Meet the Team

Dr. Natalia Ramos, MD, MPH, Medical Director

Dr. Ramos (she/her/hers) is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and a board-certified child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist. She completed her undergraduate education at Stanford University and received her Medical Degree from the Keck School of Medicine of USC. She also holds a Master's Degree from the Harvard School of Public Health.

Dr. Ramos serves as Medical Director of the UCLA Stress, Trauma, and Resilience (STAR) Clinic, the Child Psychiatry Consultation Liaison Service at UCLA Medical Center Santa Monica, and the EMPWR Program for LGBTQ+ mental health. She also directs LGBTQ+ services for the Department of Psychiatry. Her clinical interests include trauma and toxic stress, mood disorders, ADHD, anxiety, and LGBTQ-affirming care.

Dr. Ramos is also part of the DMH-UCLA Prevention Center of Excellence, which delivers programming and training to county agencies and promotes wellbeing across Los Angeles communities. She is active in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, where she co-chairs the committee on gender and sexuality, and serves on the board of APLA Health.

Dr. Liz Ollen, PhD, MA, Clinical Director

Dr. Ollen (she/her/hers) is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. She has been involved in the program development for the UCLA EMPWR Program since it was established in 2017. Dr. Ollen has extensive experience working with LGBTQ+ clients, including youth exploring/questioning gender identity and/or sexual orientation. She practices from the Gender Affirmative Model and provides guidance and support to families around healthy identity development. Dr. Ollen also works on with the DMH-UCLA Prevention Center of Excellence, where she contributes to developing programming and training on LGBTQ+ topics to Los Angeles county agencies.

Dr. Ollen has a broad range of generalist experience using evidence-based treatment for children, adolescents, and adults with disruptive, mood, and anxiety disorders in community mental health, hospital-based outpatient, and inpatient settings. She is extensively trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and exposure-based therapies, and utilizes third wave CBT interventions including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Dr. Ollen's primary specialization is in treating the psychological sequelae of both acute and complex developmental trauma, with an expertise in LGBTQ+ youth. She is trained in multiple trauma interventions, including Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, DBT for Complex PTSD, Cognitive Processing Therapy, and Integrated Treatment for Complex Trauma in Adolescents (ITCT-A). She also has a background in couple and family therapies (Integrative Behavioral Couples Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, and Families Over Coming Under Stress).

Dr. Ollen is actively involved in professional leadership positions through the American Psychological Association (APA). She currently sits on the Executive Committee of Division 44 (Society for the Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity) and also serves on the APA Task Force for revising the clinical guidelines forworking with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients.

Affiliated Faculty

• Patricia Lester, MD
• Catherine Mogil, PsyD
• Audra Langley, PhD
• Jeanne Miranda, PhD
• Sheryl Kataoka, MD