Gretchen E. Ames, Ph.D.

Dr. Ames is board certified in Clinical Health Psychology and a licensed psychologist in the state of Florida. She holds the academic rank of Assistant Professor of Psychology in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and is an Adjunct Professor at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Florida where she teaches undergraduate Health Psychology. Dr. Ames joined the staff at Mayo Clinic in Florida in 2007 as the psychologist for the bariatric surgery program. Her clinical duties include performing psychological evaluations for patients who are seeking surgical options for treatment of obesity. She also teaches pre-surgery education classes and provides individual treatment for co-morbid conditions like depression and problematic eating behaviors. Dr. Ames facilities post-surgery support groups and conducts clinical research. She has received several Mayo Clinic intramural grants and published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles. She has presented her research and has been an invited speaker for national and international meetings of The Obesity Society, American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, and Society for Behavioral Medicine. She has also served on committees in national organizations and serves as an ad hoc reviewer for multiple peer-reviewed journals in the field of obesity and bariatric surgery as well as a practice sample reviewer for American Board of Professional Psychology.