Mental Health is essential to our overall health, and the importance of attending to mental health has become even more pronounced. It has even been said that mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act and helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices. The NBMBAA-TC invites you to a panel discussion on burnout and its impact on our emotional and mental health. In the current environment, you might be heading back into the workplace and having to navigate a new normal. You might be facing other stressors in your professional and personal life, thereby creating more exhaustion than usual. In this event, you will have the opportunity to engage with a panel who will bring their professional and personal expertise to discuss:

• What is burnout and what does it look like
• Ways and coping mechanisms to manage stress
• How to support a team/team member dealing with stress and burnout
• Mental wellness when returning to the workplace

Panel Guests

Dr. Lisa Cook, DrPH, LPCC, LPC, CPC

Behavioral Health Executive Director, UnitedHealthCare

Dr. Lisa Cook is a highly effective executive with over 15-years of demonstrated experience in community and behavioral health programs, strategic planning, operations, population health, and provider, volunteer, and state customer relationship management.

She is a thought leader and knowledgeable on Medicaid and Medicare programs, care delivery management specific to behavioral health and chronic care populations, healthcare, and managed-care practices.

Dr. Cook is a collaborator and outcome-driven professional with a passion for team building and leading teams in complex projects and programs in the private and public sectors to achieve organizational goals. She has a proven ability to assess, strategize and execute in partnership with other leaders to close operational and performance gaps and implement sustainable solutions. She has extensive background focused on quality-of-life improvement through the development of community-driven, community-focused collaborations with religious, academic, behavioral, medical, and business stakeholders.

She is a published research author in the Journal of Public Health, “HIV Stigma Reduction and Health Literacy Education Program with a Cross-Generational Population in an African American Faith-based Church”.

Dr. Cook currently serves as the Behavioral Health Executive Director for Community & State United Community Plan of Kentucky for the Medicaid line of business. This program provides healthcare benefits to individuals eligible for Medicaid in the state of Kentucky with a comprehensive benefit package, inclusive of physical, behavioral, dental, and pharmaceutical services. Utilization and care management services are available through this program. Dr. Cook provides oversight on all the behavioral health components of the health plan, ensures all state regulatory items are fulfilled and organizational goals related to quality, cost and improved health outcomes for enrollees are met, and manages/monitors the behavioral health profit and loss responsibility. With Dr. Cook’s background with vulnerable populations, she is committed to creating opportunities to improve access to care and care coordination for the enrollees in Kentucky.

Dr. Cook serves as the Program Chair of Kentucky’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Council and has had previous opportunities to present Implicit Bias Education to the UHC National DEI Council as well as the Arizona and Kentucky market DEI Councils.

Prior to coming to UnitedHealthcare/Optum, Dr. Cook spent several years working on Medicaid and Duals Managed Care programs for the state of Illinois, Florida, and Kentucky, where she worked at Beacon Health Options. Additionally, she has over 20 years in behavioral health and public health in the facility, community and clinical settings serving populations ranging from children (1-3 y/o) to seniors in various leadership capacities.

Dr. Cook has a DrPH degree with an emphasis on Health Advocacy from Capella University, a Master’s degree in Human Development Counseling from Bradley University and a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice degree from Park University.

Dr. Michelle N. Gray, MSW, LCSW

Clinical Program Manager, Behavioral Clinical Operations, Optum

Michelle Gray is a highly skilled, multi-state Licensed Clinical Social Worker in TX, IN, and KY. She has more than 15 years of professional experience, ranging from crisis intervention, emergency room social work, program development, counseling, integrated care management and managed care for persons of all lifespans. Currently, Michelle works as a Clinical Program Manager. She manages a staff of remote licensed clinicians in KY, MN, and IN focusing on Medicaid members with complex behavioral health and substance use disorders diagnosis. Michelle earned her Master of Social Work at Indiana University and her Bachelor of Science in Child Development and Sociology with a minor in Psychology from Florida State University. She is an active member of the National Association of Social Workers and has held many different positions on the Board of Directors. Her most recent position was President of NASW- IN chapter from 2018-2020. Michelle has a passion for working with vulnerable populations and enjoys mentoring social workers early in their careers.

Sponsors