OUR TEAM

In 2015, Brandi Dean founded the Dean Center for Tick-Borne Illness at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital. Her personal experience as a young mother with Lyme disease led her to identify a need for a multidisciplinary center to treat, rehabilitate, and recover individuals suffering from persistent tick-borne illness. Acting as an advisor and advocate, she joined hands with both physicians and leadership at Spaulding Rehab to help open the first center embedded in a major academic medical institution focused on treating patients with chronic tick-borne illnesses. Brandi continues to serve as an active Advisory Board member for the Dean Center for Tick-Borne Illness. Her story has been featured in the Boston Globe, DoctorOz.com, Fox News Boston, WCVB Boston, NPR, Good Housekeeping, and Wellesley Weston Magazine.

Brandi has been a passionate advocate for patients with Lyme disease since 2011. She founded and was co-president of the Massachusetts Lyme Association, whose mission was to support and educate local patients, caregivers, and physicians by offering bi-weekly support groups and educational presentations by doctors, authors, herbalists, and nutritionists from all over the country. Her determination to make a positive difference in the lives of patients with Lyme disease is additionally demonstrated in her leadership of Ride Out Lyme, a charity event she designed and that raises financial grants for adults with the illness. The event is held annually at SoulCycle in Boston, NYC, and Los Angeles with expansion into other cities. Prior to her work in the field of Lyme disease, Brandi's professional life included a four-year tour of duty in the United States Coast Guard. Her dedicated service included performing search and rescue missions on a 110-foot rescue boat and serving as a special assistant to the Commanding Officer of the New England region. Brandi also has a decade of experience in leadership in the hospitality industry. She worked as a General Manager, Operations Manager, and Event Planner at several major hotel groups. Brandi has a degree in Business from Boston University.