PROVIDERS
Dr. Michael j. McDermott
Dr. McDermott earned his B.S. in Psychology from the University of Maryland and received his M.A. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Mississippi. He completed his pre-doctoral residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center Consortium. Dr. McDermott is licensed to practice psychology in Tennessee and Louisiana. Dr. McDermott has over a decade of experience in the field of clinical psychology, specializing in the treatment and research of anxiety, trauma, and pain-related disorders, as well as connections between psychological well-being and physical health.Prior to transitioning into a more clinically focused role, Dr. McDermott was an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Louisiana, where he conducted research on the roles of stress, anxiety, and trauma-related disorders on physical health. In this capacity, his research has been published in numerous peer-reviewed psychology and medical journals across the domains of behavioral medicine, emotion regulation, substance abuse, and personality, and his publications have been cited over 1,400 times in subsequent peer-reviewed journal publications.
Dr. Patrick J. Michaels
Dr. Michaels is a licensed clinical psychologist in Tennessee and has over 20-years of clinical training and experience in healthcare. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, his Doctorate in Philosophy in Clinical Psychology from the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, Illinois. Dr. Michaels completed a pre-doctoral clinical psychology internship at the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio, where he also completed his post-doctoral clinical psychology interprofessional residency in Community Inclusion of the Severely Mental Ill.Over the course of his career, Dr. Michaels has delivered recovery-oriented individual and/or group therapy across all levels of care: inpatient, residential, partial hospitalization programs (PHP), intensive outpatient programs (IOP), outpatient, in-home care, and community-based care. In formally bestowed leadership roles, Dr. Michaels has been an operational leader and clinical director to 30+ staff member teams in PHP, IOP in-community, and in-home levels of care. Dr. Michaels uses cognitive-behavioral therapy and includes evidenced-based practices from acceptance and commitment therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, mindfulness, motivational interviewing, and social skills training. At a human level, he values transparency, authenticity, compassion, and connection. Beyond his clinical specializations, Dr. Michaels’ research interests include mental illness stigma, psychiatric rehabilitation, and community inclusion. He has published two book chapters, five first author publications, and co-authored sixteen publications. He is a member of the American Psychological Association.
Dr. AGUSTINA FERRELL
Dr. Agustina Ferrell, Psy.D., is a pre-licensed, bilingual (English/Spanish), Clinical Health Psychologist. She earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology from Florida State University and a Master’s of Science in Psychology and Doctor of Clinical Psychology (Psy.D.) with a Health Psychology specialization from Albizu University. She completed an APA-accredited internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the Tennessee Valley Healthcare System Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Nashville, TN.
Dr. Ferrell has extensive experience across both psychiatric inpatient settings and integrated primary care clinics. She has specialized training in comprehensive psychological and health-related evaluations, including capacity assessments, bariatric surgery evaluations, pre-surgical mental health evaluations for transplant candidates (liver, kidney, and heart), biopsychosocial Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) evaluations; and psychodiagnostic and neuropsychological testing for a wide range of medical and psychological conditions. Her areas of specialization include chronic pain, trauma, depression, anxiety, and the relationship between psychological well-being and physical health.
In her therapeutic work, Dr. Ferrell provides evidence-based individual and group treatments grounded in a collaborative, culturally responsive, and patient-centered approach. She integrates modalities such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), and mindfulness-based interventions. Her clinical style is warm, direct, and grounded in the belief that effective treatment considers the whole person—mind, body, and lived experience. Dr. Ferrell is committed to helping clients build insight, develop meaningful coping strategies, and improve overall functioning and quality of life, particularly for those navigating co-occurring mental and physical health conditions.