The Recovery Village at Palmer Lake in Palmer Lake

Carolyn Ross, MD Colorado Director for Eating Disorders
Dr. Ross completed her undergraduate degree in Modern Foreign Languages at Purdue University and then was a full-time mother of her two older sons before returning to school to complete her Pre-Med requirements. She then went to the University of Michigan Medical School. Dr. Ross’s practice experience after medical school helped fuel her interest in understanding what makes people heal as she saw that most of her patients’ medical problems were related to lifestyle habits and the stresses of modern living. In searching for a better way to address these issues, Dr. Ross began to explore complementary and alternative therapies and the use of herbs and supplements for her patients. She then completed a residency in Preventive Medicine at Loma Linda University and set up practice in San Diego, California, where she eventually opened three women’s centers where she practiced primary care and office gynecology. Her women’s centers integrated the best of western medicine with complementary and alternative therapies such as yoga, acupuncture, chiropractic, and nutrition counseling. She developed and ran a weight management program for weight loss therapy that offered a holistic approach to treating obesity. During that time, she also served as the medical director of The Rader Institute’s inpatient eating disorder program.

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Heather Phillips, MA, M.Ed., LPC, CAC III Clinical Director
From a young age, Ms. Phillips always knew that she wanted to help people. Her passion to help others derives from her personal struggles in adolescence that she learned to overcome. “After I understood what recovery was, I realized it was my life’s goal to help those suffering from the disease of addiction and mental illness.” Ms. Phillips earned a Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling from Whitworth University in Spokane, WA. She also holds a Master of Education in Administrative Leadership from Whitworth University and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Gonzaga University. She is currently a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Certified Addiction Counselor (Level III) in the State of Colorado. Ms. Phillips has experience providing care in a broad array of treatment settings including residential psychiatric care, inpatient and outpatient substance abuse treatment, and providing treatment in institutional settings. She endorses an integrated view of treatment; one which honors the unique and individualized needs of each person and treating them with the utmost dignity and respect. In addition to her passion for working in the treatment profession, she is also an advocate for animal rescue organizations, anti-human trafficking campaigns, and considers herself an ally in the LGBTIQ community. Ms. Phillips is an adjunct instructor at a local university and enjoys sharing her passion for the helping profession as an educator and community speaker. Since living in Colorado, she has fallen in love with the beautiful terrain and most weekends you will find her hiking the many trails of the Rocky Mountains.

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Michelle Wittich, RN MA Director of Nursing
Michelle Wittich, RN MA is the Director of Nursing at TRV at Palmer Lake and oversees the provision of services to clients and secures proper documentation that keeps TRVPL in compliance with regulatory agencies. She provides clinical supervision to the RN and LPN staff ensuring that high quality, recovery-focused, evidence-based practices are being utilized to serve clients. In the past, Michelle has served as RN Supervisor and Manager in multiple inpatient and outpatient facilities like Ft. Logan and Bridge House Acute Treatment Unit. It was there that she handled revamping the Bridge program to accommodate a Crisis Unit, new programming and creating new effective policies and procedures accordingly. Through this, she gained experience in assuring maintenance of quality care during the transition from inpatient to outpatient services. Michelle graduated from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, with a BA in Psychology/Criminology Minor (Hons.). She went on to earn her Masters (Hons.) in Psychology from the University of Northern Colorado, Greeley and later her ADN from Arapahoe Community College, Littleton, CO.

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