MEET OUR CLINICAL TEAM

Francis is a board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner with a passion for helping people lead happier, healthier lives. Francis graduated from the University of South Alabama. He has over 10 years of psychiatric experience working multiple roles and has worked across various behavioral facilities in Arizona. He proudly serves children, adolescents, young adults, and the geriatric population at Ahwatukee Behavioral Health & Wellness.

Francis’s care philosophy is grounded in a holistic and compassionate approach to mental health care. He prides himself on meeting his patients where they are in life, and working with them to understand their treatment goals, promoting a strong provider-patient rapport. Francis’s goal is to embody values of compassion, respect, dignity, commitment to quality care, accessibility, and inclusivity. He is dedicated to serving the community and promoting positive change.

Francis’s specialties are treating depression, anxiety, trauma, mood disorders, ADHD, phobias, and OCD. He also has extensive experience with personality disorders, substance abuse, autism, and other mental health issues. Francis integrates cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques to help promote changes in patients’ lives. He firmly believes that quality care comes from a multidisciplinary approach, collaborating with other healthcare professionals to provide the best possible support for his patients.

One of Francis’s main passions is to reduce the stigma surrounding psychiatric and mental health issues—namely, the misconceptions and negative attitudes that often lead to discrimination, shame, and reluctance to seek help, as individuals fear being judged or misunderstood. Francis aims to be an agent of change by utilizing a multidisciplinary approach that is passionate, unbiased, equal, and non-judgmental.

When Francis is not at work, he loves trying new things, spending time in the Arizona outdoors, traveling to new places, and hiking mountains. He also has a keen interest in technology, and enjoys building computers and playing video games. Francis is multi-lingual (as a native Filipino, so he speaks both Tagalog and Ilocano), he is the founding member and Chairman of Publication of Filipino American Nurse Practitioners of Arizona, and he teaches nursing students at Phoenix College and Grand Canyon University.