Our team members are the foundation of our work. Led by Dr. Alexandra M. Harrison M.D., the team brings expertise in a variety of disciplines including medicine, public health, mental health, hospital administration, and education. They range from students completing their graduate studies to seasoned professionals and share a common focus of disseminating information about infant mental health and providing support for caregivers working with babies and their families
Our Board:
dr. Alexandra m. harrison, President & Co-founder
Alex received her M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1971, and after an internship in Pediatrics, she trained in Adult Psychiatry (1972-4) and Child Psychiatry (1974-6), and then Adult and Child Psychoanalysis. She is Board Certified in both Adult and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Alexandra is now a Training and Supervising Analyst in both Adult and Child and Adolescent Psychonalysis at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. She is Assistant Professor Part Time in Psychiatry at the Harvard Medical School at the Cambridge Health Alliance, and Core Faculty of the University of Massachusetts Boston Infant Parent Mental Health Post Graduate Certificate Course. In 2017 she co-founded Supporting Child Caregivers with Alayne Stieglitz
Ginger Gregory, Secretary
Ginger has worked as an early intervention teacher with children birth - 5 and their families for 35 years, with the Napa County Office of Education. She trained in Infant Parent Mental Health Fellowship, and is certified with the Child Trauma Academy as a Level II trainer in the use of the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics, a metric for working with children who have been traumatized or neglected. She is Secretary of the non-profit Supporting Child Caregivers, and also works with the non-profit as a trainer in low to middle income countries. Ginger accompanied Alex in her first trip to India and conceived of the idea of training the student nurses in IPMH. She helped teach several subsequent trainings.
Natalie Beaumont-smith, treasurer
Natalie has a PhD in Social Nutrition from the University of Adelaide, Australia and worked for 5 years as a Research Associate in Social Nutrition and Public Health for the CSIRO Division of Human Nutrition the pre-eminent research institute in Australia in that field. During that time she designed, analyzed, and oversaw several research projects for government and food industry clients conducting food intake studies in Australia and in three countries in Asia (Malaysia, South Korea, and Taiwan). Natalie has served in leadership roles moved on the Boards of the local preschool and in the local elementary school non-profit fundraising group. She now works full-time at Harvard University. She expanded her program management and data analysis skills in the Office of Work/Life where she has worked for 12 years and currently oversees programs with a budget in excess of $3.5M. In 2014 she graduated with a Masters in Liberal Arts from Harvard University (Extension School) in Management, Marketing, and Operations.
Natalie is fluent in Quickbooks, the premium accounting software for small companies and organizations.
Our Interns:
Emma Beaumont-Smith
Emma Beaumont-Smith is the Social Media Coordinator for SCC. Emma grew up in Cambridge, MA, and she is currently a sophomore at Columbia University's Barnard College majoring in Political Science and Human Rights.
Ruksha Senthilkumar
Ruksha is a psychology major at The Ohio State University. She is passionate about mental health and hopes to attend graduate school to become a nurse practitioner. She enjoys working with children and has worked in preschools. Ruksha is fluent in English and Tamil.
Team India:
NEenA LYALL, M.D.
OPERATIONS IN INDIA AND PRIMARY COLLABORATOR
himanshu Lyall, M.Ha.
operations in india and co-investigator
ginger gregory, M.S.Ed.
instructor and co-investigator
Abishek Bala, M.D., M.Ph.
operations in U.S and co-investigator
Prajna Neelgund Shantinath
Prajna has been part of Deenabandhu Trust (http://www.deenabandhutrust.org) for 9 years. The trust runs two care homes for orphaned and destitute children and a school for children from socially and economic backward communities. She has Masters in Technology from IIT Bombay and a diploma in Theatre arts. She has written and directed two plays for children, which enhanced her understanding of the ways art can influence the development of a child. Prajna is fluent in English, Hindi, and Kannada.
Rashmi Singh
Rashmi has a PhD from Oklahoma State University-Center in Biomedical Sciences. During her post-doctoral work at Laureate Institute for Brain Research she got interested in clinical and neuropsychological aspect of brain development and mental health disorders. Currently she is pursuing a master’s degree in clinical mental health counselling from Oklahoma State University. Her goal is to become a licensed clinical mental health professional to provide therapeutic interventions to children and families in the community. Rashmi is fluent in English and Hindi.
Mala Senthilkumar
Team China:
Kate Yan
Kate Yan is a psychodynamic psychotherapist based in Shanghai. She is currently living and studying in London with UCL/Anna Freud Center for her MSc In Psychoanalytic Development Psychology degree. In 2019, Kate accomplished the 5 year supervision training with China America Psychoanalytic Alliance, as well as the 5 year advanced training with China German Psychoanalytic Institute. Prior to these experiences, she accomplished the 3 year joint training between Shanghai Mental Health Center and Harvard Children’s Hospital in 2013. Apart from working as a psychotherapist, Kate is also a frequent speaker in commercial field, a creative contributor in media field, as well as a productive translator of more than 10 psychology themed books. She was a guest speaker for TEDx in 2017. Kate is fluent in English and Mandarin.
Team Latin America:
Paola M. Contreras, PsyD
Paola is an advanced candidate at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. She is an Assistant Professor at William James College where she directs the Forensic and Correctional Counseling program and the Human Trafficking Community Research Hub. She has a private practice in Cambridge, MA. Paola has Guatemalan heritage and is fluent in English and Spanish.
Maria Paz Téllez, Chilena, Psicóloga Infantil (MS) con entrenamiento en Salud Mental Infanto-Parental, Bandeja de Arena y Terapia de Juego. María Paz tiene experiencia en las áreas clínica, educacional, y en la investigación, principalmente con padres, niños y profesores latinoamericanos, tanto en Chile como en Boston, Massachusetts.
María Paz Téllez
Maria is a Chilean, Child Psychologist (MS). She is trained in IPMH, Sand Therapy, and Play Therapy. María has developed her professional experience in clinical, educational, and research settings mainly with Latin American parents, children, and teachers in Chile and Boston, Massachusetts. Maria is fluent in English and Spanish.
Pierina Travaerso, Phd
operations IN PERU AND PRIMARY COLLABORATOR
Clinical Psychologyst, Ph.D
Principal Professor of Psychology at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú
Member of the Steering Committee of the Master in Psychoanalytic Clinical Intervention at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Peru
Psychoanalyst from the Peruvian Psychoanalyst Society in Private Practice
Research areas: parent-infant mental health (specially adolescent mothers), change and process in psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Pierina is fluent in English and Spanish.
Henry Marquez, M.D.
Henry R. Marquez-Castro MD is an Adult and Child, and Adolescent Psychiatrist at Imperial County Behavioral Health Services in El Centro, CA. He is a graduate of Dr. Jose Matias Delgado University School of Medicine in El Salvador (M.D.),Tufts University in Boston, MA (Adult Psychiatry), and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas (Child and Adol. Psychiatry). Dr. Marquez-Castro's areas of interests include working with mothers, infants and immigrant families, evaluation and treatment of young children, psychoanalysis and psychotherapy.
Rocio Luna de las Casas, MA
Rocio is a clinical psychologist from the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. After finishing her studies, Rocio worked for almost ten years, in Vinculare, a private psychological center for families. She completed Infant Parent Mental Health training, while working as a teacher in a private nursery school. Now Rocio works in private practice and collaborates with the SNE project.
Team Pakistan:
Amber Faquih
Dr. Sundas Saboor
Dr. Saboor is a medical doctor living in Canada. She graduated from Khyber Medical College, Peshawar, Pakistan in 2015. In Pakistan, she volunteered at Mèdecins Sans Frontières Women Hospital, and Basic Health Units of Peshawar. In Canada, she has volunteered at Sunnybrook Hospital to counsel cancer patients. She is actively volunteering at Family & Children’s Services of the Waterloo Region in Canada to give medical help and facilitate new immigrants and refugees. She is providing translations for our articles in Hindko language.
Dr. Ali Raza Talpur
Resident Psychiatrist, University of Louisville.
Interests: Addiction Psychiatry and TelePsychiatry.
Origin: Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan.
Dr. Muhammad Zeshan
Dr. Zeshan is Assistant Professor in Psychiatry, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and a graduate of the U Mass Boston Infant Parent Mental Health Post Graduate Certificate Program. He graduated from Nishtar Medical College and trained in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Boston Children’s Hospital. He is actively involved in APPNA, NANA, YPC, to mentor international medical graduates.
Join Us
If you are a student working on a graduate thesis, a professional with a project concerning infant mental health, or a clinician with infant mental health expertise to share and would like to join us on a future visit to India, El Salvador, Peru, or Pakistan, please fill out the form below and a member of our team will get back to you.