Lilia Urrutia, PhD

Dr. Urrutia is a psychologist. She has a doctoral degree (Ph.D. studies with a concentration in Marriage and Family Therapy) from Northcentral University. A graduate of the Universidad Santa María la Antigua, she also holds a master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from the same university and a master’s degree in Education with a specialization in Educational Psychology from Oklahoma University.

Dr. Urrutia attends her professional clinical practice at THE BRIDGE CENTER, since its foundation in 2008. Previously, Dr. Urrutia has worked as a Family Therapist in the Human Development Center and in the field of Educational Psychology at the Marbella Psychology Clinic located in the Royal Center medical offices. [At individual level] She enjoys working with adults, offering them a relational perspective that allows them to reach more harmonious and satisfactory relationship with themselves and with significant others. [At couples level] She enjoys working with those who are preparing to begin, have very recently begun, or have a long term relationship together as an intimate couple and are seeking to improve their relationship, as well as those who are confronting serious difficulties in their relationship and wish to save it. [At family level] Dr. Urrutia offers a solid and effective work to families which confront challenges or difficulties among its members (particularly families with adolescents and young adults) and are looking for a more effective path to preserve those bonds of family union that they treasure. [Other professional experiences] Additionally, she has taught college-level courses for the past 20 years at the Universidad Santa María la Antigua, where she has held academic positions such as Dean of the School of Social Sciences, Director of the School of Psychology and currently supervise graduate students from the Marriage and Family Master Degree Program. [Additional trainings and affiliations] As part of her humanistic and deeply focused relational formation she has been trained in the Emotionally Focused Therapy model in its individual, couples and family therapy applications. She is the founder and director of RELACIONES an enterprise dedicated to the promotion of relational health. Additionally, she is a member of the Instituto Panameño de Terapia Familiar y de Pareja, The International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT, Canada), and the Instituto de Ciencias de la Pareja. Her warm and caring style with her respectful approach of the bonds that unify us as human beings are put together at the service of those who look for a fuller personal and relational life.