CARMAhealth Staff

Alex Dodson, PhD, MSN, APRN, PMHNP-BC

Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner

Alex is a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, board-certified to treat mood disorders, anxiety, substance use disorders, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, and the full range of behavioral and mental health challenges. Alex has worked in both acute and outpatient settings, with a primary focus in residential addiction treatment and complex care for individuals with learning and intellectual disabilities.

Prior to coming to CARMA, Alex worked as a nurse with children and adolescents with neurological conditions, and as a research nurse in pharmacological treatments for thought disorders. Since graduating from UT Austin’s Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner program, much of his work outside of CARMA has been with foster families and group homes serving individuals with dually diagnosed psychiatric concerns and intellectual disabilities. Through tele-medicine, he has been able to reach communities across Texas often without ready access to psychiatric services.

Formerly a cultural anthropologist, Alex studied ethnomusicology abroad in a joint study program with the University of Ghana and the University of Pennsylvania, then upon graduation taught in the Peace Corps in Bangladesh. His doctoral research explored cultural change among ethnic minority communities in the context of environmental movements in South Asia. When transitioning to mental health, Alex brought with him an approach informed by his extensive study in the social sciences. But it is his patient, empathic, and thorough approach he sees as most valuable in his practice of psychiatry.

Education

Certifications