Dr. Mariko Rajamand
Dr. Rajamand is a board certified OBGYN serving the greater Reno/Tahoe area since 2019. Dr. Rajamand offers the highest standard of care through her clinical evaluation and management plans made uniquely for each individual patient. Having a passion for moving women forward in their health, she sets to alter how we view “normal” changes in a female body. Leaking urine, prolapse, menstrual discomfort, menopausal symptoms, and pain with sex are all common experiences. Dr. Rajamand educates and empowers women to not settle for the outdated mindset you have to live with these concerns. If it bothers you and your life, Dr. Rajamand will work to help fix the problem. Setting her apart from traditional gynecologists, she has unique training enabling her to perform complex urogynecologic surgeries on the pelvic floor. These advanced procedures offer gold standard treatment of vaginal and uterine prolapse, urinary incontinence, and pelvic pain. Utilizing advanced skills in minimally invasive robotic surgery, Dr. Rajamand performs procedures with superior outcomes, minimal down time, and decreased pain.
Education
After graduating from California State University, Long Beach, Dr. Rajamand attended Midwestern University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Glendale, AZ. She encorporates the osteopathic philosophy of treating the whole person with each patient and uses osteopathic manipulative treatment to help the patient’s body heal itself. Dr. Rajamand was fortunate to train in obstetrics and gynecology outside of Detroit, MI graduating from Michigan State University at Ascension Health Hospitals.
Professional Achievements
Dr. Rajamand has affiliations with various organizations being active with the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists, and the North American Menopause Society. She finished her last year as a resident physician in the honored position of Chief Administrative Resident. Dr. Rajamand also was a 4-time recipient of the Resident Teacher Award. She continues her love of teaching by being on faculty with University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine. Her advocacy for women’s health and public policy has lead Dr. Rajamand appointed to the Board of Directors of the Washoe County Medical Society and an active member of Nevada State Medical Association. Involved in a number of research projects, she was a Dr. Kenneth A. Suarez Research Fellowship recepient in medical school later focusing her research on minimally invasive gynecology outcomes with robotics and improving outcomes in high risk obstetics.
Personal
A previous Division I volleyball player, Dr. Rajamand loves being active and enjoying the outdoor life provided by beautiful Reno, Nevada. She and her husband are blessed with 4 children who they spend all their time with outside of work.
Dr .Yizhou Ernst
As a gynecologist, Dr. Ernst enjoys the privilege of taking care of women throughout their lives; from their first period to their transition into menopause and beyond. Although she specializes in complete gynecologic care for all ages, Dr.Ernst has a particular interest in menopausal medicine. Her treatment philosophy stems from having attended an osteopathic medical school and involves the integration of the mind and body. Women who visit Dr. Ernst for any complaint will receive compassionate care and individual attention with clear communication and professionalism.
Additionally, Dr. Ernst is a skilled laparoscopic and robotic surgeon. She is highly skilled in all forms of minimally invasive surgical techniques as she believes this type of procedure offers shorter recovery time and reduced pain. It allows patients to be able to return to their daily lives faster than they otherwise could.
Dr. Yizhou Du Ernst was born in Beijing, China but immigrated to the United States with her family in 1990. She grew up in the scenic Bitterroot Valley, Montana where she enjoyed the outdoors with friends and family. After high school, Dr. Ernst attended the University of Southern California and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Neuroscience. She then went on to earn a Master’s degree in Physiology and Biophysics from Georgetown University. Later, Dr. Ernst attended Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine where she developed an interest in women’s health and stayed on the east coast to complete her Ob/Gyn residency at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, NJ.
She is an active member of the North American Menopause Society as well as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Dr. Ernst has been involved in teaching since she lived in California. She was the Chief of Education in her final year of residency at St. Barnabas. In addition to being a Community Faculty member for the University of Nevada Reno’s School of Medicine, Dr. Ernst is active in volunteering with the UNR Student Outreach Clinic, where she supervises young training physicians who provide free medical care to the Reno community.
Since she feels strongly about giving back to the global community, Dr. Ernst has also participated in medical mission trips to the Philippines, helping to provide free gynecologic surgeries to less fortunate patients. Although the pandemic stopped this mission, she hopes to be able to resume this work in the future.
Dr. Ernst resides in Reno. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, knitting, and attending concerts with her husband.
Andrea Thompson, APRN
Andrea Thompson, APRN, FNP-C, PMHNP-BC, PMH-C is a Nurse Practitioner whose background stemmed in primary care, primarily working with under-served and under-insured populations. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Washington, where she focused on the study of public health and even spent time abroad in Kenya. After graduation, she began working in clinical research where she worked on several medications in the pipeline for treatment of multiple sclerosis, pulmonary conditions and cardiac heart valves. She then completed her Masters of Nursing at Seattle University.
After several years in family practice, she completed a post-master’s certification as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner at University of Nevada, Reno. In early 2019, she started a program the first of its kind in Northern Nevada to integrate mental health services into a women’s health practice where she had a focus in reproductive psychiatry and she has continued to expand on that specialty since that time.
Andrea Thompson, APRN is certified in Perinatal Mental Health through Postpartum Support International to even better serve her clients. She also has a passion for integrative approaches and has completed a Fellowship in Integrative & Reproductive Psychiatry in order to provide even more options for her clients in their treatment.
Andrea is also active in her efforts to support her community’s health and wellness. She is a current member of NAPNA (The Nevada Advanced Practice Nurses Association) and is active at the state legislative level to support Nurse Practitioner autonomy and improve maternal health outcomes in Nevada. She has also been an appointed member of the Sexual Health and Responsibility Education (S.H.A.R.E) Committee in Washoe County, NV, where she has played an integral role in updating the sexual health and HIV education offered to students in Washoe County.
She and her husband moved to the Reno area several years ago from Seattle, WA to settle into a place to raise their family; they have three young children who have not only been an integral part of Andrea’s professional journey but also add joy and chaos in their lives every day.
Carrie Yamamoto APRN, ACNP-BC, CCRN
Carrie Yamamoto’s innate love to care for others started when he grew up on a dairy farm milking cows and being the caretaker for many farm animals in rural Michigan.
She obtained her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Saginaw Valley State University. Her nursing career took her to the prestigious University of Michigan Hospital in the pulmonary unit and critical care medical unit. From there she moved to Buffalo, NY with her now husband, Dr. Kyle Yamamoto, whom also practices in Reno, continuing her nursing career in surgical intensive care unit, neuro intensive care unit, chest pain unit, critical care float pool.
Wanting to make an even more impactful difference in her patients’ lives, she obtained her Nurse Practitioner degree, a Master’s of Science of Nursing from the esteemed University of Rochester School of Nursing in New York. She started her Nurse Practitioner career in 2015 when she moved to Reno and has specialized solely on pulmonary and sleep patients.
She is a highly skilled and passionate, board certified Acute Care Nurse Practitioner specifically trained in sleep and pulmonary medicine by expert mentors at Renown Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine and Northern Nevada Pulmonary Medical Group. She is accredited to treat insomnia with Brief Behavioral Therapy (BBT-I), and has taken extensive courses in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT-I); the first line treatment for insomnia, which is considered more superior than medication.
She is also specializes in, but not limited to obstructive sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, and periodic limb movement disorder. In pulmonary medicine, she is equipped to care for complicated cases related to, but not limited to asthma, COPD, ILD, pulmonary nodules, and lung cancer.
Being an active listener, empathetic, and eager to find the root cause of concerns are just a few traits why her patient’s love seeing Carrie for all their sleep and pulmonary needs. Combating her own sleep complexities, she is able to relate to others, and knows how difficult it can feel not obtaining proper quality and quantity of sleep. She enjoys celebrating each patients’ successes, as she understands they are each unique individuals with their own personal story.
She can be found online discussing the importance of diagnosing and treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea with Health Benefits Associates, and has been featured on Channel 2 NEWS also discussing Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). In addition, she loves to teach others and has precepted many nurses and nurse practitioner students to become confident, critical thinkers.
She is accredited through American Nurses Credentialing Center, and is an active member of: Nevada Advanced Practice Nurses Association, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Society of Behavioral Sleep Medicine, California Sleep Society, American Association of Critical Nursing. She and her husband Kyle have two boys. They enjoy playing games, reading books, traveling, being with friends and family.
Falon Schnieder, MFT
I obtained my undergraduate degree from the University of Nevada, Reno in human development and family studies. I went on to get my masters in counseling and educational psychology with an emphasis in marriage and family therapy from UNR as well.
I started my career providing therapy to children and adolescents with acute mental health challenges, but have really found my passion in perinatal mental health and overall wellbeing for women.
Over the past ten years of my career as a therapist, I have also developed a passion for working with trauma and attachment and how those aspects impact all areas of living. I hope to work alongside my clients in finding their sense of empowerment, their voice, and fulfillment. I am a firm believer in being an advocate for my clients to support navigating systems that don’t always take the time to hear concerns and challenges.
In addition to perinatal mental health, trauma, and attachment, I have experience in working with OCD and providing exposure and response prevention therapy, working with foster and adoptive parents, and child development.
I live with my husband and two kids and have been in Nevada since I was a young child. We enjoy going to Disneyland or anywhere with a beach to enjoy the water and sunshine!