Director, CAARE Diagnostic and Treatment Center
Michele Ornelas Knight is not currently accepting new patients. For assistance finding a UC Davis doctor, please call 800-2-UCDAVIS (800-282-3284).
CAARE Diagnostic and Treatment Center
3671 Business Drive
Sacramento, CA 95820
My goal is to provide cultural responsive, empirically supportive treatment focused on creating a safe space for each client and family to the build trust needed to engage in therapy. Therapy can elicit many feelings and create a sense of vulnerability; making the choice to start the work takes courage. Taking the time to listen to children and families and help them prioritize their needs is an essential first step.
Dr. Ornelas Knight is a clinical child psychologist in the department of Pediatrics offering mental health services to children and adolescents with histories of trauma and abuse. She specializes in providing care to adolescents who engage high risk behaviors such as suicidal attempts, self-injurious behaviors, and eating disorders.
Michele Ornelas Knight is the Director of the CAARE Diagnostic and Treatment Center and the Director of the Trauma Recovery Center. Her research interest include improving psychosocial and mental health treatment outcomes for violently injured youth and young adults, improving accessibility and treatment outcomes for child and adolescent trauma survivors, and increasing early detection and treatment of adolescent eating disorders in underserved populations.
General Pediatrics
B.A., Psychology, UC Irvine, Irvine CA 1993
PsyD, Clinical Psychology, University of Denver, Graduate School of Professional Psychology, Denver CO 1999
Child Abuse, River Oak Center for Children, Sacramento CA 1998-1999
University of California Women's Initiative for Professional Development (UC WI), 2022, 2023
Sierra Health Foundation Health Leadership Program, 2009
Ornelas Knight M, Chew J, Gonzalez E. The Child Welfare System: A Map for the Bold Traveler. Talley PF (ed). Handbook for the Treatment of Abused and Neglected Children, Allyn and Bacon. 2005;2:25-38.
Talley PF, Ornelas Knight M. The Therapeutic Relationship in the Treatment of Abused Children and Neglected Children. Talley PF (ed). Handbook for the Treatment of Abused and Neglected Children, Allyn and Bacon. 2005.