Tampa has a real psychiatrist shortage. Most outpatient practices in Hillsborough County run a 3- to 6-month new-patient waitlist. Hospital-affiliated clinics push the wait further. By the time you actually get an appointment, the reason you called is either worse or has resolved on its own - and you are starting from a different place than where you began. Ascend built capacity differently. Anna Stouffer, PMHNP-BC sees Tampa-area patients via Florida telehealth from anywhere in the Bay area, with most new evaluations scheduled within 1 to 2 weeks of calling. In-person availability sits at the Wesley Chapel flagship office, 25 minutes north on I-75 for patients who want or need that option.
Meet Anna Stouffer, PMHNP-BC
Anna Stouffer, PMHNP-BC is a dual-board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner and Family Nurse Practitioner with more than 10 years of clinical experience. The dual certification matters for patients whose psychiatric presentation overlaps with medical issues - thyroid dysregulation, sleep apnea, chronic pain, hormonal shifts, medication interactions - because the prescriber can read the whole picture instead of stopping at the psych chart. Anna holds a 5.0 patient rating on Zocdoc and is the named psychiatric provider on every Ascend page touching adult psychiatry. Her primary office is at our Wesley Chapel flagship at 27724 Cashford Circle, and she sees Tampa patients primarily via HIPAA-secure Florida telehealth.
Conditions Anna Stouffer treats
The most common psychiatric presentations bringing Tampa-area adults into care. Click through for the condition-specific page when you want depth:
Beyond the condition pages, Anna also handles perinatal mood disorders (postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, perinatal OCD), premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), and treatment-resistant presentations that may benefit from ketamine therapy at the Wesley Chapel clinic under coordinated psychiatric supervision.
Psychiatric services available to Tampa patients
Initial psychiatric evaluation (60–75 min)
Diagnostic interview, full psychiatric and medical history, family history, prior treatment history including what worked and what did not, symptom rating scales appropriate to the presenting concern (PHQ-9, GAD-7, ASRS or DIVA-5 for ADHD, MDQ for bipolar screening, PCL-5 for PTSD, Y-BOCS for OCD), discussion of treatment options with their actual risks and benefits, and a working diagnostic impression. If medication is part of the plan, prescription is sent electronically to the Tampa-area pharmacy of your choice after the visit. The eval is the foundation, not a quick screen - getting the diagnosis right matters more than getting the prescription out.
Medication management (20–30 min follow-up)
SSRIs, SNRIs, atypical antidepressants, stimulants and non-stimulants for ADHD, mood stabilizers (lithium, lamotrigine, valproate), antipsychotics including atypicals for bipolar and adjunctive use, anxiolytics with appropriate caution, and the conversation about when something is not working and we need to change course. Ongoing monitoring for effectiveness, side effects, and interactions with anything else you take. Lab monitoring (lithium levels, thyroid panels, lipid screening on atypicals, EKG when relevant) ordered through Quest or LabCorp Tampa locations.
Adult ADHD evaluation
The most common reason adults book a new evaluation. A real ADHD workup includes standardized rating scales (ASRS-v1.1, DIVA-5), childhood symptom timeline, ruling out look-alike conditions (sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety, thyroid issues, substance patterns), and a discussion of stimulant vs. non-stimulant options if criteria are met. Florida law and current DEA telehealth flexibilities allow controlled-substance prescribing via telehealth once the clinical relationship is established. We do not write stimulants from a 15-minute screening visit.
Treatment-resistant depression and ketamine referral
For patients who have not responded adequately to multiple antidepressant trials, our practice provides on-site supervised ketamine therapy at the Wesley Chapel clinic. Tampa patients who begin psychiatric care with Anna and qualify clinically can transition to ketamine under the same clinical team - not a referral to a separate clinic that does not have your full chart.
Perinatal psychiatry
Postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, postpartum OCD, and perinatal mood disorders during pregnancy. Anna's dual psychiatric/family-medicine training is particularly useful here because the prescribing decisions involve weighing maternal mental health against medication exposure during pregnancy and lactation - the kind of conversation where trade-offs need to be discussed honestly, not glossed over.
How telehealth psychiatry works for Tampa patients
Florida allows full psychiatric evaluation and medication management - including controlled-substance prescribing for appropriate clinical cases under current DEA rules - via HIPAA-secure video. Here is the sequence:
- Before the visit. You receive a secure video link by email or text the day of the appointment. No app install required - the link opens in your browser. Complete intake and rating scales online ahead of time.
- During the visit. Anna conducts the same diagnostic interview she would in person. For ADHD or other complex evaluations, expect some homework before the next visit (symptom timelines, additional rating scales, sometimes records from prior treatment).
- Prescriptions. Sent electronically to the Tampa-area pharmacy of your choice after the visit. Insurance prior authorizations, when needed, are initiated by our front desk.
- Follow-up cadence. Typically 4 to 6 weeks during titration, then every 1 to 3 months once stable. Some patients on long-term stable regimens move to twice-yearly visits with portal messaging in between.
For a full walkthrough of telehealth requirements, what to expect technically, and our approach across Florida, see the Florida telehealth psychiatry page.
Two ways Tampa patients see Anna
Option 1: Florida telehealth (most common)
From your home, office, parked car, or anywhere private in Florida. HIPAA-secure video. No commute, no sitting in a waiting room, no rearranging the workday around drive time. Most Tampa-area patients do 100% of their psychiatric care this way once they realize the appointment quality is the same as in-person and the logistics are far easier.
Option 2: In person at Wesley Chapel
The Wesley Chapel flagship at 27724 Cashford Circle, Suite 102, Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 is about 25 minutes north of central Tampa via I-75. Free parking, first-floor suite. Tampa-area patients who want the option of in-person visits, in-person ketamine therapy on the same day as a psychiatric follow-up, or coordinated in-person therapy use Wesley Chapel for those visits and telehealth for routine medication management. You can mix and match session-to-session - one visit telehealth, the next in person, your choice.
Insurance and self-pay
Anna Stouffer is in-network for psychiatric care with Aetna, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, AARP, ChampVA, and Humana - 9 carriers. We verify your benefits before your first visit so you know what you owe before you log in.
Self-pay rates per our pricing page:
- Initial psychiatric evaluation (60–75 min): $320
- Follow-up medication management (20–30 min): $160
HSA, FSA, CareCredit, and Cherry financing accepted. We provide superbills you can submit for out-of-network reimbursement.
Find psychiatry near you
Already a Tampa patient and looking for the right entry point for someone in Tampa Bay outside the city core? The geo pages below cover the same psychiatric service from neighboring cities:
Brandon
Telehealth psychiatry for the eastern Hillsborough corridor. In-person at Wesley Chapel about 35 minutes via I-75.
Brandon Psychiatry →St. Petersburg
Telehealth psychiatry for Pinellas County. Wesley Chapel for in-person via I-275 / I-75.
St. Pete Psychiatry →Clearwater
Telehealth psychiatry for northern Pinellas. In-person at Wesley Chapel via Courtney Campbell + I-75.
Clearwater Psychiatry →FAQs about psychiatry in Tampa
Does Ascend have a psychiatrist for Tampa?
Yes. Tampa-area psychiatric care is provided by Anna Stouffer, PMHNP-BC, dual-board-certified in psychiatric-mental-health and family-practice nursing. Most Tampa patients are seen via HIPAA-secure Florida telehealth from anywhere in the Bay area; in-person visits are at our Wesley Chapel flagship office, about 25 minutes north on I-75.
How fast can I see a psychiatrist?
Most new psychiatric patients are scheduled within 1 to 2 weeks. Florida's typical industry wait is 3 to 6 months for new-patient psychiatry. Ascend keeps appointments open by running both in-person and telehealth in parallel, and by sizing the practice around real patient demand.
What conditions does Anna Stouffer treat?
Adult ADHD, major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder I and II, PTSD, OCD, perinatal mood disorders (postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, postpartum OCD), premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), grief and life transitions when they cross into clinical territory, and treatment-resistant presentations that may benefit from ketamine therapy at the Wesley Chapel clinic. Initial evaluation establishes diagnostic clarity before any treatment plan.
What insurance does Ascend psychiatry accept?
Aetna, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, AARP, ChampVA, and Humana - 9 carriers in-network with Anna Stouffer for psychiatric care. We verify benefits before your first visit. Self-pay rates are $320 initial / $160 follow-up.
Can controlled substances like ADHD medication be prescribed via telehealth?
Yes. Florida law and current DEA telehealth flexibilities allow controlled-substance prescribing via telehealth once the clinical relationship is established. Anna conducts a full evaluation including standardized rating scales (ASRS, DIVA-5 for ADHD; PHQ-9 for depression; PCL-5 for PTSD) before any prescription decision. We do not write stimulants from a 15-minute screening visit.
Do I have to travel to Wesley Chapel for psychiatric visits?
No. Most Tampa-area patients do all of their psychiatric care - initial evaluation and follow-ups - via Florida telehealth. In-person at Wesley Chapel is available for patients who prefer it, or for patients who need same-day in-person ketamine therapy alongside a psychiatric follow-up. You can mix and match session-to-session.
Can I get therapy and psychiatry coordinated under one practice?
Yes. Our talk-therapy team and Anna Stouffer share one electronic chart. When both psychiatric medication and therapy are clinically indicated, the providers coordinate directly - no faxing records between systems, no re-telling your story to a new clinician. This is the integrated-practice advantage you actually feel as a patient.
What does an initial psychiatric evaluation cover?
60 to 75 minutes. Diagnostic interview, full psychiatric and medical history, family history, prior treatment history (what worked, what did not, why you stopped), symptom rating scales appropriate to your presenting concern, discussion of treatment options with their actual risks and benefits, and a working diagnostic impression. If medication is part of the plan, prescription is sent to your pharmacy after the visit.
What if my diagnosis is unclear or I have been misdiagnosed before?
This is a common reason patients switch to Ascend. Anna's evaluation is built around diagnostic clarity - the right diagnosis matters more than the fastest prescription. Bringing prior records, prior medication trials, and family psychiatric history to the first visit accelerates the work. For complex presentations, sometimes a second visit is needed before treatment recommendations are finalized.
Can Anna prescribe medications during pregnancy or breastfeeding?
Yes - with the appropriate risk-benefit conversation. Anna's dual psychiatric/family-medicine training is particularly useful for perinatal patients because the prescribing decisions involve weighing maternal mental health against medication exposure during pregnancy and lactation. We use current Reprotox and LactMed evidence and discuss trade-offs honestly rather than defaulting to "no medication during pregnancy."
Clinical references
Diagnostic instruments and prescribing protocols referenced on this page are sourced from current evidence-based guidance. Sources patients can read directly:
- National Institute of Mental Health: Adult ADHD overview (nimh.nih.gov). The structured ADHD evaluation used at Ascend follows NIMH guidance plus standardized instruments (ASRS-v1.1, DIVA-5).
- American Psychiatric Association clinical practice guidelines (psychiatry.org). Used as the framework for major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, and bipolar disorder treatment planning.
- DEA Diversion Control Division: telehealth and controlled substances (deadiversion.usdoj.gov). Florida controlled-substance prescribing via telehealth follows current DEA flexibilities and FL Statute 456.47.