencies. Published writings addressing forensic nursing and death investigations provide additional credibility within forensic and medico-legal nursing matters.