About

Dr. Debra Maddox, Psy.D. is the founder, President and CEO of Multicultural Wellness. Dr. Maddox founded Multicultural Wellness in 2005. MWC is a non-profit behavioral health clinic that specializes in the treatment of consumers from diverse cultural backgrounds who have been historically underserved and underrepresented in the mental health field.  Since 2009, Multicultural Wellness has employed and trained over 150 community members to work with the unique population which is served at the clinic. Most recently, in 2017, Dr. Maddox expanded services to Las Vegas Nevada by opening Multicultural Wellness West, which is behavioral health clinic.

 

Dr. Maddox is a licensed mental health counselor in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, She is also a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Licensed Rehabilitation Counselor, Certified School Psychologist, Nationally Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, Licensed School Psychologist and Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in the state of Nevada.

 

Dr. Maddox received a B.A. in Psychology from Worcester State University, Worcester, MA, an M.A. in Rehabilitation Counseling from Assumption College in Worcester, MA, and a Psychology Doctorate (Psy.D.) from Antioch New England Graduate School, in Keene, New Hampshire.

 

Dr. Maddox has been employed in a wide range of mental health and human services settings. She has worked in social, judicial, education and mental health clinical settings. Within her work as a social worker, she worked for the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, conducting investigations of abuse and neglect, with an emphasis on children who were sexually abused.  She also provided family assessments.  Within the judicial system, she worked as a probation officer, for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, supervising individuals who were placed on probation due to a number of illegal crimes. Her work allowed her to work collaboratively with attorneys and make recommendations to judges.  She also worked as an independent court investigator for the Massachusetts Trial Court, Juvenile Division.  Within her position as court investigator, she provided comprehensive assessment/investigation of cases involving abuse and neglect.  She contacted numerous sources and detailed the results in a report to the judge, which also contained recommendations for children, parents and families.  She served as an expert witness in her capacity as court investigator on matters of care and protection. She additionally conducted trauma evaluations on individuals seeking asylum in the United States due to trauma and issues of safety.

Since 1993, Dr. Maddox has worked in outpatient mental health clinical settings, providing psychological evaluations, consultation and psychotherapy for adults, children and adolescents, in both group and individual modalities.  Dr. Maddox also worked as a school psychologist for more than 20-years, providing psychological evaluations to school aged children who experienced academic and emotional difficulties which impeded their learning.

 

In addition, Dr. Maddox has taught undergraduate and graduate level courses and supervised the clinical work of graduate students in psychology and rehabilitation counseling from roughly 2005 to 2017, as a part-time faculty member at Quinsigamond Community College and Assumption University in Worcester, MA.  She has also supervised the clinical work of other mental health professionals at community mental health centers in Massachusetts and in Nevada, as well as conducting private clinical supervision.

 

Dr. Maddox has served on a number of community boards. Most recently, the diocese of Worcester, Catholic School Board, Worcester District Attorney’s Opioid Task Force, and the Worcester City Manager’s Coalition Against Bias and Hate. Dr. Maddox was awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award under President Barak Obama, among local awards in Worcester, Massachusetts. Dr. Maddox has participated in trainings and presentations to schools, organizations and to mental health providers on topics including racial trauma, cultural competence, working with people from diverse cultural backgrounds in the treatment of addictions and family therapy.

 

Dr. Maddox has clinical interests in race, and culture and the impact of culture on adjustment, and acculturation. In addition, Dr. Maddox developed and implemented a mentoring program for Black males entitled the Broader Horizons Program, which is also a Rites of Passage program that focuses on social emotional learning and cultural identity development. Dr. Maddox has clinical experience in the treatment of adults and adolescents as well as family therapy.  She is trained in the areas of trauma informed care, treatment of substance use and gambling use disorders, in addition to Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), Ego Psychology (using Parts and Memory Therapy) and cultural trauma.