BEHEALTHY . BEVIBRANT . BESANA
Meet the team
Dr. Tanya A. Atagi
Founder of BESANA Health & Wellness
Serving the Denver area since 2003, Dr. Atagi is one of the few board-certified female plastic surgeons in the Denver area. Dr. Atagi’s commitment to patient service and passion for comprehensive care impacts each patient relationship and has inspired her most recent venture, BESANA Health and Wellness. Dr. Atagi created BESANA Health & Wellness to meet a rapidly growing yet unmet need in health care for a preventive approach to wellness. Their mission is to make BESANA your one-stop-shop for head-to-toe vitality, a restorative venue and inspiring forum for discovering the elements of your optimal life.
Becky Barkey
Nurse Practitioner
Becky received her nursing degree from Bethel College in 1994, and has been a Nurse Practitioner since 2001 after attaining her graduate degree from Regis University in Colorado. Becky specializes in the field of women’s health, specifically the management of high-risk pregnancies. Becky has been with us since 2014 and works closely with Susan in the bio-idential hormone replacement and wellness side of the practice. In her spare time, she enjoys coaching volleyball, assisting on medical mission trips, and spending time with her husband and two daughters.
Alison Tinker
APRN, CNM, PMH-C – Nurse Practitioner
Ali is a Nurse Practitioner and Certified Nurse Midwife who believes in optimizing wellness through shared decision making with patients. She is certified as a Trauma Informed Care and mental health provider. Compassion and consent are the hallmarks of her practice.
Ali is also an international speaker, teacher and researcher on Trauma Informed Care. She received her first two bachelor’s degrees from Bond University in Australia in Hospitality Management and in Commerce. Her bachelor’s degree in nursing is from Regis University’s accelerated program, her master’s in nursing is from Frontier Nursing University and she is currently pursuing her Doctor of Nursing. She teaches Trauma Informed Care to nursing and medical students, and nurses and medical providers who wish to incorporate Trauma Informed Care into their clinical practice.
Ali spent much of her life living overseas, growing up in Korea and living in Palau, Micronesia and Australia. These experiences strongly influenced how she sees the world and the inter-connectedness and similarities of all people. Ali is passionate about supporting the LGBTQIA+ community and is committed to providing compassionate care and creating spaces of true belonging in her life and her professional work.
In her free time, Ali loves reading most of all. She adores being in nature, backpacking and is newly fascinated with mushrooms. Live music and bluegrass festivals are a must in the summer. She has two super cool teenagers and a dog and a cat.
Susan Eichorst
PA-C, MMSc – Physician Assistant
Susan has been a part of the Denver medical community since attaining her degree from Emory University in 1999. Before arriving at Atagi Plastic Surgery and Skin Aesthetics, Susan gained experience in a variety of different fields, including plastic surgery, general surgery, urology, ophthalmology, and dentistry, giving her a diverse outlook on cutting edge medical techniques and methodology. She is a strong believer in personalized and individualized treatments for each patient. Susan joined our team in 2015 and is our full time bio-identical hormone replacement and wellness provider. In her spare time, Susan enjoys hiking, golfing, attending concerts, and international travel.
Heidi Bensley
Certified Medical Assistant
Hailing from Buffalo, NY, Heidi has called Colorado home since 2003. After over 17 years in payroll/accounting, she decided to change careers and returned to school for her Medical Assisting Certificate in 2017. When she’s not at work, Heidi enjoys watching movies, reading, and spending time with her family and English bulldog.
Emily Siemens
Medical Assistant
Emily has worked in the medical field for nine years, first as an assisted living caregiver, then seven years as a primary care medical assistant. Emily is originally from Southern California but has been living in Colorado since 2009. She is currently a student at MSU Denver, earning her bachelor’s in nutrition science. She plans to apply to PA schools once she completes her degree. Emily has a passion for senior care and nutrition. In her free time, she likes to pan for gold, sew, garden, hike, and spend time with friends, family, and her dog.
Emily Eads
Office Manager
Similar to Dr. Atagi, Emily is a lover of the arts, and originally moved to Colorado in 2007 to attend the Art Institute of Colorado and pursue her dream of becoming a photographer. Needless to say this has made her a perfect fit at Atagi Plastic Surgery and Skin Aesthetics with our aesthetic mentality toward medicine. As Patient Services Coordinator since 2012, Emily is able to combine her passion for the arts with years of impeccable customer service and management experiences in order to satisfy all patient needs. In her spare time, Emily enjoys running her photography business, playing cello, and spending time with her husband, dogs, family, and friends.
Heather Walker
PA-C
Heather Walker has been a Physician Assistant for over 2 decades with experience in Women’s Health as well as in Urgent Care and teaching at CU Anschutz Medical Campus. She grew up in Englewood, Colorado and attended University of Colorado Boulder for her undergraduate degree in Biology. She then studied cellular biology for her Master’s degree at University of Colorado as well. Heather attended PA school at University of Colorado Health Sciences Center’s Physician Assistant program (now CU Anschutz Medical Campus). After graduating, she worked in Women’s Health/OB/Gyn since 2004. She also taught the Women’s Health course for 7 years at the PA program at CU Anschutz Medical Campus. Heather also worked in Urgent Care for approximately 9 years simultaneously. She has more recently become interested in holistic health and newer therapies for whole body wellness and longevity. Believing that there is a way to achieve balanced health and to help people ‘just feel better’ and ‘do life better’ is her goal. Also being a mother of two amazing teenagers and two dogs, and wife to her husband Chris keeps her busy. She loves playing volleyball, reading and skiing and golfing with her family.
Karen Fox
Nurse Practitioner and Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant
Karen has 27 years of experience in the medical field, with 17 of them being in plastic surgery and aesthetics. She first earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1996 and made her dream of getting a Jeep and a dog and moving to Colorado come true. Karen has worked in various areas of nursing but spent most of her early years in the emergency department and operating room. In the operating room she fell in love with surgery and had a strong desire to assist in surgery, so she returned to school for an additional four years. During those years she earned a master’s degree, National Nurse Practitioner Certification and Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant Certification. Karen has been assisting Dr. Atagi with all surgeries and managing the surgical aspects of the practice for the past 17 years. Karen has a special interest in hair restoration. She holds multiple hair restoration certifications including being a Certified Hair Loss Practitioner. She was accepted to and is currently participating in a hair loss fellowship program with the world-famous hair loss practitioner, Dr. Jefferey Donovan. Karen is also trained in multiple regenerative medicine therapies including platelet-rich plasma (PRP), platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) and peptide therapies. In her free time, Karen enjoys any outdoor activity (especially mountain biking) and spending time with her husband, daughter and two adorable rescue pups.
Jessica Lally
Phlebotomist
Born in Liverpool, England, Jessica moved to Colorado with her immediate family when she was about four years old and considers it to be her home. During her undergrad, Jessica shifted her career interests from psychology to healthcare. She is excited to work in the medical industry and plans to return to school in the future. Jessica enjoys being able to leave a lasting positive impact on people’s experiences with blood draws. She has always been passionate about women’s health specifically, and spent two years as a crisis counselor for pregnant and parenting women. Jessica is a mother to a little boy, and in her free time, enjoys traveling when possible, reading, painting, hiking and spending time with her dog.
Katie Kennedy
Patient Services Coordinator
Katie is a Colorado native who has experience in cardiothoracic surgery administration and home healthcare scheduling. After taking a career break to raise her daughter, she’s excited to be back in the healthcare industry and a part of the Atagi and Besana team. She lives in Parker with her husband, daughter and two dogs. Outside of work she enjoys spending time with her family and loves camping, traveling, and enjoying the 4 seasons Colorado has to offer.
