Learn more about Behavioral Health at Reliant

 
Dr. Kimberly Piccoli always had a big interest in helping others and working in healthcare. “I explored a lot of different jobs in medicine,” she explains. “I thought about nursing and I was in a pharmacy program for a while. Then I realized I really enjoyed engaging with people and being with patients the most. So I thought becoming a doctor would give me the broadest depth of knowledge and the most time with patients – that’s how I became a physician.”

It was toward the end of medical school that Dr, Piccoli decided she would practice in Behavioral Health. “I hadn’t at first considered it as an option. But when I did my clinical rotations in psychiatry that was the thing that excited me the most,” she explains. “My father was a probation officer when I was growing up, and he taught me how mental health, addiction and substance use could negatively affect a community. So I thought that working in Behavioral Health was the best way to use my skills to assist others.”

Dr. Piccoli has a special interest in treating mood disorders as well as addiction problems. She often treats patients using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and psycho-dynamic therapy. “The way that I try to approach treating people is get to know them the best I can…who they live with, what their days look like, what their upbringing has been. Understanding what a person’s life looks like outside of their symptoms is very helpful in finding the right treatment. Sometimes it takes a lot of digging to find out the root cause of the problem.”

Dr. Piccoli works inside Reliant’s primary care offices and treats patients who are 18 and older. “This way, I am able to work closely not only with the patients but also their primary care providers,” she explains. “This makes it a lot easier to coordinate care as the primary care doctor may have known the patient for years. Learning from them can be really important.”

When she is not busy helping patients Dr. Piccoli enjoys being with her family and spending time outdoors including local nature walks and going hiking and biking. She also enjoys crocheting.