UTAHSWA Virtual Lunch and Learn 9/17/2020

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UTAHSWA Virtual Lunch and Learn Series 

Thursday, September 17, 2020 – 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

Click Here to Register Through Zoom

 

“Losing My Mom to Addiction and Suicide”

 

 

Michelle Carlson, MHA, SSW, CPHQ

Objectives:

  1. Participants will be more aware of signs and symptoms of addiction in their loved ones and will be able to intervene earlier

  2. Participants will learn about the complexities of mental health, stigma, and addiction

  3. Participants will gain an understanding of how addiction and suicide affects families and support systems

 

Bio:
Michelle has been a licensed Social Service Worker in Utah since 2002.  She has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, a Master of Health Administration degree, and is a Certified Professional in Health Care Quality.  Early in her career she worked as a Case Manager with Native American youth in foster care.  She has worked as Social Services Director in several nursing homes in the Salt Lake Valley and was a Care Manager for the New Choice Waiver Program with Valley Mental Health’s Flexcare Program.  Michelle worked for seven years as a Project Manager for HealthInsight (now Comagine) as the nursing home quality improvement team lead and co-lead on reducing unnecessary hospital admissions and readmissions.  She is now a Quality Improvement Specialist for University of Utah Health Plans working on improving preventive care visits for members, improving gaps in care, provider education on quality measures, and extensive medical record review.  Michelle also serves on the Board of the Utah Social Work Association.  In 2014 Michelle tragically lost her mother to suicide after an extensive battle with addiction.  She hopes that sharing her story will help others to be able to identify the signs and symptoms of addiction earlier than she and her family did, the importance of early intervention and the effects on the family and support system.