William (Bill) Merkle, PhD

Teresa Arizaga

Dr. Teresa Arizaga is a psychiatrist and the Chief Mental Health Officer at Hidalgo Medical Services and NM-PIC advisor and adjunct supervisor.  A native New Mexican, Dr. Teresa Arizaga learned the importance of serving her community and medical profession at a young age.  As practitioners in the medical field, her parents were instrumental in instilling a good work ethic, compassionate care and a people centered approach in her practice.   Dr. Arizaga is a product of the Silver Schools (Class of 1991) and obtained her B.A. in Psychology and Chemistry from New Mexico State University. Choosing to remain in New Mexico to be near her family, she earned her M.D. in 2000, completing her residency in psychiatry in 2004 from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. She practiced at Gila Regional Medical Center beginning in 2005 and remained there for 15 years. She also ran a part time private practice for several years in Silver City, NM.

Entering a new era of practice, Teresa is excited to continue serving her community as the CMHO at Hidalgo Medical Services. It is her hope to continue developing best practices with existing programs and to collaborate with GRMC, county detention centers, local providers, and with others. It is her vision to enhance behavioral health systems for children as well as proactive measures that can come with outpatient support, including drug and alcohol treatment. She believes that together, the potential for continued high quality behavioral health systems can be attained.

Pat Rowan

Dr. Pat Rowan earned her Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology from the Georgia School of Profession Psychology in Atlanta, Georgia. After completing her degree, she did a post-doctoral fellowship at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) in adult psychology and psycho educational assessment. She currently serves as a clinical psychologist in general practice with Hidalgo Medical Services in Silver City, New Mexico. Dr. Rowan enjoys training and mentoring new psychologists and feels that the HMS approach integrating medical, psychological, and social services provides an excellent training ground for interns to hone their skills in general mental health as practiced in a multicultural, rural environment.

Rand West

Rand West’s early childhood was in Oklahoma where his parents were neighbors and friends of the Kiowa and Comanche Tribes. He attended College at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and then Ohio State University where he received his Masters of Science degree in terrestrial ecology. Dr. West worked for 17 years with the US Forest Service. In 1995, Dr. West left the US Forest Service to enter a doctoral Clinical Psychology Program at Antioch University. His dissertation, “American Indian experience of place: Relationship to distress,” was a study of the importance of native places to resilience from trauma among Native Americans. After graduating, Dr. West was the Trauma Resources Coordinator for a four-county consortium in New York State, where he taught trauma treatment to providers, provided clinical supervision and carried his own case load of patients.  Two years later, he and his family returned to Alaska where he was Treatment Supervisor for a Native American adolescent residential treatment program, Tele-mental Health Coordinator, and finally Director of the Mental Health Department at Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium, a 638 Native Health organization.   In 2012 he accepted the position of Mental Health Director at Northern Navajo Medical Center where he works today providing and directing treatment.

Ciara Hansen

Dr. Ciara Hansen is a clinical psychologist in the Iina’ Counseling Services department at Northern Navajo Medical Center located at the Indian Health Service Hospital in Shiprock, NM. Dr. Hansen earned her Ph.D. from the University of Montana as a member of the Indians into Psychology (INPSYCH) program. She completed her pre-doctoral internship and her post-doc fellowship at Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, located on the leeward coast of Oahu, serving primarily a Native Hawaiian population. Dr. Hansen’s clinical work has focused on using evidence-based treatments to meet the psychological needs of underserved minority communities. She uses a cognitive-behavioral theoretical orientation situated within a multicultural/intersectional framework to conceptualize client symptomology and often uses third-wave therapies to address client concerns. Dr. Hansen’s research has aligned with her clinical goals to address health disparities and build capacity within American Indian communities.

Jeanne E. Knight

Dr. Jeanne Knight received her B.S. in General Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and Mathematics from the University of Oregon where she also received her M.S. in Cognitive Psychology / Science from their top ranked Psychology Department.  At the University of New Mexico, she completed her Ph.D. in two tracks of psychology training within the APA accredited Department of Psychology in both Cognitive (Experimental) Neuroscience and in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Neuropsychology.  She also completed her comprehensive examinations with distinction and was awarded the Dean’s Dissertation Award at the University of New Mexico.  She received many awards and honors over her academic career and has continued her teaching at the university and graduate level for more than two decades.  Dr. Knight completed her Neuropsychological (100%) Internship at the APA accredited Brown University Clinical Psychology Training Consortium and her subsequent postdoctoral training in Neuropsychology at University of New Mexico (Gallup and Albuquerque).

She also completed additional postdoctoral supervision in Health Psychology, Geriatric Psychology, and Neuropsychology at the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute.  She is licensed in New Mexico as a Clinical Psychologist and credentialed as a Neuropsychologist at the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute.  She is in the process of completing requirements to become a New Mexico licensed Prescribing Psychologist and has completed all didactic course work at New Mexico State University for her postdoctoral Masters of Clinical Psychopharmacology (M.S.C.P.) and is currently completing her required prescribing psychologist resident supervision at New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute.

Dr. Knight has enjoyed mentoring and teaching college students from a variety of cultural and ethnic backgrounds.  She has served a diverse patient population from infancy to geriatric.  She has worked with tribal governments, early childhood programs, university student services, and in direct patient care.  She also holds independent license as a School Psychologist in New Mexico and has experience working in public school systems, developing IEPs, and developing appropriate accommodations for school children with various disabilities as well as developing accommodations for university students with various disabilities.  She has experience working with autism, learning disabilities, brain injuries, severe psychiatric conditions, and intellectual disabilities.  She has worked with geriatric populations with numerous psychiatric, neurological, and cognitive impairments for nearly a decade.

Dr. Knight has a strong background in functional brain imaging research and has broad experience in magnetoencephalography, electrophysiology, MRI, combined with the use of neuropsychological assessment and reaction time data.  She has a record of scholarly publication and has collaborated with researchers from her Alma Maters, the Mind Institute, the Albuquerque VA Medical Center, Los Alamos National Laboratory and Harvard University.  She was selected to participate in the Santa Fe Institute’s Complex Systems Summer School as well as the McDonnell-Pew Foundation’s Summer Institute in Cognitive Neuroscience at Dartmouth.  She has been an invited speaker on the topics of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Disability, and Neurocognitive Disorders (Dementias).

Paul W. Bagwell

Dr. Paul Bagwell is employed with the New Mexico Department of Health (DOH), serving as the Forensic Division Director of the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute (NMBHI) at Las Vegas. He has worked with NMDOH/NMBHI since 2001. He is a licensed psychologist, board certified in Medical Psychology by the American Board of Medical Psychology. He maintains an active prescribing certificate in the State of New Mexico since 2013. Dr. Bagwell is a clinical assistant professor of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavior Sciences, University of New Mexico, School of Medicine. He is a member of the New Mexico Board of Psychologist Examiners since 2012. Dr. Bagwell is licensed as a psychologist in New Mexico and Texas. Prior to moving to New Mexico, he was employed with the Federal Bureau of Prisons at the Federal Medical Center, Carswell, located in Fort Worth, Texas.

Mathias (Matt) Stricherz

Dr. Mathias (Matt) Stricherz is a 1976 Doctoral Graduate from Texas Tech University and his Master’s degree from the University of Guam. He is employed as the Psychology Supervisor for the Adult Psychiatric Division of the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute in Las Vegas, NM. He serves as an adjunct professor at New Mexico Highlands University in the Clinical Psychology Department.  He is published articles in the field of psychology, disaster mental health, violence in the workplace, death and dying, psychotherapy, and alcohol and drugs. He has been the keynote speaker at multiple venues and has many presentations of papers within his professional field of psychology. His background includes community and consulting work in specialty care centers, corporate consulting, and in criminal and civil cases. He is a 31 plus year Navy veteran and has been an adjunct police psychologist when in Texas.  Dr. Stricherz embraces service in a global health perspective.