Child Psychiatry Wesley Chapel
Pediatric psychiatric evaluation and treatment for ages 5 through 17 at our Cashford Circle office, or by HIPAA-secure telehealth anywhere in Florida. Full-hour first appointments, and a planned handover when a patient turns eighteen.
Help for your kid, this week.
Tell us what is going on. A care coordinator will get you on the schedule at our Wesley Chapel office (or by video), usually within one business day.
Got it. We will be in touch.
A care coordinator will reach out within one business day. If you would rather not wait, call (813) 670-3005.
The home office, and what being in the room adds
Wesley Chapel is where the practice is based. The Cashford Circle suite off SR-54 is where in-person pediatric psychiatric appointments happen, and where the in-person evaluation Florida requires before a first stimulant prescription takes place. The surrounding area has grown quickly, with Wiregrass, Seven Oaks, Meadow Pointe, Watergrass, and the newer Two Rivers development adding a large young-family population to north Pasco.
Video works well for most of pediatric psychiatry and we use it heavily. There are specific things a room does better. Watching a child and parent interact directly. Seeing how a young child handles the space. Noticing restlessness or a motor tic that a webcam frame crops out. Giving a guarded adolescent a setting with fewer people listening from the next room. When those things matter for a particular child, the office is available rather than theoretical.
Turning eighteen in the middle of treatment
This page covers ages five through seventeen, which means a portion of our patients age out while they are still in active treatment. That transition is handled badly in a lot of places, and families are often surprised by how abruptly the rules change on a birthday.
At eighteen the legal picture shifts. The young adult holds their own medical decision-making and their own privacy rights. Parents no longer have automatic access to records or to appointment information, and continued involvement requires the young adult's written authorization. Insurance, pharmacy logistics, and who actually schedules the appointments all shift at the same moment, frequently in the middle of a college application year.
What we hand a young adult on the way out of pediatric care
We start the conversation before the birthday rather than after it. That means a deliberate handover: making sure the young adult knows their own diagnosis and history in their own words, can describe what they take and why, understands what a lapse in treatment has tended to look like for them, and knows how to make an appointment and fill a prescription without a parent doing it.
We talk with families about authorization, so that parents who will still be involved have documented permission rather than an assumption. Where a young adult is leaving the area for school we discuss continuity: what care looks like at a university health service, what telehealth across state lines does and does not permit, and how to avoid a gap during a first semester.
Ascend also treats adults, so for a young person staying in Florida the handover can be internal rather than a referral into the unknown. Continuing here is an option rather than an obligation. Some young adults would rather start fresh with someone new, which is a reasonable choice and one we support.
What a first in-person appointment covers
Sixty minutes. Bring the child, a parent or guardian, any prior school testing or psychological evaluation reports, the current 504 plan or IEP if one exists, and a full list of medications and supplements. We take the developmental, medical, school, and family history, and we screen for depression and safety concerns regardless of the referral question.
With older children and adolescents we typically spend part of the visit with the parent present and part without, and we set out the confidentiality boundaries with both at the start. The appointment ends with an explanation in plain language and a plan. Where medication is part of that plan it is discussed on its own merits alongside therapy and other approaches, with the risks stated, and responses differ between individuals.
Getting in from Wiregrass, Seven Oaks, and Meadow Pointe
The office is at 27724 Cashford Circle, Suite 102, Wesley Chapel, FL 33544, off SR-54 near the Wiregrass corridor, with on-site parking. From most of north Pasco and Wiregrass the drive is ten to twenty minutes; from Land O Lakes about fifteen; from Lutz fifteen to twenty; from New Tampa fifteen to twenty-five depending on the hour.
New pediatric intakes are typically one to two weeks out for an in-person appointment and often sooner by video. A small number of slots are held each week for children in crisis or out of school. Later-afternoon appointments exist for families trying to avoid pulling a child out of a school day, and those fill first.
Margot Krahn, PMHNP-BC
Margot Krahn, PMHNP-BC is a board-certified, Florida-licensed psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with twelve years of clinical experience and lifespan training across child, adolescent, adult, and geriatric psychiatric care. She sees families in person at the Wesley Chapel office and across Florida by HIPAA-secure telehealth.
Because her training and her practice span the full age range, a patient who turns eighteen here does not necessarily have to start over with a stranger. She begins the transition conversation well before the birthday rather than on the day the rules change.
Read Margot's full bioQuestions about care at the Wesley Chapel office
What happens to my child's care when they turn eighteen?
Their legal status changes. They hold their own medical decision-making and privacy rights, and your access to records or appointment information requires their written authorization. We begin planning that transition before the birthday, including the practical parts such as scheduling and pharmacy logistics.
Can my child keep seeing the same clinician after eighteen?
Often yes. Ascend treats adults as well as children, so continuing here is possible for young adults staying in Florida. It is an option and not a requirement; some prefer to start with a different clinician as adults, and that is a legitimate choice.
My child is leaving for college. How do we avoid a gap?
Plan it before the semester starts. We talk through what a university health service typically provides, the limits on treating a patient physically located in another state, prescription logistics away from home, and what to do if things deteriorate mid-term. The common failure is running out of a plan in October, not choosing the wrong one in August.
Is in-person better than telehealth for children?
Not automatically. Most pediatric psychiatric care transfers well to video. In-person has advantages in particular situations: young children, watching a family interact directly, movement or motor symptoms that a camera frame hides, and adolescents who want more privacy than a household allows. We recommend based on the child rather than on a policy.
What should we bring to a first appointment?
Prior school testing or psychological reports, the current 504 plan or IEP if there is one, recent teacher feedback, a full medication and supplement list, and the name of the pediatrician. If you have none of that, come anyway; we work with what exists.
How soon can we get an in-person appointment?
Usually one to two weeks for a new pediatric intake, and often sooner if you are willing to start by video. A few same-week slots are reserved for urgent situations. Call (813) 670-3005 for a real next-available time.
Will my child see the same clinician each visit?
Yes. Pediatric patients are matched with Margot Krahn, PMHNP-BC, for evaluation and ongoing care rather than rotated through a panel.
Do you bill Medicaid?
Ascend does not bill Medicaid. If your child is covered by a Medicaid plan, call the care team and we will go over the options that exist.
The office is here, and the calendar is open.
In-person pediatric appointments on Cashford Circle, telehealth anywhere in Florida, and a full hour for the first visit. Use the form at the top of this page or call, and a care coordinator will reach you within one business day.