Susan Abbott, Senior Vice President, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division
Susan Abbott has over 25 years experience as a leader in the behavioral health field. In the last two decades she has overseen the development and operation of a variety of community outreach, residential, clinical, day and peer support services to meet the needs of adults with psychiatric disabilities. She has secured housing and services funding for the expansion of innovative program models for people with psychiatric disabilities with a wide range of needs (mothers with children, young adults, older adults, people with co-occurring substance use, people living with HIV/AIDs).
As Senior Vice President of Vinfen’s Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division since 1999, Ms. Abbott is responsible for the clinical, fiscal and administrative oversight of about 100 community-based programs serving 3600 people in eastern Massachusetts with annual revenues of $59,000,000.
Ms. Abbott received her Master of Education in Counseling degree from Ohio University and her BA in Psychology and Anthropology from the University of Vermont. She is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and a Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practitioner. She consults with the Anglican Welfare Council of Singapore on the development of community-based services for people with psychiatric conditions throughout the country and served as an expert for the Bazelon Center in legal action against the state of New Jersey resulting in the over 1000 clients being discharged from state hospitals to community settings. She is a member of NAMI, the US and MA Psychiatric Rehabilitation Associations and the American and MA Mental Health Counselors Associations.