photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

The Community Health Facility, 200 Maine St. is pictured Tuesday, February 25, 2025.

The Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center will host a community conversation about equity, access, and representation in women’s mental health on Thursday.

The panel is free and open to the public, and it will be held on Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. at the Community Health Facility, 200 Maine St., in the second floor community room. The panelists for the event include professional experts as well as those with lived experience.

Here is the list of panelists participating in the event:

• Lauren Alexander, acute care team program provider for Bert Nash. Alexander has worked in many roles at Bert Nash, and she has completed advanced training through Postpartum Support International. She previously worked at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment for statewide maternal health initiatives, including serving on the maternal mortality review committee, oversight of the Maternal Anti-Violence Innovation and Sharing Grant, and support of the Kansas Perinatal Psychiatric Access Line.

• Brittany L. Dwyer, owner of Melanated Maternal Therapy. Dwyer is a licensed clinical social worker who specializes in perinatal mental health, and helping women of color cope with the challenges and stressors of motherhood. She has experience working as a social worker in various hospital settings, including emergency, labor and delivery, pediatric intensive care units, and neonatal intensive care units.

• Kelsee Fout, maternal and child behavioral health director of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Fout also serves as the Project Director of Kansas’ psychiatric access programs: Kansas Connecting Communities and KSKidsMAP. She supports the development, implementation, and coordination of programmatic activities within Title V Maternal and Child Health programs related to behavioral health. Fout previously worked for the Single State Agency that oversees both mental health and substance use prevention and treatment services in Kansas. She has provided care coordination for women with mental health and substance use disorders, pregnant, or disabled as they were releasing from the state correctional facility.

• Kim Freese, chief behavioral health officer at DCCCA. Freese began her own recovery journey as a resident of DCCCA’s First Step House. She later joined the DCCCA staff as a counselor, residential supervisor, and program director. Freese then moved on to a career supporting individuals experiencing substance use and other mental health disorders by advancing behavioral health efforts for the state of Kansas and the nation at SAMHSA, by providing consultation and leadership to four states and nine tribal nations. Freese recently returned to DCCCA, and she continues to share her lived experience and professional expertise on treatment and recovery.

• Sonia Jordan, health equity manager at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas. Jordan brings more than 18 years of experience in public health including data and informatics, health equity, infectious disease, and emergency preparedness. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she served as Operations Director for Douglas County Unified Command, where she led mass vaccination operations.

• Amber Watts, associate professor at the University of Kansas Department of Psychology. Watts is also a Research Fellow at the KU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center in Kansas City. Her current research investigates changes occurring during the menopause transition including insomnia and brain fog.

People interested in attending the panel are encouraged to RSVP at https://www.bertnash.org/event-details-registration/nash-cares-womens-mental-health.