Benjamin

Gonzales

,

MPH, MHA

Ben Gonzales is the Operations Manager for Virtual Care at Geisinger’s Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health and Administrative Fellow for the Steele Institute for Health Innovation. Ben completed his B.S. in Agricultural Economics at Purdue University and briefly worked in the Agriculture Industry. Ben's pathway to healthcare is deeply personal, changing professions after finding recovery from a substance use disorder. Ben worked as an advocate and recovery coach, seeking to change the way we respond to mental illness as a society, and spent several years a caregiver in inpatient psychiatric hospitals. After realizing his passion for healthcare leadership and advocacy, he enrolled in a dual MPH/MHA program at Indiana University. During his time at IU, Ben completed an Administrative Residency at Eskenazi Health and served as a Crisis Intervention Trainer of Hamilton and Marion County. He also co-founded INStep, a non-profit that creates opportunities for collaboration and innovation to combat SUD in Indiana. As a fellow, Ben leads initiatives related to Behavioral Health innovation, Geisinger’s Social Determinant of Health strategy, and access optimization for system behavioral health needs. In addition, Ben is also an Administrator and leads Geisinger’s virtual care efforts to address the behavioral needs of Central and Northeastern PA. Ben currently serves on Board of Directors for the Indiana NOFAS and the Central Pennsylvania Chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Ben’s experience as a behavioral healthcare leader and person in long term recovery makes Ben well suited to lead the efforts of the Free2Bmom Program.