about us

We are passionate about understanding why individuals struggle and then developing a comprehensive plan that helps those individuals reach their full potential.

PEDIATRIC ASSESSMENTS: WHAT MAKES US UNIQUE

Our entire team is committed to supporting families by using a collaborative and empathetic approach to examining the “whole child,” which means we not only look at academic struggles, we identify social and emotional factors that affect daily functioning. We utilize an evidence- and strength-based approach to assessment, which means that we don’t only look at “the struggle,” we identify a child’s unique strengths.

Our clinical team has specialized and extensive training in child and adolescent development, neuropsychology, and clinical psychology. We provide high-level, individualized and comprehensive evaluations, and our psychoeducational and neuropsychological assessment reports are easy for parents and educators to understand; all reports include a detailed and individualized treatment plan that is specific to the child’s environment.

Dr. Karen I. Wilson

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Professional License/Credentialing  Information

  • Licensed Psychologist (Clinical), State of California – PSY 18249
  • Credentialed Health Service Provider in Psychology, National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology

Dr. Karen I. Wilson

Dr. Karen Wilson is a clinical neuropsychologist and owner of West LA Neuropsychology, PC, with more than 20 years of experience conducting comprehensive neuropsychological assessments with children, adolescents, and adults. Her approach is neurodiversity-affirming, strength-based, and culturally responsive, with a focus on understanding each person’s unique cognitive and learning profile, not simply identifying a diagnosis.
 
Dr. Wilson specializes in the assessment of ADHD, executive functioning, learning differences, and complex presentations in which significant strengths can mask meaningful challenges. She works with individuals across a wide range of abilities, including gifted and twice-exceptional learners and high-achieving children and adults whose difficulties may have been overlooked because they have been able to compensate for them.
 
A central focus of Dr. Wilson’s work is understanding what lies beneath an individual’s performance. Difficulties that appear to reflect motivation, effort, behavior, or inconsistency may instead reflect the interaction of attention, executive functioning, learning, emotional functioning, and environmental demands. Her evaluations integrate these factors to develop a more complete picture of how an individual processes information, where they thrive, where they encounter barriers, and what they need to function at their best.
 
Dr. Wilson views assessment as an opportunity to identify strengths as well as challenges and to help individuals better understand how their brains work. Her goal is to move beyond labels and test scores to provide families, educators, and individuals with a meaningful framework for understanding the person’s learning profile and practical, individualized recommendations that promote access, self-understanding, agency, and long-term success.
 
Equity is also central to Dr. Wilson’s approach. She is attentive to how culture, identity, educational opportunity, and systemic factors can shape both a person’s experience and how learning, attention, and emotional differences are recognized and interpreted. She is particularly committed to improving accurate identification and access to appropriate support for children from historically underserved communities.
 
Dr. Wilson completed her postdoctoral fellowship in Neuropsychology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA’s Neuropsychiatric Institute and Hospital, an APA-accredited predoctoral internship at the University of Florida Health Science Center, and practicum training at the Medical Psychology Clinic at Johns Hopkins University.
 
She previously served as an Assistant Clinical Professor (Voluntary) at the Medical Psychology Assessment Center at UCLA’s Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and as Graduate Coordinator and Department Chair of the Psychology Department at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Her research has examined learning, ADHD, and psychosocial functioning, and she has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

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DR. Jesse Fischer​

DR. Jesse Fischer

Dr. Jesse Fischer is a licensed clinical neuropsychologist who specializes in neuropsychological assessment of children, adolescents, and young adults who think and learn differently. His clinical expertise includes assessment, diagnosis, academic and treatment planning for individuals with neurodevelopmental concerns (e.g., learning disorders, AD/HD), traumatic brain injury/concussion, epilepsy, emotional difficulties, and other complex medical conditions. He is also a PEERS® for Adolescents Certified Provider. 

Dr. Fischer was born and raised in Los Angeles, and as a former collegiate football player, his passion for the connection between brain and body grew out of a desire to help athletes return to peak performance, maximize their potential, and continue to reach their goals in and out of sports after concussion/injury. Dr. Fischer professional background includes: 

  • Postdoctoral fellowship in the (Lifespan) Neuropsychology of Brain Injury and Sports Concussion track with the UCLA Steve Tisch BrainSPORT Program in the David Geffen School of Medicine.
  • Predoctoral internship in Pediatric Neuropsychology with the Medical Psychology Assessment Center at UCLA’s Semel Institute.
  • M.A. and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Houston. 
  • Clinical settings have included inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, as well as integrated pediatric care and specialty outpatient clinics at nationally recognized medical centers (Texas Children’s Hospital, TIRR Memorial Hermann, UCLA Semel Institute/David Geffen School of Medicine). 
  • B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Kinesiology at Occidental College.

 Dr. Fischer’s research interests focus on the impact of the family environment and early childhood stress (e.g., trauma, brain injury) on brain development, neural correlates of neuropsychological sequelae following TBI, as well as interventions to enhance recovery from sports concussion and more severe TBI. Dr. Fischer has also published research on sleep, depression, anxiety, and self-regulation difficulties following pediatric TBI, as well as posttraumatic stress and brain-related changes following TBI and bodily injury. He continues to publish research in high-impact scientific journals, and present research at national and international conferences, across topics of brain injury/concussion, neuroimaging, neurodevelopment, and related treatment intervention.  You can learn more about Dr. Fischer, here. 

DR. CLAUDIA KERNAN​

DR. CLAUDIA KERNAN

Dr. Kernan is a licensed clinical neuropsychologist specializing in the assessment of children, adolescents, and young adults. She has over fifteen years of experience conducting neuropsychological assessments in private practice, hospital, and community health settings. Dr. Kernan received her B.A. from Princeton University, where she studied anthropology and psychology, and her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from UCLA, where she minored in developmental psychology. She completed her predoctoral internship in pediatric neuropsychology at New York University and her postdoctoral residency in clinical neuropsychology at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, where she is currently a member of the clinical faculty. At UCLA, she serves as the director of the pediatric neuropsychology fellowship program within the medical school, which partners with The Help Group, a non-profit organization serving mental health and educational needs of children throughout the Los Angeles community. As an active research scientist in the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, she has published and presented at scientific conferences on topics affecting children and young adults, including attention difficulties, dyslexia and learning differences, traumatic brain injury and concussions, and ethnic identity and multiculturalism in school settings.

Referral concerns that Dr. Kernan frequently addresses include learning differences and a wide range of medical and developmental concerns. She also has extensive experience assessing cognitive abilities for placement in gifted or enriched educational programs. In terms of her practice philosophy, Dr. Kernan is passionate about using the science of neuropsychology to empower youths and families to look “beyond” diagnoses and gain an in-depth understanding of an individual’s unique constellation of cognitive and emotional gifts and challenges. Her customized assessments provide an integrative understanding of cognitive, academic, behavioral, and emotional functioning, providing holistic insight into the person. Dr. Kernan enjoys helping children and young adults “learn about their learning style” and uses a team approach with parents, educators, and intervention specialists to design comprehensive plans for addressing concerns and optimizing development.

A former professional ballet dancer and choreographer, Dr. Kernan is an advocate for the integration of art and science education. She currently serves as an advisory board member for the Entertainment Industry Council, a non-profit organization founded to support the entertainment industry in portraying cutting edge science, mental health, and diversity issues in a socially responsible manner. She has a longstanding interest in the neuroscience of creativity and this perspective informs her clinical practice.

CV available upon request.

Dr. Chandni Singh​

Dr. Chandni Singh

Dr. Chandni Singh is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in the diagnostic assessment of children, adolescents, and young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other neurodevelopmental concerns. Dr. Singh’s over 10 years of experience in working with neurodivergent individuals has contributed to her commitment to supporting culturally- and ethnically-diverse populations of children and youths with neurodevelopmental concerns through the integration of empirically-based assessments and personalized treatment recommendations. Dr. Singh has also provided psychological evaluations and behavioral consultations in a variety of settings, including medical centers, research programs, residential facilities, and rural communities. She values working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams of healthcare providers, which further informs her holistic approach to providing comprehensive assessments tailored to the specific needs of individuals and their families. At West LA Neuropsychology, PC, Dr. Singh’s expertise focuses on early diagnostic evaluations for infants, toddlers, and young children, as well as comprehensive diagnostic and psychoeducational assessments for school-aged children with suspected neurodevelopmental-related concerns and co-occurring mood disorders.

Dr. Singh received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Roosevelt University in Chicago, IL. During her graduate studies, Dr. Singh’s research focused on behavioral markers of anxiety in youth with Fragile X syndrome (FXS). She completed her predoctoral internship in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, OH and her postdoctoral fellowship in Autism and Developmental Disabilities at the Treatment and Research Institute for Autism Spectrum Disorders (TRIAD) and Monroe Carrel Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN. During her fellowship, Dr. Singh was involved in several advocacy and outreach programs through her work in consultative and training services for families, schools, and community partners to advance quality service delivery to remote areas whose communities have limited access to mental health services.

After completing her fellowship, she provided her diagnostic expertise at the UCLA Center for Autism Research and Treatment assessing children in a multisite National Institute of Health Autism Biomarkers Consortium for Clinical Trials (ABC-CT) research study, as well as the UCLA Pediatric Pain Program where she served as a clinical specialist for a telemedicine intervention pilot study for youth and young adults experiencing pain secondary to cancer. Subsequent to her time at UCLA, Dr. Singh went on to serve as the lead developmental psychologist at Kaiser Permanente West LA Learning and Development Clinic where she provided diagnostic assessments and consultation to children with suspected neurodevelopmental disorders and their families. Beginning in 2023, Dr. Singh transitioned to private practice and has since been providing comprehensive diagnostic and psychoeducational assessments to individuals in the West Los Angeles community.

Teresa Darensbourg​

Teresa Darensbourg

Teresa Darensbourg, MA is the office manager for West LA Neuropsychology, PC. Teresa has Master of Arts degree in Clinical Psychology, and she has a special interest in child development. Teresa is a Spanish-English speaker with experience working with children and parents as a behavior therapist, research assistant, social worker’s assistant, project manager, and educational coach. Her Master’s thesis examined intellectual, social and emotional functioning in children diagnosed with AD/HD and learning disabilities. Her interest in studying child psychology grew from wanting to understand the complexity of learning and behavior and how difficulties are connected to the human experience.

Teresa enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, and she hopes to pursue a doctoral degree in the future.

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2001 S. Barrington Avenue, Suite-121
Los Angeles, CA 90025

Phone : (310) 876-4294