AARON M. HAWKINS, M.D.
MEDICAL DIRECTOR

After earning his medical degree, Dr. Hawkins completed his residency in psychiatry at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where he served as the chief resident physician.

Upon completion of his chief resident duties he served as a medical consultant for ABC News in New York where he consulted on a variety of media platforms including: “Good Morning America,” “World News Tonight, “The View,” and “20/20”.  

Dr. Hawkins is board certified in General Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and holds active membership in the American Psychiatric Association as well as the International Society for Sports Psychiatry.

Dr. Hawkins and his family reside in the Auburn community.

BENNY PATERNOSTRO,
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Benny is a partner and CFO of The Hawkins Group. He participates in all facets of the day to day operations of The Hawkins Group.

Benny is from Birmingham, Alabama and attended High school at John Carroll Catholic. Benny graduated college from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a B.S. degree in Accounting and Management.

Away from the office, Benny enjoys spending time with his family, especially the grandchildren. Hobbies are motorcycling and collecting and maintaining classic muscle cars. Favorite vacation spot is Gulf Shores, Alabama.

STEPHEN R. BRACKETT, M.D.
DIRECTOR OF ADDICTION MEDICINE

Dr. Brackett earned his medical degree from the University of Alabama School of Medicine. He then completed General Psychiatry Residency at UAB Hospital where he served as chief resident. He completed Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship at Emory University.

Dr. Brackett is board certified in General Psychiatry and Addiction Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He is a member of the American Psychiatric Association and the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry. His interests include medical education, veteran’s mental healthcare, and medication assisted treatment for alcohol and opioid use disorder.

JAYMEE NELSON,
M.D.

Dr. Nelson is board-certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in General Psychiatry with clinical expertise in treating mood disorders, anxiety disorders, PTSD, addiction, and ADHD. She also provides limited concierge services for psychodynamically-informed psychotherapy. She earned her medical degree from the University of Alabama School of Medicine and then completed her Psychiatry Residency at UAB where she served as chief resident in her final year of training. She has experience working as an inpatient and outpatient psychiatrist and providing medical education to psychiatry and family medicine residents.

COLEMAN COSGROVE, DO, Ph.D.

Dr. Cosgrove is board certified in General Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He has a master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, a PhD in Adult Education, and earned his medical degree from the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine. Following medical school, he completed his residency in psychiatry at the University at Buffalo.

Dr. Cosgrove has extensive experience providing medication management and therapy to patients dealing with a broad range of challenges including mood disorders, anxiety, OCD, PTSD, ADHD, and stressors related to relationships, work, school, sports, life transitions, identity issues, and self-esteem. He is dedicated to providing patients with quality and compassionate care.

SUSAN PNEUMAN, PH.D.

Dr. Susan Pneuman, PhD earned her doctoral degree in psychology from the University of Bath in the UK, specializing in studying the effects of cognitive developmental delays. As the founder and director of The Center for Autism and Dyslexia, she has dedicated her expertise to serving children ages 3-22. Dr. Pneuman possesses extensive experience in working with Attention Deficit Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism and various developmental disorders. Her commitment extends to conducting comprehensive educational evaluations for both children and adults, with a particular focus on executive function concerns. Additionally, Dr. Pneuman excels in providing coaching services to support individuals facing executive function and attentional challenges.

VIVIAN FRIEDMAN, PH.D.

After completing a bachelor’s degree in child development and family studies at Cornell University, a master’s degree in psychology at Harvard University, and a Ph.D. degree in clinical psychology at Case Western Reserve University, Dr. Friedman interned at Boston Children’s Hospital/ Harvard Medical school. She completed a post-doctoral fellowship in neuropsychology at Boston University Hospital and joined the psychiatry department faculty at UAB in 1983. She was the twice-weekly parenting columnist for The Birmingham News for over 17 years, publishing 1750 columns. She wrote a monthly column for Birmingham Parent magazine for 14 years and has been quoted in national media including the New York Times and The Washington Post. She has been a clinical supervisor for psychiatry residents at UAB, offering training in psychotherapy to many of the psychiatrists currently in practice in Alabama. She is a licensed clinical psychologist with an interest in insight-oriented psychotherapy for both adolescents and adults.

TIFFANY SIMS,
PMHNP-BC

Tiffany Sims received a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from Tuskegee University in 2003. Tiffany has experience in orthopedics, mother and baby, and mental health. Her desire to gain more knowledge about mental illness to provide better care to patients with mental health issues and change the stigma associated with receiving mental health services led her to pursue a higher degree. Tiffany earned a Master of Science degree in Nursing and became a board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner in 2020. Tiffany is ready to work with adolescent and adult patients with depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, and ADHD.

ROBERT CROWELL, PMHNP-BC

Robert Crowell is a board-certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with over a decade of experience in the psychiatric field working with children, adolescents, adults, and senior clients. Rob has a wide array of experience helping with anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive and related disorders, autism, behavioral health, ADHD, geriatric, substance abuse, schizophrenia, and mood disorders. He enjoys meeting new people, playing music, dogs, making pizza, and hiking on the weekends.

DANIEL R. WYERS, DNP, MSN, BS, CRNP, PMHNP-BC

Daniel is a board certified Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse Practitioner with over 14 years’ experience in the mental health field. He holds Bachelor’s Degrees in Biology and Nursing, a Master’s Degree in Nursing and a Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree, all from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He completed a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Residency Program at the Birmingham VA Medical Center in 2016.

Daniel is board certified by the American Nurses’ Credentialing Center to treat psychiatric disorders across the lifespan. He has experience treating children, adolescents, adult and geriatric patients. Areas of interest include mood disorders, anxiety disorders, ADHD, PTSD, OCD and substance use disorders. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, video gaming and University of Alabama football, basketball, and softball.

LANE GOULD-HARTLINE, PSYCHIATRIC NURSE, APRNBC, CNS, CEDS

Lane received her advanced practice degree in psychiatric nursing from the University of Alabama in Birmingham. She is a licensed board certified psychiatric clinical nurse specialist. She has worked 30+ years, in the psychiatric mental health field, treating individuals with a variety of conditions She uses multiple treatment modalities that enable each individual to move through life’s many challenges and transitions. Lane holds a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist designation from The International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP). This requires extensive experience, education, and compliance with high ethical standards.

Lane recognized the lack of intensive treatment programs for patients with eating disorders in this state, and was instrumental in the development of The Eating Disorder Center of Alabama(EDCA) in January 2007. At that time, the EDCA was the only intensive treatment available for patients with eating disorders. She is a member of The Academy of Eating Disorders (ACE), and The International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP). She served on the board of the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (Birmingham, AL. Chapter) for three terms. She has performed workshops, participated on expert panels, provided presentations, and provided consultations in the field of eating disorders. As both a psychiatric nurse and therapist, she is uniquely situated to work collaboratively with psychiatrists, psychologists, dietitians, medical doctors and other health professionals. Her treatment philosophy is to listen and understand how each individual feels and offer a collaborative approach to treatment.

DEBRA MADSON,
MSN, PMHNP-BC

Debra is a board-certified psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner qualified to evaluate and treat individuals with psychiatric disorders across the lifespan. She began her medical career as a registered nurse in 1996 where she split her time between 2 hospitals working part time on a unit at one hospital providing care for individuals dealing with substance abuse and worked at another hospital as a day time charge nurse on an adult psychiatric unit. She later went on to obtain a Bachelors Degree in Nursing in 2006 from Indiana Wesleyan University. She received her Advanced Practice Nursing Degree in 2013 from the Indiana University in Indianapolis, Indiana and graduated with the honor of being accepted in to Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.    

​​Debra has extensive mental health experience, but has decided to place her treatment focus on individual’s with ADD/ADHD, depression, anxiety, and trauma. Debra has a past history of being actively involved in volunteer work in which she went through training to be a Court Appointed Special Advocate and an Educational Speaker on Shaken Baby Syndrome.  In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, attending her church, reading a good book, or spending time outdoors.

KRYSTAL PATRICK, PMHNP-BC

Krystal Patrick is a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. She obtained her ADN from Bevill State, BSN from Jacksonville State, and her MSN from The University of Alabama at Birmingham. She is board certified through ANCC. Krystal began working in the mental health field in 2011 and has worked with children, adolescents, adults, seniors, and veterans. Currently, she treats individuals 18 and older. She has experience treating individuals with depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, OCD, PTSD, schizophrenia, and borderline personality disorder. Krystal is passionate about mental health and ending the stigma surrounding mental illness.

SHELLEY LAUTERBACH, MSN, PMHNP-BC

Shelley is a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner specializing in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. While doing her clinical rotations at Children’s Hospital of Alabama, she realized her passion for the pediatric population as well as the tremendous unmet need for providers. Upon receiving her master’s degree in nursing from UAB School of Nursing (Suma cum laude) she worked at Children’s Hospital of Alabama in the outpatient psychiatric clinic, the Emergency Department (psychiatry), and helped develop the Psychiatric Crisis Clinic.
In 2018 she was appointed as adjunct faculty at UAB School of Nursing and was made the Co – Director of a new Residency Program, a partnership between UAB School of Nursing and Children’s Hospital to help train and develop newly graduated psychiatric nurse practitioners from around the country. She directly supervised their clinical and didactic training and has been a guest lecturer for the PMHNP program at the UAB School of Nursing. In 2021 she joined the University of Colorado School of Medicine faculty and worked in the outpatient psychiatry clinic at Children’s Hospital of Colorado.
Shelley sees patients ages 10-18. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family, playing piano and violin.

SAYDIE MARSHALL, MSN, RN, CRNP, PMHNP-BC

Saydie is a board-certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. She obtained her BSN from Jacksonville State University in 2020 and in 2023 obtained her MSN from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Her passion for mental health grew as she experienced how underserved the patients were while working as an RN with children, adolescents, adults, and geriatric patients on various acute inpatient psychiatric units in Alabama. She has experience with various psychiatric disorders but is especially interested in treating patients with ADHD, PTSD, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and substance use disorders. In her free time, she loves being outdoors, traveling, spending time with animals, gardening, and attending Auburn University sporting events.

KRISTEN AYCOCK,
PRACTICE BILLING MANAGER

Kristen graduated from Jefferson State in 2016 Summa Cum Laude. She earned an Associate Degree in Applied Science as a Medical Support Specialist. She also earned an Advanced Certificate as a Medical Office Assistant. Kristen was chosen out of four campuses to be awarded Outstanding Student in Office Administration in 2016. She became a Certified Professional Biller and opened her own business. Kristen worked as the Office Manager and Biller for Psychiatry 280 from December 2015 until she became a part of The Hawkins Group in April 2021. Kristen is a great fit for the specialty of psychiatry. She will always go above and beyond to help you in any way she can. Her caring and empathetic nature and kind disposition really stand out. We are so pleased to have her as a part of our team.

JAMES THOMPSON, M.S. Ed.S. LPC

James is a native-born Alabamian who started in mental health in 2017 as a Behavior Aid working with neurodivergent student population. James Currently holds a bachelor’s degree from UAB in psychology and sociology, a Master’s of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of West Alabama and as of May 2023 will have finished his second masters as an Education Specialist in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of Auburn in Montgomery. Through his grade school and college career, James was heavily involved with music programs where he played the piano, trumpet and bassoon. James is a member of an honorary fraternity, the American Counseling Association, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness. He is a current ALC license holder working towards becoming an LPC. James has experience working with individuals ages 15 and older, couples in relationship counseling, group class facilitation, trauma, depression, ASD, anxiety and supportive mental health counseling for the LGBTQIA+ community. James is an avid reader and pursuer of education in his free time along with being a music fanatic, enjoying a good video game, gardening, hiking, boating, and spending time with his family on the lake or at the beach. The rest of his time is spent with his significant other and their cat Bella and dog Tali.

HEATHER PALMORE,
BILLING ASSISTANT

Heather Palmore joined The Hawkins Group in April 2021. She was born in Opelika, Al and earned her Associates of Science degree at Southern Union. She worked in the customer service industry for over a decade. Before joining The Hawkins Group Heather worked at Psychiatry 280 as a medical office assistant for 3 years. Heather is currently working remote as a billing assistant. She has found her passion in helping people and you can always count on her. In her spare time, she enjoys being with her family and teaching her dog Abby new tricks.

BRITTANY WOOD,
LPC

Brittany is a Licensed Professional Counselor who began working with The Hawkins Group in June 2022. Brittany graduated from Auburn University with a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (2019) and a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Development and Family Studies, with a minor in Social Work (2017.) Brittany works with individuals and families, ages 13 and up, in the areas of family systems and interpersonal relationships, as well as other challenges related to mental health, such as, but not limited to: Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, and managing chronic life stressors. She is currently working towards a specialization in Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy (ERP), a fundamental treatment modality utilized for individuals with OCD. In her free time, Brittany enjoys being outdoors with her husband and two pups, Copper and Teal, and spending time with family and friends.

AMANDA BANTA, LICSW-S

Amanda Banta is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker-Supervisor (LICSW-S) who earned a Bachelor of Social Work while minoring in psychology from Judson College and her Master of Social Work from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa where she concentrated on working with adults and their families. During Amanda’s career, she has served a variety of populations including college students, adults, and older adults. Amanda comes to Hawkins Psychiatry with over 6 years’ experience in home-care and over 2 years’ experience with inpatient psychiatry. Amanda’s therapeutic skillset includes working with issues surrounding anxiety, depression, chronic illness, aging, caregiving, and grief as well as stressors related to serious mental health and behavioral challenges. Amanda uses a narrative approach with her clients which allows each client to identify strengths and weaknesses that can be used to overcome the challenges they face.

Amanda is local to the Tuscaloosa community and enjoys spending time with her husband, Travis, and their three furbabies. Outside of work, she serves on the Young ProfessionALZ Board of the Alabama Alzheimer’s Association. In her spare time, Amanda enjoys reading and traveling.

JACEY JOHNSON, MEDICAL ASSISTANT

Jacey Johnson works as a medical assistant and scheduler at our Northport location. She was born in Tuscaloosa, Al and is pursuing a degree in Nursing. She has worked in the mental health field for 5 years. Jacey worked at University Diagnostics of Tuscaloosa before joining the Hawkins Group in September 2023. Jacey helps run the front office by scheduling appointments, collecting payments and answering phone calls. She loves helping people and always does it with a smile on her face. In her spare time, she enjoys watching Alabama football, spending time with her family and her 4 fur babies.

ROBIN MARSHALL, LPN

Robin joined The Hawkins Group in September 2021. She is a Licensed Practical Nurse and a Certified TMS technician.
Robin has 30 years of healthcare experience as a nurse in both hospital and clinic settings, specializing in Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Psychiatry. She has a strong passion for being a patient advocate and believes that everyone deserves compassion, quality care, and human kindness.
She enjoys spending time with family, teaching group fitness classes, and crafting in her spare time.

KATRESA MURRY

Katresa Murry joined The Hawkins Group in February 2020 as the Office Manager.  Katresa graduated from Virginia College in Montgomery, Alabama in 2012 with an Associates Degree in Medical Office Management.  Immediately following graduation, she was hired into a large outpatient mental health practice in East Montgomery where she balanced the needs of multiple co-workers and providers.  For seven years, she rotated through a variety of positions, giving her experience with all aspects of outpatient private practice.  Katresa excels in customer service and patient relations.  She values the importance of patients feeling comfortable during their time in our office and goes above and beyond to ensure that their experience is pleasant.  Katresa is also well-versed in mental health insurance benefits, exceptionally organized, and excels in communication.  These qualities, along with others, ensure that each patient is fully aware of their coverage prior to their arrival to our office and has a solid understanding of what their visit to our practice includes.  The Hawkins Group is proud to have Katresa on our team!

KHADIJAH WALDON

Khadijah is one of our newest TMS techs. She graduated from Auburn University at Montgomery with a Bachelor’s in Psychology. Khadijah plans to go pursue a Masters degree in Counseling because she loves helping people. In Khadijah’s spare time, she likes to travel and spend time with her close family and friends.

JODY REEVES,
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Jody is originally from Montgomery, AL. She and her husband, Jeff have lived in Birmingham for 10 years. She has two grown kids – Jessica, who lives here in Birmingham and Jacob, who lives in Baton Rouge, LA. She is currently a student at Jefferson State pursuing a Degree in English. She loves attending concerts, festivals, and watching Acorn TV.