Dr. James Brown, DNP, FNP, PMHNP
Dr. James Brown, DNP, FNP, PMHNP, is a dual-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner and Family Nurse Practitioner with more than 31 years of nursing experience. He is the Founder of JAMES BROWN PSYCHIATRY LLC in Valparaiso, Indiana, where he provides comprehensive mental health care through a fully online private practice. His clinical approach integrates psychiatric and primary care perspectives to support holistic patient outcomes.
Dr. Brown earned his Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) from Rush University in 2021, graduating with a 4.0 GPA, and completed his Master of Science in Nursing as a Family Nurse Practitioner at Walden University in 2015, also graduating with a 4.0 GPA. He began his nursing journey in 1995 after completing his Associate in Applied Science at Purdue University, building a strong foundation that has supported his long-standing clinical career.
Throughout his professional experience, Dr. Brown has worked across a wide range of healthcare settings, including adolescent and adult psychiatric care, surgery, acute dialysis, staff management, and medical-surgical nursing. His early experience in adolescent psychiatric care and later work in inpatient acute adult psychiatry helped shape his long-term dedication to mental health treatment.
He later returned to psychiatry as his primary focus, earning dual board certification that allows him to combine psychiatric expertise with family practice care. Prior to establishing his current practice, he spent eight years providing psychiatric services to individuals with severe mental illness across 26 nursing facilities, caring for more than 1,000 patients.
Dr. Brown currently manages approximately 50–60 clients weekly, specializing in psychotropic medication management and structured, solution-focused therapy delivered through defined treatment plans. He is also actively writing a book designed to simplify psychiatric conditions and treatment concepts for both the general public and healthcare professionals, with publication expected in early 2027. His work reflects a commitment to demystifying mental health care and reducing stigma surrounding psychiatric treatment.
• Rush University - DNP, 2021 (4.0), PMHNP
• Walden University - MSN, FNP, 2015 (4.0)
• Purdue University - AAS, 1995
• DNP
• FNP
• PMHNP
• Graduated with 4.0 GPA from Walden University
• Graduated with 4.0 GPA from Rush University
• Sigma Theta Tau
• Golden Key International Honor Societies
• ANCC
• Rehoming hookbill parrots
I am currently writing a book aimed at providing clear concise explanations of mental health concepts for the general public and mental healthcare providers alike; it is about halfway complete. The book will explain psychiatric conditions in layman terms, almost like a dictionary where you can look up conditions such as bipolar disorder to learn what it is, what it's not, and what to expect. I'm including detailed information about treatments and medications, explaining things like the different categories of mood stabilizers, antidepressants and anxiety agents; how they work and why you would use one over the other in specific situations. I'm writing it in a way that even people without formal medical teaching will be able to understand and apply in a meaningful way. The book covers all kinds of different components, and I could see doing follow-up books concentrated on a "deeper dive" into specific topics with the goal of demystifying and minimizing the taboos of modern psychiatric care; you can look for publication available to the general public in early 2027.
Areas of Specialization/Expertise
- Medication Management
- Psychotropic Medications
- Therapy
- Mental Health
What do you enjoy most about practicing medicine?
What I enjoy most is being able to see people transform into the best version of themselves in a relatively short time. In psychiatry, I can physically see the change. I have people come to me who have lost interest in their own lives, self care, and the things they enjoyed at one time. Often within a few weeks these people look great, they feel great, they're doing better at work and interpersonal relationships with a renewed joy to participate in their own lives. They know improvement is attributed to the shared commitment I have with all clients to enjoy life and be their best self. Clients are thankful to find relief and experience joy. It's so fulfilling and rewarding. Even when I was working med-surg as an RN in the early years, I would go around doing IVs and meds, but I always found myself sitting on the bed wanting to know how patients felt about their illness, how they would explain it to their kids, and how they could move forward in life with a situation that might alter their entire lives. It was always natural for me to gravitate toward the psychiatric end of things, and it's been so fulfilling over the years. It's nothing I've ever run away from - I've run towards it, wanting to know more and get deeper into it. My love of psychiatry has served my patients well also providing great personal satisfaction being able to see positive client transformations that really do improve peoples lives.
Locations
JAMES BROWN PSYCHIATRY LLC
All of Indiana, Valparaiso, IN 46385