Ep 3: Telemental health in a world on edge with Dr. Sonyia Richardson, Matthew Mills, and Erica Gregory
Listen to the Common Good Data Podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Mental health providers have moved online. But what's working, and what do we need to work on to improve telemental health practice?
We invited Dr. Sonyia Richardson, Owner of Another Level Counseling and Consultation and Assistant Professor at UNC Charlotte School of Social Work, along with clinician Matthew Mills to share their experiences using telemental health tools in their practice with clients of color. They also discuss the death of Gregory Floyd and the collective trauma caused by systemic racism from a mental health lens, sharing strategies for engaging in conversations about race and racism.
For our second interview, we invited Erica Gregory, Owner and Clinical Director at John’s Creek and Alpharetta Counseling for Children and Adults, to share about the work she has done to adapt her practice through social distancing to meet the needs of the clients she serves. Erica also talks about how the pandemic affects the mental health of families and children, and how her organization is finding innovative ways to provide mental health services to first responders, medical professionals, and individuals who have lost employment.
Resources
Dr. Sonyia Richardson: Seeing the Hidden Minority: Increasing the Talent Pool Through Identity, Socialization, and Mentoring Constructs
Erica Gregory: Finding Calm in the Storm E-book series
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail
Guests
Dr. Sonyia Richardson is a licensed clinical social worker, professor, entrepreneur, and researcher. She is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at UNC Charlotte and founding owner of Another Level Counseling and Consultation in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her research is focused on behavioral healthcare leadership, suicide, and mental health among diverse communities. Dr. Richardson enjoys dancing, reading, and vacationing in her spare time.
Matthew Mills is an MSW and independent clinical social worker at Another Level Counseling and Consultation. He received both his Bachelors and Masters degrees in social work from the School of Social Work at UNC- Charlotte. His approach to practice style is a mixture of clinical social work modalities with theoretical approaches to bridge the gaps between individual needs and macro change.
Erica Gregory, LMFT is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist that has been in practice since 2009 offering Couples Counseling & Play Therapy for Children. Erica owns Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling (JCAC) which has been open since 2016. She graduated from Mercer School of Medicine with a Masters in Family Therapy.
Erica is highly specialized to work with Couples by assisting them to be open, attuned, and responsive to each other allowing them to reestablish their emotional connection. Erica also offers play therapy for children who struggle with depression, anxiety, bullying, trauma, and difficult transitions. JCAC offers counseling services throughout the lifespan ranging from play therapy with children, adolescent counseling, adult psychotherapy, couples therapy, and senior counseling services. JCAC offers counseling services at their office in Alpharetta, Ga and online in the state of Ga, FL, and SC. Each counselor is highly specialized in the counseling services they offer.
