Former mental health nurse builds bookkeeping firm for therapists

After more than 15 years in mental health nursing, Aretha Dirde launched AD Keeps The Books to handle bookkeeping for therapists, counselors and other behavioral health providers nationwide. The Lancaster, California practice uses her clinical background to serve session-based businesses with bookkeeping, payroll and QuickBooks support.

Why it matters: - Mental health practices have bookkeeping needs shaped by session-based revenue, payroll arrangements, contractor payments and recurring software and insurance costs. - Accurate books can show practice owners what their caseload actually earns, what it costs to stay open, and whether fees need to change. - Dirde’s clinical background is designed to reduce the learning curve that often comes with serving a specialized healthcare niche.

What happened: - Aretha Dirde, a former licensed nurse with more than 15 years in mental health, now runs AD Keeps The Books from Lancaster, California. - The firm serves therapists, counselors, psychologists, clinical social workers and other mental health professionals in private practice across the U.S. - AD Keeps The Books works with solo clinicians and group practices of roughly 10 people. - The client mix includes telehealth practices, ABA and behavioral health teams, addiction and recovery counselors, and prescribing practices run by psychiatric nurse practitioners and psychiatrists.

The details: - Monthly bookkeeping engagements include transaction categorization, bank and credit card reconciliations and monthly reports. - Dirde separates catch-up bookkeeping, for books that were never done, from clean-up bookkeeping, for books that exist but contain miscategorized transactions, duplicate entries or unreconciled accounts. - Group practices can add payroll processing, clinician pay recorded as agreed, year-end 1099 preparation for contractors, bill payment and invoicing. - AD Keeps The Books also handles QuickBooks Online setup and training. - Dirde is a certified QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor at the Gold tier with Level 2 and Payroll certifications. - Dirde said she understands the terminology, session-based revenue patterns, EHR subscription costs, liability insurance and pay arrangements for associates and contract supervisors. - Dirde said she aims to bring records current without judgment and keep them current so they do not fall behind again.

Between the lines: - The firm is intentionally a solo operation, so the same person a client meets on the first call also handles the books and ongoing questions. - That model may appeal to practice owners who want continuity and a provider who already understands their field. - Cloud-based systems allow Dirde to work with practices in any state.

What's next: - Practice owners can book a consultation through the firm’s website or by phone. - AD Keeps The Books is positioned to keep expanding its nationwide client base without adding in-person restrictions.

The bottom line: - Dirde is turning a long clinical career into a niche bookkeeping business built for mental health practices that need specialized financial support.