Licensed Mental Health and Alcohol and Drug Counselor Jeff Nowlan has joined Gifford’s Behavioral Health team. He is managing the Behavioral Health program, helping to further the integration of Gifford’s Behavior Health and Addiction Medicine programs into the primary care practices. He will also be counseling patients. Most recently Nowlan was counseling program coordinator at Spectrum Youth and Family Services in Burlington, Vt, and brings experience in program management and in both adolescent (12 years and up), family, and adult counseling.
“I believe that everyone has the inner resources to make changes in their lives,” he said. “Much of my work is learning about what motivates a person to change. I help people to build self-awareness about what is not working in their lives and to challenge themselves to move forward.”
A native of Randolph, Nowlan received a BA in Psychology from UVM and then traveled to Oregon, where he worked in an adolescent inpatient center for five years. He returned to Vermont in 2007 and worked for ten years at Spectrum Youth and Family services. He received a Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Johnson State College in 2010. His clinical interests include mental health and substance use counseling, adolescents, young adults, families, and men’s issues; cognitive behavioral therapy; and mindfulness-based therapy.
Nowlan lives in Randolph with his wife, daughter, and two dogs. When not working, he enjoys mountain biking, running, skiing, gardening, and hiking.
Gifford is a community hospital in Randolph, Vt, with family health centers in Berlin, Bethel, Chelsea, Rochester, and White River Junction; and specialty services throughout central Vermont. A Federally Qualified Health Center and a Top 100 Critical Access Hospital in the country, Gifford is a full-service hospital with a 24-hour emergency department; inpatient and rehabilitation units; many surgical services; accredited cancer program; a day care; two adult day programs; and the 30-bed Menig Nursing Home, which was named by US News and World Report as one of the best 39 nursing homes in the country in 2012. The Birthing Center, established in 1977, was the first in Vermont to offer an alternative to the traditional hospital-based deliveries, and continues to be a leader in midwifery and family-centered care. The cancer program is accredited by the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. The hospital’s mission is to improve individuals’ and community health by providing and assuring access to affordable, high-quality health care in Gifford’s service area.