Neuropsychology

Elyssa Scharaga, Ph.D.

Dr. Elyssa Scharaga, PhD (she/her) is a Co-Director and Clinical Neuropsychologist at The Center for Cognitive Health (CCH) at Brain and Spine Surgeons of New York (BSSNY). In addition, she is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. Prior to joining CCH, Dr. Scharaga was a Senior Neuropsychologist at Zucker Hillside Hospital, Northwell Health.

Dr. Scharaga completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in clinical neuropsychology at the VA Connecticut Healthcare System, and a predoctoral psychology internship at the Northport VAMC, with a concentration in neuropsychology. She earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology at Yeshiva University, and undergraduate degree from the George Washington University.

Her clinical focus is in traumatic brain injuries, dementia, stroke, epilepsy, and movement disorders. In addition to conducting neuropsychological evaluations, she provides cognitive remediation and executive functioning coaching. She also provides evidence-based psychotherapy for several issues, including adjustment to chronic medical/neurological conditions and caregiver stress.

In addition to clinical care, her research interests are in cognitive issues related to aging, cardiovascular diseases, infectious disease, and chronic pain. She is involved in local and international psychology organizations and is on the executive board of the Queer Neuropsychological Society and the Education Advisory Committee of the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology.

Neurology

Tatyana Gitlevich, M.D.

Dr. Tatyana Gitlevich has been practicing neurology since 1993. She began her medical career in Russia after graduating from the prestigious I. M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy. She practiced medicine in Russia from 1993 – 1998 before coming to the United States in 1998. She completed a neurology residency at Westchester Medical Center and a neurophysiology Fellowship at Montefiore Medical Center. She is Board certified in Neurology, Neurophysiology and Epilepsy.

Dr. Gitlevich evaluates patients with epilepsy 16 years and older. She also treats patients with dementia and recent head trauma, and provides concussion management and evaluation for cognitive issues related to head trauma and suspected neurodegenerative disorders. She also has a special interest in headache treatment using trigger point injections, occipital nerve blocks, and Botox® injections to help alleviate patients’ pain.

Dr. Gitlevich also performs EEG tests, a critical tool for diagnosing epilepsy and other brain disorders, which uses electrodes attached to the scalp to detect electrical activity in the brain. Click here for more information on EEG testing.

As part of her treatment philosophy, Dr. Gitlevich focuses on her patients’ lifestyles and strives to help them with their overall well-being.

She has been part of numerous research projects, publications, and professional societies both here and in Russia, and has been named a Castle Connolly “Top Doc” every year since 2014.

Dr. Gitlevich is fluent in Russian and English. She sees patients at BSSNY’s White Plains office and also in Manhattan.

Neurosurgery

John M. Abrahams, M.D.

Dr. John Abrahams treats disorders of the brain and spine as BSSNY President. He is the author of numerous patents, has authored over 30 publications in peer-reviewed journals and textbooks, and given lectures at many national and local meetings. In addition to being BSSNY President, he is also Northern Westchester Hospital’s Co-Director of the Spine Section of the Orthopedic and Spine Institute. In 2009, he founded and now runs the Westchester Neuroscience Research Foundation. The Foundation is currently funding a project in conjunction with the Department of Pathology at New York Medical College studying the genomic profile of malignant brain tumors.

Dr. Abrahams has a background in biomedical engineering and been quite active as a biomedical entrepreneur, and has founded numerous biomedical companies including EndoMedix, AsiloMedix, Connectiphi, and Osteomedix. Dr. Abrahams’ most recent project is a surgical robotic device for brain surgery.

Dr. Abrahams was named President of Brain & Spine Surgeons of New York in 2015 and was recently named one of the “Top 10 Spine, Orthopedic Surgeon Tech Entrepreneurs to Know” by Becker’s Spine Review. To read the article, click here.