Esteemed Psychologist Dr. Risa Weisberg Joins BehaVR as Chief Clinical Officer

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Jan. 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Licensed clinical psychologist, Dr. Risa Weisberg, PhD., has been appointed Chief Clinical Officer at BehaVR, a leading innovator in virtual reality digital wellness and digital therapeutics experiences.

Dr. Weisberg is a renowned expert in cognitive behavioral therapy, a Professor of Psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine, and an Adjunct Professor of Family Medicine at Brown University. She is a Fellow and former member of the Board of Directors of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy, and she sits on the Scientific Council of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Dr. Weisberg comes to BehaVR from the Boston Veterans Administration Healthcare System, where she served as the Assistant Chief of Psychology. 

Her experience as a prolific researcher makes Dr. Weisberg an integral leader in BehaVR's mission to create a resilient world, liberated from fear and pain. In line with this mission, her career to date has been dedicated to developing and studying means to increase the accessibility of high-quality behavioral health. Over the past two decades, her research has earned grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Veteran's Administration, and others. She's authored or co-authored nearly 100 journal articles, book chapters, and books focused on more accessible interventions for common mental and behavioral health problems, including anxiety, depression, chronic pain, substance use disorders, and living with other chronic medical problems.

"BehaVR is setting a high bar for virtual reality experiences that can improve mental and behavioral health," says Dr. Weisberg, "and I am excited to join the team and embody their commitment to building solutions on the foundation of evidence-based treatments. More than ever, the world has an unmet need for effective, high-quality behavioral health treatment and there will never be enough well-trained providers to fill that need. Extended reality has the power to be a true game-changer; to bring outstanding behavioral healthcare to the population at large. BehaVR is doing this, creating engaging and impactful therapeutic experiences built on research. I believe our solutions will be instrumental in quelling the world's behavioral health epidemics."

The global mental health crisis continues to intensify, in the wake of the continued COVID-19 pandemic and significant societal unrest and change. Even as consumers have gained access to general wellness products with mindfulness and meditation apps, significant barriers to care and gaps in effective treatments remain. BehaVR was built to fill this unmet need through an uncompromising fusion of scalable state-of-the-art immersive technology and proven-science therapeutics research.

"I am delighted to welcome Dr. Weisberg to the BehaVR team," said Aaron Gani, Founder and CEO of BehaVR. "From our first meeting, it was clear to me that her passion for creating digitally scalable mental and behavioral health solutions was a perfect fit with BehaVR's purpose and mission. The unmet mental health needs in our global population are so acute and so massive, we can only make a meaningful impact via digital solutions that augment and provide a force multiplier for the caring clinical professionals doing their best to stem the tide. Dr. Weisberg's deep clinical and research experience and broad circle of influence in the clinical community will supercharge our work to address the challenge."

About BehaVR
BehaVR is advancing healthcare access and delivery and improving patient outcomes and experiences through the pioneering use of virtual reality (VR), cloud computing, and machine learning. Founded by leading clinicians, healthcare veterans and technology innovators, BehaVR has a proprietary technology platform that enables a personalized and progressive treatment approach that is grounded in decades of neuroscience research and designed to educate, motivate, and activate individuals to make long-term, sustained improvements to their health. For more information, visit www.behavr.com.

Contact:
Aaron Gani
[email protected]

SOURCE BehaVR