Worcester, Massachusetts
Nurture is a three-clinician practice for families of teens with eating disorders. Our main method is family-based treatment, where parents take the lead at home and we coach every step.
How we work with families
Most families start with family-based treatment and add the others as the plan calls for them.
Sessions with your teen and the whole family. Parents lead meals at home at first, and we coach you through each one.
How it works
One-to-one sessions beside the family work: a place for your teen to talk about food, body image and everything else.
See teen therapy
Time for the adults on their own, to plan meals, share the load and ask what is hard to ask in front of your teen.
See parent sessionsIs it a fit?
Teens from 12 to 18 and the parents or guardians who raise them. Brothers and sisters can join a session when your clinician suggests it.
Anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and avoidant or restrictive eating, one family at a time.
We ask your teen's pediatrician to follow physical health, and with your written permission we keep in touch with their office. We do not replace medical care.
If weekly sessions are not enough, we refer you to a higher level of care: a day program, an intensive outpatient program, a residential program or a hospital. We help with the first call.
Higher levels of careWhere we practice
Sessions are in person. The waiting room has two quiet corners, so a parent and a teen can wait apart.
Parking is behind the building.
Get directions to the Nurture officeHow it begins
Tell us a good time to reach you. You do not need to explain anything beyond that.
To see whether we fit. The call is not therapy, an evaluation or an assessment, and a parent usually makes it.
You, your teen and your clinician. We explain how we work, what stays private and what happens next.
Pick a time on our scheduling page. We confirm by phone or email, whichever you prefer.
The questions families ask before a first session.
Nurture is in network with some commercial plans and out of network with others. We do not take Medicare or MassHealth (Medicaid). If you need a practice that does, we will give you the names of colleagues.
In network with some PPO and HMO plans
Out of network with other plans
No Medicare or MassHealth
If you pay yourself, we give you the fee in writing before your first session. You pay at the end of each session by card, including HSA and FSA cards. A few reduced-fee spots open from time to time; ask how to request one. We ask for 24 hours' notice to change an appointment.
Each month we give you an itemized receipt (a superbill) to send to your plan, which may reimburse part of out-of-network care. It carries a diagnosis code your insurer can see. Your plan decides whether it pays anything, so ask it before you start.
If you pay without insurance, you have the right to receive a written Good Faith Estimate of what your care will cost before you start. We give you one before your first session. If your final bill is $400 or more above the estimate, you can dispute it. The estimate is not a contract.
Our coordinator checks your benefits before the first session and tells you what your plan says about visits and copays. You can also call the number on the back of your insurance card.
Our clinicians
Founder and therapist, LICSW
Leads family-based treatment at Nurture. She coaches parents through the first weeks at home and sees teens one to one.
Sees teens one to one and offers sessions for brothers and sisters. Her sessions make room for body image, school and friends.
Works with parents and the whole family, including fathers and other caregivers who want a clear part to play.
Licenses and training
What each license means, and who issues it.
Huong Tran, Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW)
MA Lic. # 000000 · Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers
Required to practice clinical social work in Massachusetts
Geraldine Pettiford, Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC)
MA Lic. # 000000 · Massachusetts Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health and Human Services Professions
Required to practice mental health counseling in Massachusetts
Kwesi Boateng, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)
MA Lic. # 000000 · Massachusetts Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health and Human Services Professions
Required to practice therapy in Massachusetts
Huong Tran: Family-Based Treatment (FBT) training
Training in the Maudsley approach, where parents lead the first phase of recovery at home
Questions
We are in network with some commercial plans, and out of network with others. We do not take Medicare or MassHealth. Tell us your plan when you write and our coordinator checks your benefits before the first session.
You, your teen and your clinician meet for 50 minutes. We explain how we work, what stays private and where privacy has limits, and agree what the next few weeks look like.
Your clinician sets the pace with you. Sessions are usually weekly at first, and the gap grows as things steady. We do not promise a number of sessions.
A parent or guardian takes part in the first call, and your clinician explains the state's rules on consent and privacy for a teen. We do not promise care to a minor without that conversation.
Write to us
We reply within one business day. If you would rather talk first, we offer a 15-minute call to see whether we fit. It is not therapy, an evaluation or an assessment.