Dr. David Worling (#1365) Registered Psychologist
Dr. David Worling (he/him) co-founded Westcoast Child Development Group in 2003 and is the clinical director. Dr. Worling worked at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver for 7 years in the Adolescent Inpatient and Mood and Anxiety Outpatient Psychiatric clinics. Over the past several years he has grown the practice to include psychological assessment and therapeutic work with adults.
Dr. Worling enjoys working with youth and adults with a number of mental health challenges that include depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, ADHD, and learning disabilities and also specializes in assessment and therapy for individuals on the Autism Spectrum.
Dr. Worling created Spectrum Works Consulting Group in 2015 to help support adolescents and adults on the Autism Spectrum with co-occurring mental health conditions in work and post-secondary settings. (http://spectrumworks.consulting/)
Dr. Worling has taught as a sessional instructor for the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia and has held academic affiliations with the department of Psychology at Simon Fraser University. He has over 30 years of experience as a clinician and has specialized training in the areas of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Autism Diagnostics, Group Therapy, and Learning Disabilities.
Dr. Worling sits on a number of clinical advisory boards and consults to schools, mental health facilities, and government agencies. He has published in the areas of learning disabilities, ADHD, autism, and was a co-author on the Dealing with Depression Workbook for teens. http://www.comh.ca/publications/resources/dwd/DWD_PrintVersion.pdf.
Dr. Worling is also a sought-after speaker who brings a great deal of enthusiasm, professionalism, and humour to a wide range of audiences.
Leah Marks (#16138) Registered Clinical Counsellor, Canadian Certified Counsellor
Leah Marks CCC, RCC (she/her) completed her Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology at the University of British Columbia. She is a Canadian Certified Counsellor with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association and is a Registered Clinical Counsellor with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors.
Leah enjoys guiding adult clients to explore their strengths and opportunities for growth and to build hope and momentum – especially in times of transition.
Leah began her career over 30 years ago as an educator, teaching post-secondary students and as a teacher therapist designing individual education plans for children on the Autism Spectrum, with ADHD, and with Learning challenges and consulted to their parents and teachers. She now focuses her parent consultation work with parents of older teens and young adults and specializes in supporting individuals through life decisions, relationships, and navigating the world of work and school.
Leah’s post-secondary academic counselling draws on several years experience as an Academic Advisor and researcher in academic persistence at The University of British Columbia. She has assisted hundreds of students to navigate rigorous academic demands and chart viable career paths. Through her training and work with the UBC Life and Career Centre; the Centre for Student involvement and Careers; and Alumni UBC, Leah has assisted a wide range of clients in designing and achieving personal, academic, and career objectives. Leah has completed levels 1 – 3, and practicum training in Gottman Methods Couple Therapy and provides evidenced-based relational therapy for couples.
Leah provides a holistic approach to her clients grounded in theories of positive psychology, human development, mindfulness, and cognitive behaviour therapy. Her approach is also informed by current research in decision-making, motivation, self-regulated learning, executive functioning, couples counselling, and career development.
Dr. Kimberly Armstrong (#2322) Registered Psychologist
Dr. Kimberly Armstrong has provided services to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders and their families since 2004. She has worked and trained in a number of different setting, including the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge, the Autism and Developmental Disorders Lab at SFU, the Queens University Developmental Disabilities Consulting Program, BC Children’s Hospital, and Child and Youth Mental Health (CYMH).
Dr. Armstrong has published research in a number of peer-reviewed journals, including The Journal of Autism and Developmental Disabilities, Autism Research, and Molecular Autism. She is currently a Clinical Faculty member of the Neurodevelopmental Disorders Program with the Department of Psychiatry at UBC. She is also a Clinical Associate with the Department of Psychology at SFU. Dr. Armstrong’s clinical work includes providing diagnostic assessments, consultation, and therapy for adolescents and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders, with a focus on individuals born female.
Dr. Katia Jitlina (#2417) Registered Psychologist
Dr. Katia Jitlina (she/her) is a Registered Psychologist who provides assessment, treatment and consultation services. In her role as a therapist, she provides evidence-based treatment for children and adolescents experiencing a range of mental health concerns and other challenges. In her assessment work, she conducts comprehensive evaluations of children’s learning, social emotional, and behavioural well-being. She has specialized training in the assessment of various neurodiverse conditions, including Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Learning Disorders, giftedness, and Intellectual Disabilities. In her consultation services, she collaborates with parents, educators, and multi-disciplinary teams regarding parenting, mental health, Individual Education plans and transitioning to adulthood.
Regarding her training, Dr. Jitlina completed her Ph.D. School Psychology at the University of British Columbia, and her residency in Clinical Child Psychology at McMaster Children’s Hospital. She has extensive assessment, treatment and consultation experience in hospital, school, community-based mental health, and private practice settings. She has received training in Cognitive Behavioural therapy for Depression, Anxiety disorders and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, alongside Emotional Focused Family Therapy, Attachment-based approaches and Positive Behavioural Support. She pulls from all of these areas to fit the needs of her clients. She has also received specialized clinical training in the assessment of Autism and supporting mental health in Autistic children and youth.
In all of her work, Dr. Jitlina values; building on her client’s strengths; authenticity, warmth and empathy; translating clinical research into practical take-aways; and collaborating with families.
Dr. Anisha Varghese (#2396) Registered Psychologist
Dr. Anisha Varghese is a Registered Psychologist who provides assessment and therapy services to children, adolescents, and adults. She is passionate about using psychological assessment to help clients understand their unique profile of strengths and needs, as well as what supports might be helpful. In her therapeutic work, she uses evidence-based (primarily cognitive-behavioural, as well as emotion-focused, and mindfulness-based) approaches to support clients with understanding and managing difficulties which include anxiety, OCD, depression, health concerns, somatisation/complex pain, stress, and life transitions. She deeply enjoys working with parents to help them build upon their strategies for understanding and supporting their children. Dr. Varghese also values creativity, playfulness, humour, and she incorporates these into her therapeutic work.
Dr. Varghese relocated to Vancouver to complete her residency at BC Children’s Hospital after completing her doctoral training in Clinical Psychology at the University of Waterloo. Following her residency, she continued to work in a number of programs and clinics at Sunny Hill Health Centre and BC Children’s Hospital (BCCH), at which she is a Staff Psychologist. She currently works with the BCCH Medical Psychology team, which involves inpatient and outpatient treatment of health related challenges which include pain, stress associated with health conditions, and procedural anxiety. During her three years at Sunny Hill, she completed assessments of neurodevelopmental and associated conditions as part of the Complex Developmental and Behavioural Conditions (CDBC) program. She also previously worked with the BCCH Provincial ADHD Clinic, which involved assessments for ADHD and co-occurring conditions, and group intervention for parent-led behavioural management of ADHD symptoms. Dr. Varghese’s hospital roles also allow her to invest time in her passion for supervision, teaching, and consultation.
Dr. Varghese is currently accepting referrals for children, adolescents, and adults who are seeking support for concerns related to anxiety, OCD, depression, health concerns, somatisation/complex pain, and stress.
Krista Reemeyer Clinic Administrator
Krista supports the clinic front desk and administration at Westcoast Child Development group on a part-time basis. She provides information to clients about services at the clinic, provides referrals, schedules assessments and therapy appointments, helps with invoicing, and supports the daily front desk procedures.
Krista is currently studying psychology, among other social sciences at Simon Fraser University, and is interested in pursuing a career in the field. She graduated high school in 2020 with her double dogwood and can speak both English and French.
She has a drive to assist others and create a positive and uplifting environment for everyone.
In her spare time, Krista enjoys listening to music, getting outside, and spending time with her friends.
Ameera Ali Clinic Administrator
We are very happy to welcome new clinic administrator, Ameera Ali to our team.
Ameera supports the clinic front desk and administration at Westcoast Child Development group full time. She provides information to clients about services at the clinic, provides referrals, schedules assessments and therapy appointments, helps with invoicing, and supports the daily front desk procedures.
Ameera has just completed her Bachelor of Arts with a focus on psychology and criminology at Simon Fraser University and is interested in pursuing a career in the field of counselling psychology.
In her spare time, Ameera plays soccer and reads a myriad of books.
Christopher Marks-Worling Clinic Administrator (part-time, seasonal) and Project Co-ordinator
Chris supports the administrative team at Westcoast Child Development Group seasonally as needed. He helps to provide information to clients about services at the clinic, provides referrals, schedules appointments, helps with invoicing, and supports the management of daily front desk procedures.
He is interested in the power of cultivating healthy minds along with healthy bodies completing a Bachelor of Kinesiology with a specialization in Psychology in 2020 at the University of British Columbia. Chris enjoys contributing to the positive experience of clients and clinicians at the clinic.
In addition to supporting the administrative and clinical team and clients, Chris also leads clinic and company projects as needed.
Following the completion of his Bachelor’s degree, Chris took the time to pursue his interest in music composition and sound engineering and completed a diploma in Audio Engineering and Music Production with the Vancouver School of Audio Engineering (SAE). He now combines his love of music production and supporting others as a part-time instructor, teaching assistant, and tutor at SAE .