Amen Clinics

Amen Clinics is a psychiatric clinic network founded by Dr. Daniel Amen and built around brain SPECT imaging as the centerpiece of diagnosis. The clinic operates 11 locations nationwide spanning major metropolitan areas from coast to coast. The practice has been in operation for 35 years and reports treating over 100,000 patients, conducting approximately 300,000 brain scans in its history. The clinic employs 60 or more board-certified clinicians. The approach fundamentally differs from traditional psychiatry in that it combines psychiatric evaluation with brain imaging to visualize the exact patterns affecting a patient's brain before deciding on treatment.

What you actually get

An Amen Clinics evaluation begins with a comprehensive whole-person assessment. The clinic gathers detailed clinical histories covering your biological, psychological, social, and spiritual background. This is paired with cognitive testing, questionnaires, and checklists about your symptoms and functioning. The central component is brain SPECT imaging: a nuclear medicine procedure that uses single photon emission computed tomography to show blood flow and activity patterns in the brain. SPECT reveals three things: areas of the brain that work well, areas that work too hard (overactive), and areas that don't work hard enough (underactive). This imaging-first approach allows the clinician to see patterns before deciding on a treatment plan.

Based on the complete evaluation and imaging results, the clinic creates an individualized, targeted treatment plan specifically for your needs and the way your unique brain functions. The site emphasizes that treatment plans are tailored, not one-size-fits-all. The clinic states it prefers to begin with natural treatments whenever possible and medically appropriate, before moving to medication.

The clinic operates in 11 locations: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, New York, Orange County, Phoenix/Scottsdale, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, and Washington D.C. It is an out-of-network provider, which means it does not bill insurance directly. However, the clinic provides a detailed superbill with diagnosis and billing codes that you can submit to your insurance company for potential reimbursement.

The clinic has partnered with CareCredit, a healthcare financing option, to make its specialized services including SPECT brain scans more affordable for patients who need payment plans. A patient concerned about cost can call 949-427-8195 to discuss options.

What the pages prove

The clinic presents specific outcome data from its brain SPECT approach. When brain SPECT imaging is added to an evaluation, the company states:

• 85% of patients report having a better quality of life after six months of treatment at Amen Clinics
• 79% of diagnoses and/or treatment plans change
• 60% of the time, medication and supplement recommendations change
• 22% of scans reveal an unexpected brain injury
• 20% of scans reveal unexpected brain toxicity

The site states these benefits occur specifically when SPECT imaging is integrated into the evaluation, making the imaging central to the clinic's value proposition.

The clinic lists broad condition expertise. The site names these conditions: ADD/ADHD, anxiety, autism spectrum disorder, bipolar disorder, concussions, depression, memory problems and dementia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, and drug and alcohol addiction. The homepage highlights ADHD among these conditions with a dedicated callout, reflecting it as a primary focus.

Dr. Daniel Amen is identified as the founder, and the clinic features peer-reviewed research, though the specific studies are not displayed on the homepage itself. The site mentions research in brain SPECT imaging and offers a "Validation Study" and "Brain SPECT Research" links, indicating published backing for the approach, though details are not provided in the main text.

The clinic takes multiple approaches to accessibility. It is employee-owned, it works with CareCredit for financing, and it provides superbills for insurance reimbursement rather than claiming it accepts insurance directly.

What the service does not say

Amen Clinics does not publish prices for SPECT imaging, evaluations, or ongoing care anywhere on its homepage. Someone interested in cost needs to contact the clinic directly at 949-427-8195 for pricing information. The site does not disclose what a typical SPECT scan costs, what an initial evaluation costs, or what ongoing visits would run.

The site does not name specific insurance plans it works with or what percentage of people's claims are typically reimbursed. It offers a superbill for potential reimbursement but does not state what portion of the cost, if any, insurance typically covers. A patient would need to contact their insurance and the clinic separately to get a clear answer on affordability.

The site does not specify wait times for appointments at any location. It also does not detail the credentials of its clinicians beyond "board-certified" or indicate whether they are psychiatrists, psychologists, or other mental-health professionals. Likewise, it doesn't break down how many clinicians are at each location or what specialties each clinician brings.

The site does not explain how often you need to return for follow-up visits, how long an initial evaluation takes, or whether SPECT imaging is required for every condition or only in specific cases. It also does not disclose the radiation exposure from SPECT imaging, a nuclear medicine procedure, or any potential side effects or contraindications.

Who it fits and who it does not

Amen Clinics is a fit for someone who has not responded well to standard psychiatric care and wants a second opinion based on brain imaging. Someone who has been diagnosed multiple times with different conditions, or whose symptoms don't fit neatly into one diagnosis, may benefit from seeing what the brain itself shows. It works well for someone in or near one of the 11 metropolitan areas served: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orange County, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, or Washington D.C.

It also suits someone with decent insurance coverage or savings who can absorb out-of-network costs and seek reimbursement. The CareCredit financing option helps those without insurance or with limited savings. Someone interested in a natural-first approach to treatment, before jumping to medication, will find this philosophy throughout the clinic's messaging.

Amen Clinics is not a fit if you live outside the 11 listed metropolitan areas and cannot travel to one. It does not work if you need telehealth or phone-only options: the clinic appears to be in-person only, though this is not explicitly stated. Someone without insurance and without access to CareCredit financing will have difficulty affording the out-of-network costs. Anyone who has already pursued psychiatric care and had a good result may not need the specialized brain-imaging approach. Someone uncomfortable with nuclear medicine or nervous about radiation exposure might want to ask the clinic about risk versus benefit before committing to a SPECT scan. And someone seeking purely therapy-based treatment without any medical or pharmaceutical component would likely be better served by a practice focused on psychotherapy alone.