Dr. Mathai is an academic primary care physician at the Northport VA Medical Center, precepts medical students and residents and is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Stony Brook University School of Medicine. She completed her medical degree and Internal medicine residency at the University of South Florida College of Medicine where she also served as a 3rd year Chief Resident. Before joining the Northport VA and Stony Brook, she worked as an academic hospitalist for 7 years at the James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa, Florida.

Dr. Mathai learned and teaches BAP and BAP-MI to medical students and medical residents through active collaboration with health psychologists integrated into the Northport VA medical clinics. Observing the potential of BAP & BAP-MI to transform clinician-patient relationships and outcomes, she has been collaborating on innovative implementation projects locally and nationally to evaluate educational and clinical programs and outcomes.