2023 Mental

Health Summit
Speaker Bios
The Summit brings you a very unique line-up of internationally-renowned, award-
winning practitioners, researchers, authors and educators. Whether you decide to
attend live webinars or watch on-demand recorded videos – you can rest assured
you’ll be learning from the best.

Dr. Judith S. Beck Ph.D.

President, Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy
Clinical Professor of Psychiatry in Psychology, University of Pennsylvania

Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., is President of the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy (beckinstitute.org), a non-profit
organisation that provides state-of-the-art training in Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Recovery-Oriented Cognitive
Therapy (CT-R), certification in CBT, and online courses on a variety of topics—as well as conducting research and offering CBT
resources around the world. Dr. Beck is also a Clinical Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania
Perelman School of Medicine. She has written over 100 articles and chapters, workbooks, pamphlets for professionals and
non-professionals, and 7 books, including Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Basics and Beyond, 3rd Edition (2020) and Cognitive
Therapy for Challenging Problems: What to Do When the Basics Don’t Work. She has made hundreds of presentations nationally
and internationally on various applications of CBT and is the primary developer of the Beck Institute’s on-demand CBT training
courses, which have been taken by more than 28,000 health and mental health professionals in over 130 countries. Dr. Beck
provides supervision and maintains a clinical caseload at the Beck Institute’s in-house clinic in suburban Philadelphia, treating
clients who experience a range of challenges.

Learn more and register here:

www.mentalhealthacademy.co.uk/summit
2023 Mental Health
Summit Speaker Bios

Dr. Manaan Kar Ray MBBS, MSc, MRPsych, CCT, FRANZCP

Divisional Director, Mental Health, Princess Alexandra Hospital
A/Prof, AISRAP, Griffith University

Dr. Manaan Kar Ray is Director for the Division of Adult Mental Health, Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH), Metro South, Brisbane
and an Associate Professor at the Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention, Griffith University. He trained as a
Psychiatrist in Oxford and worked as the Clinical Director for Adult Mental Health Services in Cambridge for a decade. He has
extensive experience in working with people in suicidal distress and in his leadership role has carried out radical redesign of
mental health care pathways to improve care and access to services for people in crisis. These include services in Cambridge,
UK; 333 acute care delivery, 24-7 crisis services, transformation of community-based care, establishing PRISM (PRImary care
Service for Mental health), roll out of a peer workforce, and in Brisbane; AIMS Suicide Prevention Pathway for Wellbeing Team
and Crisis Support Space, transformation of Emergency Department Mental Health Care. He is the architect of the PROTECT
(PROactive deTECTion) suicide prevention training framework, an internationally recognized program that brings together novel
approaches to suicide risk assessment and management. He is the author of the PROTECT Books and countless chapters and
peer-reviewed papers. His 2022 project is the PROTECT Suicide Prevention Training Podcast which is now available on all major
podcasting channels including Spotify and Apple Podcasts. He is passionate about supporting people in suicidal distress and
improving access and care for them. He won a UK national award for improving patient experience and decreasing coercion in
care and the paper from the project received Wiley’s top cited article award for 2018-19.

Dr. Michael Acton Psy.D., M.Ed. (Psych.) Hons., M.A.

C.Psych., AfBPsS., BACP (Accred).
Psychologist
Author

Dr. Acton is a trusted psychologist, in-demand expert for the media, well-known global relationship guru, and author whose
career has involved working with high-profile figures including celebrities, aristocracy, CEOs, and Family Offices, worldwide.
Although he has responsibility to the demands of his books and interviews, Dr. Acton is deeply devoted so keeps his list open
for people who have worked with him over the years and a small number of occasional urgent situations, or cases of interest,
that come to his attention.

Learn more and register here:

www.mentalhealthacademy.co.uk/summit
2023 Mental Health
Summit Speaker Bios

Dr. Cirecie West-Olatunji Ph.D.

Professor, Xavier University of Louisiana

Cirecie A. West-Olatunji is the Melba Fortuné Martinez Endowed Professor in the counsellor education program and currently
serves as director of the Center for Equity, Justice, and the Human Spirit at Xavier University of Louisiana. Dr. West-Olatunji is
the founding director of the Center for Traumatic Stress Research (CTSR). She is a past president of the American Counseling
Association (ACA) and the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD). In addition, she has served as
editor-in-chief of the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development (JMCD). Nationally, Dr. West-Olatunji has initiated several
clinical research projects that focus on culture-centred community collaborations designed to address issues rooted in systemic
oppression, such as transgenerational trauma and traumatic stress. Cirecie West-Olatunji has conducted commissioned research
under the auspices of the National Science Foundation, ACA Foundation, Kellogg Foundation, federal Witness Assistance Program,
Spencer Foundation, American Educational Research Association, and African American Success Foundation. Her publications
include two co-authored books, numerous book chapters, and over 60 articles in peer-reviewed journals. In addition to national
presentations, Dr. West-Olatunji has delivered research papers in Eastern and Western Europe, the Pacific Rim, Africa, and the
Americas. Additionally, she provided consultation in a PBS initiative to create a children’s television show focusing on diversity
through KCET-TV in Los Angeles, CA (“Puzzle Place”). Dr. West-Olatunji has also provided consultation to the Center for American
Education in Singapore and the Buraku Liberation Organization in Japan to enhance their early childhood and counselling
initiatives. In 2018, Dr. Cirecie West-Olatunji was recognized as an ACA Fellow.

Dr. Amanda Giordano Ph.D., LPC

Associate Professor of Counseling, University of Georgia

Amanda L. Giordano, Ph.D., LPC is an associate professor at the University of Georgia who specializes in addictions counselling.
She is the sole author of a clinical reference book titled, A Clinical Guide to Treating Behavioral Addictions and co-author of a
textbook titled, Addiction Counseling: A Practical Approach. She also created a 38 continuing education hour online credential
course on working with behavioural addictions with the Mental Health Academy. Dr. Giordano works to advance the counselling
field with rigorous research and has published 60 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters.

In 2018, Dr. Giordano received the Addictions/Offender Educator of Excellence Award from the International Association of
Addictions and Offender Counselors (IAAOC) and in 2022 she was awarded the Russell H. Yeany Jr., Research Award by her
colleagues. Dr. Giordano collaborates with domestic and international organizations to provide trainings to increase awareness
related to behavioural addictions and has delivered three keynote addresses. She maintains a blog called Understanding Addiction
for Psychology Today and has been a guest on several podcasts. Dr. Giordano has experience as an editorial board member for
a number of prominent counselling journals including the Journal of Addiction and Offender Counseling, Journal of Counseling
and Development, and the International Journal for the Advancement of Counselling. She serves on the American Counseling
Association (ACA) of Georgia Leadership Council, the board of the Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling (AARC),
and is a member of several other ACA divisions.

Learn more and register here:

www.mentalhealthacademy.co.uk/summit
2023 Mental Health
Summit Speaker Bios

Dr. Hillary Lin M.D.

Co-Founder and CEO of Curio

Hillary Lin, MD is a Stanford-trained physician and Co-founder and CEO of Curio, a comprehensive behavioural healthcare
company. She is additionally trained in ketamine-assisted therapy via the Polaris Training Institute. Her research and clinical work
have been focused on neuroscience, internal medicine, mental health, and oncology. Dr. Lin advises other practitioners and
startups in the health and wellness space. Her mission is to bring transformative, scientific, and accessible change to healthcare.

Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas Psy.D., MNM

President, United Suicide Survivors International
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas holds a deep commitment to not only help prevent suicide but also to encourage people to sustain a
passion for living. As a clinical psychologist, mental health advocate, and researcher, she sees the issues from many perspectives.
Her heart, however, is called, and her dedication to the mission is unwavering due to the suicide death of her brother. Her goal is to
give voice to people who’ve lived through depression, addiction, and the impacts of suicide and leverage their wisdom to develop
bold, gap-filling strategies and programs - approaches that empower cultural and systems change in our workplaces, education
systems and communities.

Sally is the lead author on the National Guidelines for Workplace Suicide Prevention and president of United Suicide Survivors
International. She is an accomplished speaker with a popular TEDx talk and a White House address to her credits. When she’s not
flying around the world speaking and training, you can find Dr. Sally in her fuzzy slippers at her home office with her loyal dog Rocky
or at 12,000 feet backpacking the Colorado Trail.

Dr. Jamie Rickcord BSc (Hons), M.B.B.S., FRACGP, M.Med

(Psychotherapy).
Chief Medical Officer - Ananda Clinics
Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist in Private Practice

Dr. Jamie Rickcord, M.B.B.S, is a GP, psychoanalytic psychotherapist, and founder of Ananda Clinics. With a strong passion for
integrating plant-based medicines into psychotherapeutic practices, Dr. Rickcord focuses on the treatment of mental health
conditions. As the Chief Medical Officer of Ananda Clinics, he is dedicated to advancing the field of mind-body medicine.

Learn more and register here:

www.mentalhealthacademy.co.uk/summit
2023 Mental Health
Summit Speaker Bios

Dr. Ellen Inverso Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Dr. Inverso is a licensed psychologist practicing in Pennsylvania, USA. A co-developer of recovery-oriented cognitive therapy
(CT-R), she is an internationally recognized leader who provides training and consultation to mental health providers for
individuals given serious mental health condition diagnoses and has developed transformative strategies for implementing
CT-R on inpatient units. This has been done in community residences and with community treatment teams. She specializes
in working with adolescents, individuals who engage in non-suicidal self-injury, and individuals experiencing challenges
associated with psychosis. She is a co-author of Recovery-Oriented Cognitive Therapy for Serious Mental Health Conditions,
through Guilford Press.

Dr. Chad Luke Ph.D., LPC; Approved Clinical Supervisor;

Master Addictions Counselor
Professor of Counselor Education, St Bonaventure University

Dr. Chad Luke is an internationally recognized author, researcher, supervisor, educator, and expert in the clinical integration
of neuroscience with mental health. He is an associate professor of counsellor education at St. Bonaventure University. Five
of his seven books address the process of applying neuroscience research in clinical practice, including Neuroscience for
Counselors and Therapists: Integrating the Sciences of Brain and Mind, now in its second edition, and Applying Neuroscience
to Counseling Children and Adolescents: A Guide to Brain-Based, Experiential Interventions (with Chris Schimmel). Dr. Luke
has been a clinician for over 20 years, a clinical supervisor for 10 of those years, and a graduate professor for the past 12 years.
He is a prolific scholar, authoring or co-authoring over 50 journal articles, books, and book chapters. Dr. Luke is a regularly
requested speaker both nationally and internationally, on topics related to neuroscience and clinical work. His trainings focus
on the intersection of neuroscience and addictions, children and adolescents, career work, and theory, to name a few. He has
received one university’s highest research award for his outstanding scholarship; additionally, he has received one university’s
highest teaching award for excellence in graduate education.

Learn more and register here:

www.mentalhealthacademy.co.uk/summit