Arctic Pathways is a one-person psychology practice offering some types of psychological testing for diagnoses included in the DSM-5-TR. My main focus is on psychological testing for children and adolescents, and I accept a more limited array of adult testing referrals as schedule capacity allows. Examples of work I can do include:
* Evaluation of cognitive and intellectual functioning, including evaluating for diagnoses such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Intellectual Disabilities, as long as the case does not require neuropsychological testing. (If a referring provider is uncertain about that, I would be glad to screen the case before a referral is sent.)
* Evaluation of Autism Spectrum Disorder for children and adolescents, which I can attempt beginning at age 2 but more typically evaluate starting at age 3. I do not have the schedule capacity to do ASD testing for adults.
* Evaluation of psychological aspects of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder for children and adolescents as part of the FASD Diagnostic Team
at the Alaska Center for Children and Adults. Referrals that include possible FASD should be sent to team coordinator Alina Krol, LMSW at ACCA for screening and scheduling, not to me directly.
* Diagnosis of certain mood or anxiety disorders that can be challenging with clinical interviewing alone (for example, bipolar disorders or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder).
* Neuropsychological testing, as I am not a neuropsychologist.
* Forensic evaluations (being an expert witness or use of my report in a legal case). Examples include issues of custody or guardianship, parental fitness, criminal risk assessment, psychological injury, or defenses involving insanity or incompetence.
* Evaluation of Specific Learning Disorders, including using older terminology such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, or dyscalculia. SLD testing can be requested for school-age children and adolescents through public school districts, including for students who are homeschooled or enrolled in a private school. I do not have the schedule capacity to do SLD testing for adults.
* Administrative evaluations such as for Social Security benefits, workers compensation or workplace conflicts, law enforcement/military hiring, or driver/aviation licensing.
* A general psychological evaluation with no specific focus, or an evaluation that could be accomplished through clinical interviewing alone (such as a counseling/therapy intake).
Phone: 907-799-7695
Fax: 907-328-0907
Address: 250 Cushman Street, Suite 3E, Fairbanks AK 99701
The phone/voicemail, fax, and postal mailbox are all secured for receiving detailed information/PHI.
The Courthouse Square building is open to the public during business hours on weekdays. However, access to my office is by appointment only, with no walk-in access. If you have an appointment scheduled outside of those hours, please call/text me when you arrive so that I can let you in. The entrance is on the Turner Street side of the building, not the Cushman Street side.
This is a complete list of insurance policies I can accept. I do not see cases out-of-network and I do not offer services on a cash payment basis outside of health insurance.
* Aetna: in-network.
* Medicaid (Denali Care / Denali KidCare): in-network.
* Moda: in-network.
* Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska: in-network; this includes Federal Blue Cross, and out-of-state plans as long as they do not have overly burdensome administrative requirements.
Psychological testing is billed to health insurance based on the amount of time spent working on the case. I can provide an estimate of that time in advance, but the exact time is only known once the final work is done.
If $300 or more is estimated to be owed as deductible/copay/coinsurance at the time of testing, a deposit of half that estimated amount is due at the start of the evaluation. The remaining amount will be billed by invoice after the insurance claim is processed.
Payments for invoices can be made with credit/debit cards here: Stripe payments.
Referrals for minors must include complete information about their custody situation in order to be accepted.
If there is a custody order, such as from a divorce, foster care, or adoption, I must follow the order, and it must be provided to me upon request. When legal custody is equally shared between separated or divorced parents, I require that both parties give consent and are given equal opportunity to participate and receive results.
Psychological testing conducted during ongoing divorce or custody litigation can risk inaccurate results due to the difficulty of differenting effects of the social stressors from symptoms of a disorder. It can also be unclear which parties may give consent, participate in the evaluation, and access records. In many cases it is better to allow the legal process to finish and circumstances to stabilize in order to maximize the accuracy of the testing.
Referrals are accepted only in writing from health care providers. If a patient has Medicaid coverage, this provider must be a physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner. Self-referrals by phone are not accepted, and office access is by appointment only. Referrals must meet the parameters above, including a clearly stated referral question and complete information about insurance coverage and custody of minors.
Records may be requested for work completed at Arctic Pathways,
beginning with its opening in January 2017. Records of my work from
before 2017 must be requested from the clinic at which the work was
completed, as I no longer have access to those electronic medical record
systems.
For some conditions including Autism Spectrum Disorder, the schedule capacity of this small practice limits me to testing children and adolescents. In some cases, an adult whom I have previously diagnosed with ASD as a minor may need documentation for services, benefits, or programs based upon that diagnosis. The practice's parameters for that are:
1. I can provide an adult with their medical records from their testing as a minor, and/or send records where that adult wishes by signed request. These records will be original and not altered or updated from the time they were signed.
2. As an aid to transitioning to adulthood, I am able to sign documentation for college-level academic accommodations, provided I have done initial or updated psychological testing with the patient within the last two years. Beyond that, adults are responsible for establishing care with health care providers who can conduct updated evaluations to obtain up-to-date information.
3. I do not make adult disability determinations (for example, for the Social Security Administration, adult guardianship or conservatorship cases, vocational rehabilitation, or disability housing). My documentation from testing during childhood/adolescence may be relevant and important to the process of determining adult disability, but drawing that conclusion is beyond my training, experience, and scope of practice.
I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania in 2006. I completed my graduate education at Pacific University in Oregon, earning a Master of Science degree in clinical psychology in 2008 and a Doctor of Psychology degree in 2012. I completed my pre-doctoral internship and post-doctoral residency at Madigan Army Medical Center. I am a fellow in the American Academy of Clinical Psychology, and have published in the journal Military Medicine about suicide prevention strategies, as well as chapters in Anxiety Disorders: A Guide for Integrating Psychopharmacology and Psychotherapy, Integrating Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: A Handbook for Clinicians, and Cognitive Behavioral Psychopharmacology: The Clinical Practice of Evidence-Based Biopsychosocial Integration.
I arrived in Alaska in 2013 as an Army psychologist stationed at Fort Wainwright. After completing my military service in 2015 as a Captain and brigade psychologist in the 25th Infantry Division, I began working as a civilian psychologist in Fairbanks, and in 2017 I went into private practice.