Seda Ebrahimi, Ph.D.
Founder and Director of the Cambridge Eating Disorder Center (CEDC)
Seda Ebrahimi, Ph.D. has been working in the field of eating disorders since 1986. She began her career as a pre-doctoral intern at Brown University’s internship consortium and continued on to become an assistant clinical professor after a year of postdoctoral fellowship in the field of eating disorders. Subsequently, she worked as the Director of the Eating Disorders Research Program at Butler Hospital, the Director of the Eating Disorders Treatment Program at McLean Hospital, and has been an Instructor of Psychiatry at Harvard University. She continues to provide clinical education to professionals at conferences and trainings locally and nationally.
Dr. Ebrahimi is a member of the Academy for Eating Disorders, International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals and American Psychological Association. She is also involved in patient advocacy on a local and national level.
Alfredo R. Martija, MD, ABPN
Medical Director
Alfredo R. Martija, MD completed medical school in 1993 and started as a preliminary general surgery resident at SUNY Brooklyn. After completing two years, he decided to pursue his passion for mental health at the Harvard South Shore Psychiatry Residency Program with a fellowship in Public Psychiatry.
He went on to become the Medical Director of the Partial Hospitalization Program at the Corrigan Mental Health Center in Fall River, MA, working with a population of severely, chronically mentally ill patients. In 2009, he became Attending Physician, and in 2010 transitioned to Acting Medical Director of the Geropsychiatry unit at nearby St Anne’s Hospital. From 2009 to 2011, he also served as the outpatient psychiatrist at the Plymouth Department of Mental Health.
In 2011, he joined Quincy Medical Center as Attending in the Geropsychiatry unit and later became Chief of Psychiatry with clinical and administrative duties in the inpatient adult, adolescent and geriatric units. He also directed the outpatient medication clinic, the Partial Hospital Program and the consult liaison services through 2018.
In his position as CEDC Medical Director, Dr. Martija brings valuable experience in psychopharmacology and overall psychiatric management in assisting our clients through their struggles towards their recovery goals
Dr. Martija is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He also maintains an outpatient buprenorphine treatment program in his private practice.
Ruth Elliot
LICSW, Program Director, CEDC of NH
Ruth Elliott, LICSW has been a therapist in private practice working with eating disorder patients since 2008. She joined CEDC-New Hampshire in 2015 and became the Director in 2017.
Elliott has worked with families in home-based settings for several years and enjoys taking an active role in community education around eating disorder prevention and clinical training. She has presented on such topics as: Experiential Therapies for Eating Disorders; Identifying and Treating Binge Eating Disorder (BED); and Identifying & Treating Eating Disorders in Youth and Adult Populations.
It is her firm belief that more therapists and counselors in New Hampshire should be trained to identify eating disorders, so that those in need can find treatment and begin their path to recovery.
Samantha Millette
LCSW, Director of the PHP and IOP
Samantha Millette, LICSW and Director of the Partial Hospitalization and Intensive Outpatient programs, has worked in eating disorder treatment for several years. Employing treatment modalities such as CBT, DBT, ACT, Expressive Arts Therapy and Internal Family Systems, Samantha helps patients understand their eating disorder and that recovery is possible.
In 2018, Samantha joined CEDC because she wanted to cultivate her practice at an organization that was passionate about providing patients and their families eating disorder treatment in a calming and respectful milieu. “At CEDC, I have found a community of empathetic, committed and intelligent providers,” Samantha said. “As a provider in a larger body, I hope to provide space for clients to explore the impact of body image on the development of their self-worth and their eating disorder.”
In her role as supervisor to pre-license mental health providers, Samantha is passionate about helping interns and new clinicians develop. She also enjoys sharing her expertise and perspectives on treating eating disorder patients with colleagues through presentations and panel discussions.
Kristen Gaherty
LCSW, Clinical Intake Coordinator
Kristen Gaherty, LCSW, Clinical Intake Coordinator for CEDC, has always been passionate about advocating for and supporting others in need. Before coming to CEDC, she worked in a mental health practice that treated a diverse population that included eating disorder clients. She was inspired to join CEDC where she could learn more about and support this population. In her role as clinical intake coordinator, Kristen listens to and connects with patients at all stages of their eating disorder journey. She helps assess an appropriate level of care and supports those in need of treatment in making their first step towards eating disorder recovery. She feels honored to play a small role in the larger recovery journey for many of our patients.
Kristen holds a BA in Psychology from UMass Boston and a Master of Social Work from Wheelock College (now a part of Boston University). In her leisure time, Kristen plays board games, hikes with her dog, and enjoys traveling with her husband.
The CEDC Team
Residential Team
Medical Team
Nutrition Team
PHP and IOP Team
Cambridge Eating Disorder Center
Move from surviving to thriving.
The Cambridge Eating Disorder Center provides individuals suffering with eating disorders a comprehensive continuum of support services focused on their recovery. Our treatment programs focus on reducing the eating disorder symptoms while promoting the development of a healthy self that encompasses both emotional and physical well-being.
