The Impact of Medical Trauma on Mental Health: Navigating the Path to Recovery

Michael Groat, PhD, serves as Interim CEO and Chief Clinical Officer at Lindner Center of Hope. He has strategic oversight of the day-to-day operations of the Center and remains responsible for the therapeutic program development of inpatient and residential services at Lindner Center of Hope.

He has supervisory authority over the clinical activity and continuum of care in residential services. He is also responsible for the development, measurement, analysis, and communication of outcomes that inform the culture of empathy, excellence, and continuous improvement at the Center.

He is also responsible for providing clinical leadership, fostering superior quality patient care, standardizing clinical protocols, developing clinical strategic goals, implementing outcomes assessment, program expansion, and contributing to the recruitment and retention of clinical staff. Additionally, Dr. Groat engages in strategic marketing activities across the United States.

Dr. Groat has a 16-year career of leadership in nationally ranked hospital, residential, and outpatient treatment programs that provide evidence-based mental health and addiction services for adolescents and adults. He is the former CEO of CooperRiis, a 95-bed residential program located in Asheville, North Carolina, and was Chief Clinical Officer of Silver Hill Hospital, a 129-bed hospital with seven residential programs, three inpatient units, and an outpatient clinic. He also previously served as Director of Adult Services at the Menninger Clinic, overseeing its flagship professionals and executives’ program, subacute program, and outpatient clinic. Dr. Groat has launched successful programs, including the framework for a grateful patient donor program at the Menninger Clinic, an aftercare support service at Silver Hill Hospital, expansion of CooperRiis’ community integration program, and an assessment service at Silver Hill Hospital. He has consistently driven increased patient satisfaction and high staff morale and helped launch successful patient outcomes measurement at the Menninger Clinic and Silver Hill Hospital. Long accustomed to working with a diverse payor mix, Dr. Groat understands how to bring high touch concierge service to the most discriminating of families and referral sources. He has an extensive national network and is regularly invited to present to audiences throughout the US.

Dr. Groat completed a four-year postdoctoral fellowship in the treatment of refractory personality disorders and other mental disorders at the Austen Riggs Center. He is Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He was previously the Chief Clinical Officer and Director of Psychology and Assessment at the Silver Hill Hospital, where he was also Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine. While at Menninger, Dr. Groat was associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Groat has lectured widely on topics related to psychotherapeutic treatments, acute and intermediate levels of care, suicide prevention, personality assessment and recovery.

Karly Danos is a full time Residential Therapist, serving both Sibcy and Williams House at Lindner Center of HOPE. She also serves as Adjunct Faculty at Xavier University and is pursuing her PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision at the University of Cincinnati.

With undergraduate degrees in both Theatre and Interpersonal Communication, Karly employs an innovative, interpersonal, and systems-based approach to therapy. As an avid arts practitioner, she utilizes expressive and creative interventions to initiate change and healing, while increasing inter- and intra-personal efficacy and functioning. Further, she employs a collaborative therapeutic alliance, coupled with evidence-based practices to assess, and address, mental health concerns along the spectrum of the DSM.

Karly has worked in a variety of settings, providing both clinical and consultative services and trainings, short- and long-term treatment, and in varying levels of care. She began her career at University of Cincinnati Health working in the Employee Assistance Program. She then worked as a Residential Therapist at the Center for Addiction Treatment. After a brief stint in private practice, she has now returned to Residential Treatment, and is looking forward to continuing excellent clinical care through an ecological and team-based approach.

Karly is planning to combine her areas of study, and advance the field, through further research and development within the intersection of theatre, communication, the art of therapy, and supervision.

Dr. Michelle Flaum, LPCC-s, DCMHS is Professor in the Department of Counseling at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Author of Managing the Psychological Impact of Medical Trauma: A Guide for Mental Health and Health Care Professionals (2016, New York: Springer), Michelle has worked for over 20 years to empower patients and professionals with information about identifying and treating medical trauma. She is a Fellow and Dual-Diplomate in trauma and integrated behavioral healthcare with The American Mental Health Counselors Association, consultant helping clinicians and health care organizations develop medical trauma protocols across the U.S. and the globe, and developer of numerous assessment tools used by researchers, clinicians, and national organizations such as the Council on Patient Safety in Women’s Healthcare/ACOG, Stanford University and the Mayo Clinic. Additionally, Michelle sees patients in private practice, focusing much of her work on medical trauma.