Christie Blake APRN

I am a board-certified Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner with a specialization in child, adolescent, and young adult mental health care. I have been in practice since 2005. I hold a Bachelor of Science in Behavioral and Biological Neuroscience from Trinity College (Hartford CT). I spent 3 years after college working in the Pediatric and Adult Psychopharmacology Research Programs at Massachusetts General Hospital. It was here where I learned about the role of the psychiatric nurse practitioner. I knew it was the ideal career for me as it combined my interest in the medical field with my caring approach to all. In 2005, I completed the RN to MSN accelerated graduate nursing program at Yale University School of Nursing. I have worked in various outpatient mental health settings, the most impactful being the 13 years that I worked at Boston Children’s Hospital. It was here where I treated medically and psychosocially complex cases under the guidance of so many wonderful mentors and colleagues. I am forever grateful to BCH for the opportunity to work there and to the families that taught me so much. I left Children’s in 2018 to focus on my private practice and to teach part-time at MGH's Institute for Health Professionals. My approach to treatment is simple. I provide comprehensive and evidence-based psychiatric assessment and treatment from a perspective that is humanistic, compassion-driven, and collaborative with all those involved. The greatest part of the work I do is making a connection with so many wonderful patients and their families, establishing trust, and seeing them through to their treatment goals. A preceptor once told me "Real change takes time." The treatment process can be quite a journey. The key is having the right provider by your side as you make that journey.