Medical Overview
Ibogaine Medical Safety Is Not a Feature. It Is the Entire Treatment Model.
Patients searching for an ibogaine doctor are usually trying to answer one underlying question: who is medically responsible when this treatment becomes physiologically demanding? That is the right question. Ibogaine is powerful because it can interrupt opioid withdrawal, destabilize entrenched compulsions, and open a neuroplastic window that conventional treatments rarely touch. But that same power means the treatment has to be delivered with medical discipline. At MindScape, safety begins before travel with cardiac screening, laboratory review, medication reconciliation, and candidacy decisions made by clinicians rather than sales staff.
Once a patient arrives in Cozumel, the medical framework continues. Treatment is delivered with physician oversight, licensed nursing support, continuous cardiac monitoring, and emergency equipment already in place. The session is not treated as a ceremonial event where problems are handled improvisationally. It is treated as a long-form medical intervention in which rhythm changes, blood pressure shifts, electrolyte considerations, medication history, and the patient's psychological state are all part of the same live picture. That is the practical meaning of ibogaine medical safety.
MindScape's differentiators matter because they affect that live picture directly. We have treated more than 900 patients with zero complications. We are the only clinic using both ibogaine HCL and Total Alkaloid, which gives the team more precision in how protocols are sequenced. Our broader model is synergistic, pairing ibogaine with 5-MeO-DMT and NAD+ when clinically appropriate. We also treat recovery as a 90-day process rather than a single event, because durable outcomes depend on what happens after discharge as much as what happens during the flood session.
Team & Credentials
Who Delivers Care at MindScape
Dr. Arellano, M.D. - Clinical Director
Dr. Arellano leads medical decision-making, candidacy review, dosing strategy, and cardiac safety oversight. He is board certified in addiction medicine and has guided more than 900 ibogaine treatments, which matters because sound ibogaine medicine is built on pattern recognition as much as theory.
Scott Gagel - Senior Medical Advisor
Scott brings more than 25 years of physician experience and helps shape the broader treatment architecture around opioid recovery, chronic pain, depression, and complex medical histories that do not fit simple detox models.
Luisa Cab, RN - Nursing Leadership
Our nursing team handles continuous observation, vitals capture, medication support, IV coordination, patient comfort, and the practical bedside work that determines whether a long ibogaine session stays calm, safe, and responsive to change.
Catherine Bellato - Lead Psychologist
Psychological preparation and integration are embedded into the medical program, not bolted on afterward. Catherine leads trauma-informed assessment and post-session integration planning so insight turns into behavior change.
Anita Scanlan - Clinical Psychology
Anita supports bilingual, neuroscience-informed care for patients whose histories include failed therapy, chronic anxiety, or entrenched self-protective patterns that need structured integration after treatment.
Integrated care, not siloed care
The medical team, nursing staff, psychology team, and operations staff work from one patient plan. That matters because ibogaine safety is not just what happens during the flood dose; it is the continuity between prescreen, medication taper, on-site monitoring, discharge planning, and 90-day follow-up.
Protocols & Equipment
What Supports the Patient During Treatment
12-lead ECG and pre-admission screening
Every candidate completes cardiac screening before treatment is confirmed. We review QTc, rhythm history, structural risk, current medications, and lab markers that could increase cardiac vulnerability.
Continuous telemetry during active dosing
MindScape uses continuous cardiac monitoring rather than intermittent spot checks. During an ibogaine session, rhythm changes matter in real time, so the standard must be surveillance, not occasional reassurance.
Crash cart, defibrillator, oxygen, and IV capability
Emergency readiness means the room is equipped before it is needed. The team maintains crash-cart access, defibrillation capability, oxygen support, IV access, and medication protocols designed for cardiac or electrolyte intervention if a case requires escalation.
Pulse oximetry, capnography, and vital-sign tracking
Cardiac rhythm is central, but it is not the only variable. We watch oxygenation, respiratory pattern, blood pressure, and the broader physiologic picture throughout the treatment window.
Dual-compound protocol flexibility
MindScape is the only clinic using both ibogaine HCL and Total Alkaloid. That gives the medical team more control over how to sequence treatment, especially when a patient benefits from TA priming before an HCL flood session.
Adjunctive support with NAD+ and 5-MeO-DMT
Our safety model sits inside a broader therapeutic model. NAD+ is used for physiologic support, 5-MeO-DMT for selected cases where psychospiritual processing is clinically appropriate, and both are deployed within one physician-directed plan rather than as disconnected add-ons.
Clinical Scope
How the Medical Team Thinks About Different Cases
Not every patient arrives with the same risk profile or the same goal. Some come for opioid detox and need rapid withdrawal interruption plus meticulous taper planning. Others arrive with PTSD, traumatic brain injury, depression, chronic pain, or Parkinson's-related symptoms that require a slower, more layered protocol. MindScape has documented 62% average motor improvement across more than 100 Parkinson's patients, and many opioid patients see 85% or greater withdrawal elimination within 24 hours. Those outcomes come from matching the protocol to the case, not from giving everyone the same experience.
That case-specific thinking is also why Cozumel is relevant clinically. The island's safety, stability, and simplicity lower the background stress around treatment. For patients arriving from the United States, especially veterans, high-net-worth professionals, and families coordinating difficult travel, that environmental calm is not cosmetic. It supports sleep, orientation, family communication, and the focused recovery conditions that a medically intensive psychedelic treatment actually requires.
If you are evaluating ibogaine clinics, this is what to look for: a team that can explain not just what it does, but why the protocol is built that way for your specific presentation. That is the difference between a clinic that administers ibogaine and a clinic that practices ibogaine medicine.
Patient Flow
How Medical Care Progresses From Intake to Aftercare
Remote prescreen and physician review
Before dates are confirmed, we review cardiac history, current medications, substance-use pattern, labs, and the specific risks that could make ibogaine unsafe or require a longer taper.
Arrival assessment in Cozumel
Patients complete on-site intake, baseline vitals, orientation, and final medical confirmation. The program begins in a controlled environment on Mexico's safest island rather than in a rushed or improvised setting.
Protocol delivery with continuous monitoring
The active treatment phase uses physician-led dosing, telemetry, nursing observation, and supportive care. If TA priming, HCL flood dosing, NAD+, or other modalities are indicated, they are sequenced within one plan.
Stabilization and integration on site
After the acute session, patients are not simply discharged once they can walk. The team watches recovery, sleep, appetite, cognitive state, and psychological processing before travel is considered.
90-day post-retreat follow-through
Scheduled integration support, accountability, and re-entry planning continue after patients return home so the neuroplastic window becomes durable change rather than a short-lived breakthrough.
Medical FAQ
Common Questions About MindScape's Medical Team
Looking for doctor-supervised ibogaine treatment accessible from your state? MindScape Retreat treats patients from across the US with direct flights to Cozumel. Find ibogaine treatment near you.