YAMPA VALLEY WELLNESS CONFERENCE

ReConnected: From Separation and Loneliness to Connection.

Thursday, April 27th
Steamboat Grand Hotel, Steamboat Springs, Colorado

*limited scholarships available. If interested, contact Info@ncchealthpartnership.com

Since 2015, The Yampa Valley Wellness conference has drawn participants from professional backgrounds such as behavioral health and associated disciplines, non-profit organizations, education, and business, as well as interested community members in Routt County and beyond. During keynote and breakout sessions, experts share cutting edge information, methods, and tools to support the work and lives of participants.

This conference aims to:

Engage participants in active learning experiences and connection
Acknowledge the impact of COVID-19 on behavioral health in general
Examine separation and loneliness for individuals, and across relationships and systems
Highlight connection and community as antidotes to COVID-19-associated experiences specifically, and in other areaS

Keynote Speakers:

Danielle Varda PhD

CEO and Founder, Visible Network Labs
Associate Professor, University of CO Denver, School of Public Affairs
she/her/hers

Dr. Danielle Varda (she/her) is a scientist turned start-up founder, leading Visible Network Labs as CEO and Founder.

Her combination of 25 years as a network scientist studying social connectedness and health, published author, 15 years as a tenured professor at the University of CO Denver, and her successful launch and scaling of the Center on Network Science came together in one big idea to start VNL. She is an entrepreneur, technologist, network scientist, fundraiser, and mother to three spirited girls. She is a nationally known expert and keynote speaker on applied network science, with specific expertise in health system, public health systems, entrepreneurial
ecosystems, and educational system approaches.

Danielle has published over 30 peer-reviewed articles on networks and their impact. She leads VNL’s strategic partnership approach, is the company’s lead fundraiser, and has a vision for how to utilize network science to solve our most pressing and intractable problems.

Visualizing Social Connectedness as a Pathway to Stronger Social, Mental, and Behavioral Health:

We know that social support is a factor in better health, mental health, and well-being outcomes. And yet, it is almost impossible to know if someone has the support they need. While we are all embedded in our own social support networks, they are often invisible not only to us, but the people trying to help us.

Traditional assessments are not able to truly uncover the complexities of understanding loneliness, isolation, and other types of adverse social connectedness. Despite ample evidence that the quality and quantity of a person’s social connections significantly influence health and mental health outcomes, the factor of social connectedness at both personal and community levels is almost entirely absent from the conversations that determine a person’s care.

Network science is an innovative and novel approach that brings visualizations, data, and interactive technologies into the workflow as a way to understand whether a client or patient is at risk of adverse social connectedness. In this session, Dr. Varda will demonstrate how assessing the strengths and gaps in personal networks and systems of people, organizations, and other resources can be simplified to become a part of our everyday provider visits to create person-centered social care plans.

You will leave the session with a mindset shift in how we think about connectedness, have the chance to practice new ideas in real time, and learn about innovations in the field that improve patient and client outcomes, strengthen provider-patient relationships, and increase the chances of meeting the needs of people experiencing adverse social connectedness.

Justin Ross, PsyD

Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Director, Workplace Wellbeing Program
he/him

Dr. Justin Ross (he/him) is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in health, wellness, and human performance psychology.

He has spent the bulk of his career aiding in mental health and wellness initiatives for those performing in stressful, high demanding environments, including those in healthcare as well as professional athletics where he is vetted as a provider for both the NFL and
NBA.

He has served as a clinical psychologist for UCHealth since 2010, formerly in the Center for Integrative Medicine and is currently the Director of Workplace Well-being for the UCHealth system.

From Trauma to Resilience and Growth: Reconnecting to Values, Passions, and Self

The past few years have impacted psychological health and general well-being for individuals across the globe. Accompanying significantly high rates of burnout, anxiety, stress, and depression, is a deep sense of loss and uncertainty. Adversity exposes us not only to these hardships, but also to an opportunity for deeper understanding and connection. From trauma, to resiliency, to growth explores the ways in which we can enhance our well-being because of (not despite) these challenges.