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The Science Behind Making Connections

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“Kristin Walker is a scientific thinker” is not something I ever thought I’d hear … from anyone.  In fact, if someone did make that statement I would probably ask what they added to their protein shake that morning.  My name included in the same sentence with the words “math” and “science” just does not compute.  Don’t get me wrong: I have my talents but I also know my limits.

My acknowledged and apparent lack of skill in these areas has been a running joke throughout my professional life.  It is not uncommon for a colleague to send me a clip of a Saturday Night Live skit with one of our political figures parodied on Jeopardy stating, “You said there’d be no math!” Or colleagues like Dr. Darrin Hanna, CTO of a Behavioral Health EHR, who will jokingly text me during contract negotiations, “Listen, when it comes to the numbers part of the contract just let me review it for you,” followed by an evil smile emoji.

Of course, such teasing is all in good fun, as I’m the first to admit to not just my strengths but also my weaknesses.  By admitting my shortcomings it allows me to bolster those areas with other people who exhibit those talents.  That’s how everythingEHR works—and oh, how the team at everythingEHR has grown over the last year.  By taking on the right people for our needs, we have evolved into a tight unit with specific skill sets that can better serve your needs.

But what exactly do we do?

It has been hard to explain precisely what “it” is that we DO.  The most publicly social thing we do is host a radio show Mental Health News Radio that is downloaded globally.  All of our shows enjoy a certain popularity because of the wide diversity of topics, but it is the programs we have done on narcissistic personality disorder, psychopathy, and sociopaths that have given us real global reach.

We also work with Behavioral Health practices as well as community mental health organizations and academic institutions.  Using our specific expertise and experience we help them find the best electronic health record systems, revenue cycle management, business development, and outreach programs for their needs.  We work with their staff on Meaningful Use attestation, HIPAA compliance, EHR implementation, and the list goes on and on.

Another source of inspiration for us is working directly with the vendors that support the Behavioral Healthcare market: EHR and billing companies, funding agencies, and ancillary technology innovators.  Just recently another fantastic EHR organization reached out to us simply because they Googled “commercialization in the EHR market” and our website was the first in the display.  We are proud to nurture their growth so they can better serve mental health organizations.

Last but not least, we are invited to speak at national conferences on healthcare and technology about a host of topics.  Whether it is clinical workflow, revenue initiatives, or how to gauge a technology company’s effectiveness: we have our fingers on the pulse of Behavioral Healthcare and we love sharing that information.

At everythingEHR we work together to effect all of the above. While I am at the helm, this ship is sailed by the talents of many others as well. Our experienced and innovative clinicians, administrators, marketers, developers, technology advisers, and strategic partners have unparalleled expertise in Behavioral Healthcare.  And believe me, I’m not blind to the talent I’m surrounded by in those who share this everythingEHR journey with me.  So as I think of our success, I’ll try to pinpoint what it is exactly that I do best.

What is it that I do as the CEO?

I unexpectedly stumbled across the biggest part of this answer when our CFO, Joy Wanden, came across an article, The Secret to Creativity, Intelligence, and Scientific Thinking: Being Able to Make Connections, and forwarded it to me.  It took me a month to read it because it has that word science in it, which I immediately attributed to some form of math (which means it goes into the “read next year” folder).  Clearly this article is not meant for me, I thought.

I am so glad I read it anyway.  The article explained everything I could never put into words about what I excel at and what it is that I do–I make connections.  To summarize the technicalities, this involves linear thinking and is oft maligned by categorizing someone as a “networker.”  A kindred spirit, Jay Lacny, Director of Business Development for a Behavioral Health EHR and CEO of a CRM organization, is another master connector.  He and I have been known to spend a few ADHD moments (this diagnosis serves us both) discussing how this skill is sometimes ignored and misunderstood in the professional world.

But it shouldn’t be.

This skill has served me well throughout the decades I have been an entrepreneur—after I learned to apply it to the right people.  You see, when I first entrenched myself in the Behavioral Health marketplace, I tried in vain to help a couple of small organizations connect to other entities so they could grow.  It did not work but I know now it was due to nothing I did or didn’t do.  I learned the hard way that if an organization cannot stand on its own because of faulty leadership and/or bad technology, I was actually doing a disservice by connecting them with other entities in Behavioral Health.  It was through these experiences that I learned all about narcissistic personality disorder.  There were very painful yet profound moments in which I learned that I cannot help solve anyone’s problems if they’re not willing to address them.  The very nature of this disorder lies in the fact that the person or organization affected does not believe they need to change.

As I read further into this article, I came to realize that many of the ideas I tried to implement with our first vendors fell flat.  Were these former vendors more successful because of our involvement?  Absolutely.  Did they maintain the same level of success after our departure?  No.  But why did so many ideas never take off when these same principles and ideas now work wonderfully with all of our other clients?

Most of our early ideas weren’t faulty on their own.  But at the same time, they couldn’t take off because they were being applied to the wrong organizations.  Once in the right hands they grew like wildfire (and still do).  Finding positive entities to place your ideas–where they are respected, acknowledged, nurtured, and taken to far greater places because of our clients’ innovation–is what we do best.  And, though our first journeys working with Behavioral Health vendors may have been unhealthy ones, I have to say we remain thankful for how those experiences helped us understand where to put our energy in the future.

I am thankful for the journey.

We created a set of standards which we apply to every client relationship that has come since then and we practice healthy, safe and necessary boundaries.  We also gained the knowledge of how to properly vet a company, especially its leadership.  Out of uncomfortable experiences we learned how to nurture highly motivated vendors and Behavioral Health organizations.  We work hard to strategically partner with the top minds in our field, like Michael Myles, CEO of Active Marketing, and Scott Lloyd, President of MTM Services.  Let me tell you how incredible it is to volley ideas back and forth with peak performers like these in the healthcare space.  How could I not be thankful for the awkward process that brought me to this awakening?

I now look at all experiences, good and bad, as catalysts for the next venture.  It is quite true what some say about growth often being born of our most painful experiences.  I have been able to finely tune what I was already good at–connecting the “right” people with one another–and I have learned how to turn this skill into a successful organization.  Some of our clients are competitors with one another and yet we work hard to balance this reality because our mission is about supporting the greater good in Behavioral Health.  Whatever is best for the provider and the patient always works for us.  We want great technology vendors to grow because they support our mission: stellar provider tools and superior patient care.  We want great Behavioral Health organizations to grow because they support our mission: stellar provider tools and superior patient care.

So what’s the point of all this, anyway?

The point of all this is to tell you that as the CEO of everythingEHR I have finally figured out what it is that I do best: making and nurturing connections.  And now that I have science to back me up (enter smiley faced emoji here), I can continue doing what comes naturally.  And that is helping to connect all of you, in whatever capacity that comes, always thankfully, ever graciously.

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Kristin Walker, CEO everythingEHR

Host, Mental Health News Radio

Have questions for Kristin?

Mental Health and Social Media with Sean Erreger

We met Sean Erreger when he attended our presentation on EHR technology for The National Council for Behavioral Health. He was impressed with our presentation and gladly shared portions of it out into the Twitterverse. Sean was also a presenter at the conference about the proper use of social media in the field of mental health. It can save lives and let’s face it: Social Media is not going anywhere. We might as well use it for good! Join Sean as we interview each other about what we do, why we do it, and why we are both so passionate about Behavioral Health.

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Behavioral Health Revenue Cycle Management: Triadic LLC

Meet two technologists, Cindy Day and Heather Griffin, owners of Triadic, LLC – a Behavioral Health specific revenue cycle management company. It became imperative for everythingEHR to find a billing company that understands how electronic health records software works. The Triadic team is responsible for processing millions of dollars in claims per month for some of the largest Community Mental Health agencies in the United States.

Join our host, Kristin Sunanta Walker, as she discusses the skill-set and passion required to serve our favorite sector of healthcare: Behavioral Health.

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The Behavioral Health EHR Landscape: Scott Lloyd, President MTM Services

We welcome back Scott Lloyd, President of MTM Services, to Mental Health News Radio. When you want to challenge yourself and work with THE Behavioral Health consulting firm you reach out to Scott Lloyd. MTM Services is a strategic partner with The National Council for Behavioral Health – the heart of what’s happening in and the future of Behavioral Healthcare.

Our CEO, Kristin Walker, will be presenting at the 2016 National Council Conference in Las Vegas with Scott. Today we give you a small taste of what we’ll be focusing on for our presentation.

 

What’s Your Problem: You or Your EHR

Tuesday, March 8th at 10 AM Caesars Palace, Las Vegas

Session Code: C2

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Behavioral Health EHRs: The New Model for Integrated Care Technology

Our guest today on Mental Health News Radio is Brook West, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Valant — one of the leading Behavioral Health EHRs. We’ve enjoyed a long relationship with the Valant team even visiting their corporate office in downtown Seattle in 2014.

As the Behavioral Health market moves toward direct integration with primary care we turn our focus toward electronic health record software vendors that are already using new technology to deliver solutions. Vendors that have superior credibility and credentials in Behavioral Health, attract quality leadership, and possess an unparalleled infrastructure. Our listeners know that Behavioral Health is our passion. Technology designed by the right organizations have a direct effect on mental health providers and their ability to deliver patient care.

Join Brook West and our host, Kristin Sunanta Walker, as they discuss where Valant is headed and how their EHR solution is paving an entirely new road for Behavioral Health organizations.

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Where Behavioral Health EHR Vendors are Missing In Action with Doug Edwards

Join Doug Edwards, Vice President and Managing Director of Vendome Healthcare Media’s Behavioral Healthcare division, joins us to today to discuss what is trending in Behavioral Healthcare today and what EHR vendors are missing when it comes to marketing their software.

Join Doug Edwards at this years National Conference on Addiction Disorders in Denver, Co.

Some of the questions we asked Doug are listed below:

What big trends have you seen in the behavioral health field during your 15 year career?

Why do you think investors are interested in behavioral healthcare now?

Should providers be concerned about the amount of “new money” flowing into the field?

Does the increased investment in the field only apply to for-profits? What about for not-for-profits? 

What is the role of information technology and EHRs in relation to the investment flowing into treatment centers?

Where can providers turn to for information on selecting EHRs?

What trends should providers be preparing for now?

How can listeners become more engaged with Behavioral Healthcare magazine?

Please read the full blog article here.

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EHR Technology in Addiction Treatment: Bill Connors GM Addiction Treatment

Bill Connors, MSW, General Manager of Addiction Management and Treatment is responsible for go-to-market strategies and client relationships within Netsmart’s Addiction Community and product development in our Abstinence based and Medication Assisted Treatment providers. Connors joined Netsmart’s executive team from Sequest, following its acquisition by Netsmart in 2011. He had served as the company’s chief executive officer. Prior to working at Sequest, Connors was chief information officer of a large community mental health center in New Jersey. A licensed clinical social worker with experience in addiction treatment, inpatient psychiatric hospitals, public school system and in-home family therapy settings, Connors combines his passions for direct service and systems-based thinking and research in his role. Connors is a nationally-recognized expert on the subject of software implementation within behavioral health and substance use communities and he speaks regularly on the topic. He holds a master’s of social work and a bachelor’s degree in social work from Rutgers University. Connors is a member of the board of the Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network (ATTC), on the subcommittee of the Illinois Health Information Exchange (ILHIE), as well as several committees in New York where he is nationally charged with integrating behavioral healthcare and addiction services within regional health information exchanges. He has held chairman’s position several times for the Software and Technology Vendors Association.

Bill joins our host Kristin Sunanta Walker live from The National Conference on Addiction Disorders to discuss how Netsmart is focusing on serving the technology needs of the Addiction and Recovery market.

www.ntst.com

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Technology in Addiction and Recovery at CeDAR with Steven Millette, LMHC, LAC

Steve Millette has 25 years experience in the behavioral health and addiction services recovery field in the roles of clinician, trainer, supervisor and administrator. His competencies include clinical best practice implementation, treatment innovation, 12-step recovery programming and organizational leadership and development. He previously served as the Executive Director of Treatment Services at Pavillon International in North Carolina, a nationally known center for the treatment of addictions and related mental health disorders. In addition, Mr. Millette has held top administrative positions at prominent treatment facilities within the state of Florida, including Hanley-Hazelden. He received his undergraduate degree in Psychology from Assumption College and his master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from Nova University. Mr. Millette is a licensed mental health and addiction counselor.

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Interviewed live at The National Conference of Addiction Disorders in Denver, CO 2016

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