Meet the Employee Assistance Staff
UC Berkeley's Employee Assistance consultants are a diverse group of licensed mental health professionals trained and experienced in dealing with a wide variety of work-related and behavioral health issues. They are knowledgeable about community resources, including agencies, support groups, health plans, and individual providers.
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Natasha Boissier, LCSWElder Care Counselor |
Natasha Boissier (she/her/ella) is the Elder Care Counselor at Be Well at Work. A Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Natasha has worked with older adults and their families across multiple cultural, community, and medical settings in the Bay Area for the past 25 years. Natasha’s focus is working with family caregivers caring for an adult living with illness or disabilities through individual, family, and group counseling. She especially enjoys providing education around disease management, resource information, and coping skills so that her clients are confident and accompanied in their caregiving journeys. Natasha received her MSW from San Francisco State University and holds an advanced practice Palliative Care Certificate for Social Workers from CSU. Natasha is a certified grief educator committed to providing the highest level of grief support through education, experience, and insights into the often unacknowledged rocky terrain of grief. Natasha is a certified grief educator committed to providing the highest level of grief support through education, experience, and insights. Clinical interests: aging in place, caregiver wellness, loneliness and isolation, dementia/neurodegenerative illness, end-of-life care, bereavement. Additional languages: French and Spanish |
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Elliott DiTusa, LPCCCounselor |
Elliott DiTusa (He/Him) is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC) with experience working in various Employee Assistance models. His work experience also includes providing individual and couples counseling at a group psychotherapy practice. Elliott received his BS in Secondary Education from Indiana University and his MA in Counseling with a specialization in Sport and Health Psychology from Adler University. Elliott brings a warm style that sets people at ease quickly. Elliott is passionate about providing short-term, solution-focused support in an empathic and practical way. Skilled in assessment and referral, Elliott takes in account both clinical needs and personal preferences when connecting individuals to longer-term support. Elliott enjoys serving all members of the UC Berkeley community and has a special interest in working with researchers, postdoctoral scholars, and those experiencing academic/work stress and pressure, and work/life balance challenges. Clinical Interests: Anxiety, depression, work stress, addiction, relationship issues, grief/loss, basic needs concerns. |
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Counselor |
Kiran Johl (she/her) is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with a background in providing trauma-informed counseling and group therapy for physical and sexual abuse survivors. Kiran has experience in crisis intervention and case management which she sees as an important part of the therapeutic process. Kiran received her B.S. in Human Development from UC Davis and her MSW from Sacramento State University. Kiran’s approach is interactive and collaborative. She enjoys connecting clients with resources and discussing strategies that can support their emotional health outside of the counseling session. She has a special interest in working with women of color, individuals identifying as first or second-generation, as well as those exploring cultural identity development. She also enjoys helping individuals who are experiencing life and/or career transitions. Clinical interests: Anxiety, cultural issues, grief/loss, intimate partner violence, relationship issues, trauma response. |
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Craig Mielcarski, LCSW, CEAPBe Well at Work - Faculty/Staff Health Programs Director |
Craig Mielcarski the Director for Be Well at Work - Faculty/Staff Health Programs which includes Disability Management Services, Elder Care, Employee Assistance, Ergonomics, Wellness, and Work/Life. Craig is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and Certified Employee Assistance Professional (CEAP), with formal training in organizational and management consulting, critical incident response, and violence risk assessment. Passionate about individual and organizational health and wellness, Craig also has extensive experience providing coaching and consultation to leaders at all levels within the university system. Craig received his BA in Psychology from Amherst College and his MSW from Boston University. Craig is committed to helping individuals get connected to additional resources that fit their clinical, cultural, and identity preferences whenever possible. One of Craig’s favorite things about working here is the opportunity to assist people who are seeking counseling or consultation for the first time. It is important for people to feel like they are understood and to feel hopeful by the end of that first contact since it strongly influences a person’s willingness to take the next step. Clinical Interests: Anxiety, depression, work stress, career transitions, trauma response, intimate partner violence, substance abuse, relationships, parenting, grief/loss. |
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Sally NhoAdministrative Assistant |
Sally Nho is an Administrative Assistant for the Be Well at Work - Employee Assistance program. She has provided administrative support for UC Berkeley for many years and worked for the Fairfax County School District in Virginia before joining UHS. She has been an integral part of the Employee Assistance team, capable of managing the front office, and is typically the first point of contact for people seeking services. In addition, she is fluent in Korean and provides Korean language translation as needed for UHS. Sally received her BS in Nutritional Science from Sacred Heart University, Seoul, Korea. Additional Languages: Korean |
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Karen Patchell, MABe Well at Work - Faculty/Staff Health Programs Manager Work/Life Program Lead |
Karen Patchell (she/her) is the Be Well at Work Program Manager and head of our Work/Life program. After earning her double honors BA in Spanish and Anthropology from the National University of Ireland, Karen received her MA in Social Anthropology with distinction from Queens University, Belfast. Drawing on her previous work supporting low-income communities and those impacted by conflict with a focus on cross-border identity and policy, cross-cultural communications, and youth development services, Karen is committed to supporting working families at UC Berkeley through the promotion and advocacy of family-friendly policies and practices, and via educational programming to promote work/life integration for faculty and staff in their working and home environments. Karen is also a certified self-defense instructor at UC Berkeley. Additional Languages: Gaeilge |
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Julie Resnik, LCSWCounselor |
Julie (she/her) is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with experience providing therapeutic support and extensive case management assistance to individuals and families. She also has a specialty background supporting people experiencing chronic illness and organ transplantation. She has worked as a healthcare provider and as a behavioral health educator, teaching classes on wellness, mental health, and managing depression. Julie obtained her B.A. in Sociology and Anthropology at Colgate University, and her MSW from Columbia University with a clinical concentration in Health, Mental Health and Disabilities. She received advanced training in Palliative and End of Life Care at NYU’s School of Social Work. Julie strives to make each person feel understood and uses a client-centered approach that focuses on an individual's unique circumstances and goals. She collaborates with clients to create culturally congruent treatment plans including healthy coping mechanisms, short-term therapy, and referrals to campus and community resources and providers. Clinical interests: Anxiety, depression, disability, complicated grief/loss, health/medical concerns, family relationship issues, life transitions, parenting. |
Kirandeep Johl, LCSW
Meet the Staff: Employee Assistance | Elder Care