Karissa attended Simmons College in Boston where she studied biology. While in school, she volunteered at Brigham and Women’s Hospital where she developed a love of patient care. She then went on to pursue a Master's in Physician Assistant Studies at Arcadia University in Pennsylvania. She worked in Philadelphia for three years before returning to Boston in 2015.

She has worked with numerous spine surgeons throughout her career and now is an outpatient Physician Assistant with the Orthopaedic Spine Center at Massachusetts General Hospital. She provides care to new, follow-up, pre-operative and post-operative patients. Karissa enjoys educating patients throughout their hospital course to ensure thorough communication and a pleasant surgical experience.