Dr. Dona Comfort Schaefer, PhD, MA, RN, LPC

Dr. Dona Schaefer is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Registered Nurse in the state of Missouri. She earned a Master of Arts in Higher Education from University of Louisville, a Master of Arts in Professional Counseling from Lindenwood University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Biblical Counseling from Trinity Seminary. Throughout her career in nursing and counseling, Dona has had a passion for teaching and mentoring in both professions and has served as a preceptor and training supervisor for countless adult learners in Intensive Care and Emergency medicine as well as in various counseling roles. She also served as Director of Behavioral Health Intake for SSM Healthcare. In this position she supervised 25 professionals who provided mental health and crisis counseling interventions in seven Emergency Departments throughout St. Louis.

As the owner of Comfort Consulting LLC, Dona currently provides mental health services to individuals in St. Charles County Department of Corrections. In addition, she has conducted training and consultation for representatives of more than 50 organizations on the topic of Suicide Risk Assessment. She developed the Comfort Scale of Suicide Risk (CSSR) which has been adopted for use by a number of healthcare organizations, private practices, schools, and mental health treatment centers throughout Missouri and in several other states.

Dona's private practice areas of expertise include Cognitive and Biblical counseling of women's issues, depression, anxiety, anger, crisis intervention, stress, and spiritual growth. The passion fueling her work is best exemplified in the words of the Apostle Paul when he said "But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God." Acts 20:24