Welcome to Oria.

A Word on Our Founder:

Dr. Richard Connell is a licensed Psychologist who believes in a therapeutic approach that treats both the mind and the body. To serve this purpose, he founded Connell & Associates in 2013, a behavioral health service clinic that offers comprehensive mental healthcare including therapy, medication management, and psychological evaluations. 

In his more than 20 years of service, Dr. Connell has served the whole person, making and maintaining the connection between emotional and physical health. But as we have all come to learn, mental healthcare delivery must evolve as needs do, and a major need is accessibility. Along these lines, Dr. Connell identified two significant issues in mental healthcare in his years of service: achieving the right fit between provider and client, and providing the ultimate continuity of care. His solution to both? Start a riot. 

Ignited by his passion and dedication but also the public health emergency brought about by COVID, Dr. Connell sought to create radical change in the provision of mental health services by creating a new virtual branch of Connell & Associates: Oria Health. Founded in 2020, Oria breaks down the geographical barriers to care so that you don’t need to settle for a provider who lives near you. When we go where you go, we also eliminate any lack of continuity of care so that you and your provider can continue your incredible and meaningful work together, boundlessly. Oria also ensures that its employees feel the same sense of inclusivity, support, and wellness that our clients do.

Matching clients with providers that are just right for them is fundamental to Dr. Connell’s mission. Because we are not restricted by geography, we are able to do just that and in Dr. Connell’s words:

“We want to attract the ideal provider. We don’t want to attract everyone, we’re not for everyone. What’s really important to me is that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.”

Our Mission

…is to provide the highest quality behavioral health care in the most convenient and effective way possible.

We leverage data and technology to improve the quality of treatment we provide and the care our client’s experience.

We do this by matching each client with the most appropriate provider, based on the client’s diagnosis and personality, as well as the expertise and personality of the provider.

We not only want to cultivate satisfaction for our clients, but also for our providers. Through monitoring performance indicators, we encourage our providers to improve the quality of treatment.

Meet the Team

  • Dr. Richard Connell, Ph.D.

    Founder | Chair

  • Dr. Christian Schrader, MD

    Chief Medical Advisor

  • Kayla Sprain

    Director of Operations

  • Rachel Roden

    Director of Accounting and Finance

  • Rachel Beachy

    Customer Experience Manager |
    Provider Experience Manager

  • Leigh Ann Mullins-Zugelder

    Director of Art and Social Media | Special Projects

Our Values

  • As a telehealth team, we meet people where they are, and we go with them wherever they go. But this core tenet is bigger than that; we reach each other at Oria. Providers build relationships that heal with their clients. Oria leadership helps providers reach new populations, helps HQ staff reach new levels in their careers, and helps clients reach the provider best suited for them. Together, we’re on a lifelong journey of growth.

  • Everybody is a work in progress and we’re here to help each other grow. With humility and curiosity, we give our hearts and get the direct feedback we all need to become great. This is a place where we encourage one another to speak up with ideas, concerns, dreams, and raise the flag to ask for help. We’re here to support one another, and that includes you.

  • We know that this starts with a safe and supportive workspace. We believe in communicating honestly and directly. We don’t back-channel, and we don’t gossip. An Oria team member is someone who speaks with kindness, authenticity, and respect at all times, to all people. We trust each other as collaborators, and we exist in a community.

  • Yes, you read that correctly.

    We are innovating within an industry because we believe that everyone deserves access to quality behavioral healthcare without experiencing shame, doubt, or any of the things that keep us from being our best. Fear gets in our way and failure is a natural consequence of trying and experimenting, but if we act with intention, try something, and fail at it, that’s okay - we can learn from that. For too many of us, not failing actually means we’re not innovating.

  • We seek first to understand.

    We admit what we don't understand.

    We hold each other accountable.

    We can disagree, but commit.

    We help each other.

    We believe the clear is kind, and unclear is unkind.

    We define tasks by what "done" looks like and roles by what “success” looks like.

  • Oria is a safe space for all. We know that the type of care someone needs is highly personal, and the type of person they receive care from is equally important. When we seek out new teammates, we look for superpowers, or those innate qualities that distinguish you from the rest. We write job descriptions based on those superpowers and build scaffolding where support is needed. We do not discriminate against anyone, for any reason, because we believe we are all equals. We don’t assume any one way of life or identity is the “best,” because the right one is the one you own.