Veteran behavioral health executive to lead partnerships and market expansion for data-driven telepsychiatry platform serving rural communities.
BILLINGS, MT, UNITED STATES, March 27, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Frontier Psychiatry has appointed Kristi Ellis as Senior Vice President of Growth to lead the expansion of its telepsychiatry services across underserved communities with limited access to high quality care.
Kristi holds a BSB from the Carlson School of Management and most recently served as Vice President of Growth for Behavioral Health at Access Telecare, a national provider of telepsychiatry for hospitals and healthcare systems. As a veteran executive with a deep background in scaling behavioral health systems, Kristi will oversee the organization’s move into new markets and lead growth strategy for payer and partner relationships. Her role is central to Frontier’s mission of tackling the rural mental health crisis by bringing high-quality, data-backed care to communities such as Montana, Idaho and Alaska that have historically been underserved. The national search for this role was conducted by The Tolan Group.
Kristi joins Frontier with nearly two decades of healthcare leadership experience, specifically focused on scaling private equity-backed organizations. She has scaled revenue from $8 million to over $45 million, expanded operations nationally, and increased new patient volumes by over 300%. Throughout her career, she has been instrumental in transforming regional providers into national solutions, consistently driving exponential revenue growth and expanding clinical operations into new communities that need access to critical care. Her expertise lies in building robust sales pipelines and supporting the infrastructure necessary to support rapid, sustainable scaling.
“We interviewed candidates from across the country, and Kristi stood out because she has already navigated the exact path we are embarking on,” said Eric Arzubi, MD, CEO and Co-Founder of Frontier Psychiatry. “She has a unique ability to scale behavioral health platforms in rural communities while building the deep-rooted payer relationships that make that growth possible. She does this all without losing sight of why the work matters, a rare and vital combination.”
Frontier has completed approximately 50,000 patient visits in the last 12 months across Alaska, Idaho, and Montana through more than 30 psychiatric providers. The organization distinguishes itself through a commitment to rigorous, peer-reviewed clinical outcomes that prove the efficacy of its telepsychiatry model. The company published its outcomes data in JAMA Network Open, demonstrating a 38% decrease in hospitalization rates among Montana Medicaid patients receiving its telepsychiatry services. This hire signals a new chapter for Frontier as it prepares to enter new markets, deepen its partnerships with major payers, and scale growth in the coming year to serve more patients, communities and referral partners.
“What drew me to Frontier is the team’s commitment to evidenced-based care and the published data that supports their impact,” said Kristi. “This is an organization that doesn’t just make promises; they have already proven that their model changes lives and transforms communities. The clinical results are in JAMA. The patients are real. My mission is to ensure that more patients in more communities have access to the high-quality care that Frontier has already proven works.”
Outside of her professional work, Kristi is a dedicated community leader. She leads a nonprofit prison ministry focused on healing from trauma, developing leaders and successful reintegration, work that informs her empathetic approach to health care growth and impact.
“Whether it’s a patient in a rural community who lacks access to a mental health provider or someone rebuilding their life after incarceration, the principle is the same,” she said. “You meet people where they are – with genuine care and concern and you build from there.”
Eric Arzubi, MD
Frontier Psychiatry
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