Our Clinical Team

---

Rachel Davis, MD is Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Neurosurgery and Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs and Strategy, Medical Director of the OCD Program, and Service Director of Psychiatric Neuromodulation.  Dr. Davis specializes in treating individuals with severe and refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder, including via deep brain stimulation.  Dr. Davis is a Colorado Native and grew up in the rural (frontier), Southeastern Colorado town of Eads, CO.  She completed her undergraduate training at the University of Colorado Boulder, medical school at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and psychiatry residency at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. She enjoys working with people from diverse backgrounds and is LGBTQ+ affirming.  Dr. Davis loves animals and shares her home with a sun conure, a Sunday conure, and 2 budgies. 

Emily Hemendinger, LCSW, MPH, CPH, ACS is currently an Assistant Professor, Clinical Director, and DBS Coordinator with the OCD Program, Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus. Emily completed her dual degree program (Masters in Social Work and Masters in Public Health) from the University of Pittsburgh. She has over 10 years of clinical experience working with OCD, anxiety disorders, perfectionism, body image concerns, and eating disorders. Emily has a background in behavioral and community health sciences, health education, and health promotion. Her passion is combining her mental health and public health work, with specific focus on reworking our society’s relationship with food and self-image.

Emily utilizes an eclectic approach to therapy, focusing on meeting you where you are at in your mental health treatment journey and empowering you to live a fulfilling and values-based life. She is trained in and pulls therapeutic concepts from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Exposure Response Prevention (ERP), Cognitive Behavioral therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT), Somatic Experiencing (SE), Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT). Emily is LGBTQ+ affirming and works with people from diverse backgrounds. While not at work, Emily enjoys spending time with her aussie corgi mix, Harrison Ford Hemendinger, hiking, climbing 14ers, and finding the best ice cream places Colorado has to offer. 

 

Stephanie Lehto, PsyD is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist in Colorado and currently is Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Dr. Lehto is Clinical Director of Student and Resident Mental Health, Clinical Director of Faculty and Staff Mental Health, and a therapist with the OCD Program. Dr. Lehto received her PsyD from Midwestern University, Glendale, Arizona in 2017. Dr. Lehto completed her Pre-Doctoral and Post-Doctoral training with the Eating Recovery Center where she received training in evidence-based modalities including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT). 

Dr. Lehto prefers to take an eclectic and transdiagnostic approach, pulling from modalities of therapy that would be the best fit for you in the moment. She specializes in: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Eating Disorders, Body Dysmorphia, and Anxiety and Mood Disorders. Dr. Lehto takes an empowerment and values based approach to therapy.

Abby Norouzinia, PhD, is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Senior Instructor with the OCD Treatment Team and Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine. She completed her Clinical Internship at the Denver VA Medical Center and subsequently completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Denver VA Medical Center where she received specialized training in PTSD/Trauma assessment and treatment. Dr. Norouzinia has worked in a variety of residential treatment programs and outpatient clinics, including the PTSD Clinical Team with the Eastern Colorado VA, prior to transitioning to her current position within the University of Colorado. Additionally, she received focused training in the treatment of OCD and anxiety disorders at the Kansas City Center for Anxiety Treatment (KCCAT). 

In the OCD Program, Dr. Norouzinia primarily provides Exposure with Response Prevention therapy to address OCD. However, she also provides evidence-based treatment for comorbid PTSD/Trauma-stressor related disorders; these treatments may include Prolonged Exposure, Cognitive Processing Therapy, and Written Exposure Therapy, among others. 

Dr. Norouzinia’s clinical approach is grounded in the belief that all people can heal, and she utilizes a collaborative style with compassion, humor, and an abundance of metaphors to help her clients address OCD, anxiety disorders, and PTSD/trauma-related disorders with the use of evidence-based treatments. Her goal is for clients to better understand the function behind their presenting concerns, learn how to effectively address their concerns, and build compassion for themselves along the way. To build engagement, motivation, and sustain treatment gains, she emphasizes understanding of how disorders develop and the ways that treatment targets the patterns that perpetuate each disorder. Her intention is for patients to fully understand how treatment works so they feel empowered in their journey toward healing. Her hope is that clients not only learn to alleviate their suffering, but also make changes needed to transform their relationships with themselves, others, and their environment to pursue a life in which they will thrive. 

Kasey Benedict, LCSW currently works as an OCD and anxiety therapist with the Department of Psychiatry at the CU School of Medicine. Kasey graduated from DU with her masters of social work and has over 7 years of experience working with adults with a broad range of conditions including chronic pain, substance use disorders, anxiety and OCD. 

 

 

Elizabeth Fenstermacher, MD

Medical Director, TMS Program  Psychiatrist, DBS Program

OCD Program Ambassador