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U.S. Army’s First Female Cyber Operator Joins Bizzell as Senior Associate for Cybersecurity and Intelligence

U.S. Army’s First Female Cyber Operator Joins Bizzell as Senior Associate for Cybersecurity and Intelligence

April 21, 2020 (Lanham, MD)—Leslie Kershaw, M.S. joins The Bizzell Group (Bizzell) as Senior Associate for Cybersecurity & Intelligence. In this role, she will support business development efforts by identifying opportunities to integrate security into the health industry including making information, devices, and processes secure from outside threats. Kershaw will also direct strategic relationships with clients, vendors, and business partners.

“I’m honored to lead strategy and growth in the area of cybersecurity at Bizzell. I will use my experience to bring a holistic approach to protecting health systems from cyber attacks from all angles, especially those angles that compromise protected health information and endanger health care delivery systems. I look forward to accelerating our impact in the field,” says Kershaw.

Bringing over 15 years of experience in cybersecurity and intelligence, Kershaw’s career in this field launched when she was recruited to a special missions unit in the U.S. Army. She became the Army’s first female National Security Agency (NSA) certified, offensive cyber operator and led all of NSA’s Computer Network Exploitation Operations. After leaving government service, Kershaw built a hunt operations center for root9B, a cybersecurity company. She then became one of the first members of a cyber security startup that focused on finding hackers. Kershaw created a subsidiary where her efforts focused on building a cyber analytic and operational platform.

“The ever-evolving technology and security needs of our world calls for a revamp in the capabilities and services we offer,” says Anton C. Bizzell, M.D., President & CEO of Bizzell. “We’re looking forward to leveraging Leslie’s expertise in order to advance our clients’ missions, using essential insights to ensure strategic advantage.”

Kershaw holds a Master of Science in Information Technology and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, and served in the U.S. Army for six years.

About Bizzell

Established in 2010, Bizzell US is U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) HUBZone certified strategy, consulting, and technology firm with a mission to improve lives and accelerate change. Bizzell US develops innovative solutions to some of the most critical issues of our time such as health care services equity, global health, workforce innovation and other urgent needs facing the world. Under the leadership and vision of founder, Anton C. Bizzell, MD, the company has grown into a thriving firm headquartered in New Carrollton, Maryland with staff and offices in various regions around the country including California, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Georgia, and globally in Africa, Asia, and Central America. Learn more about how we develop data-driven, research-informed, innovative solutions to complex-real-world challenges: www.BizzellUS.com.

Categories Insights, Mental Health Tags Behavioral Health, Department of Labor (DoL), Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), Health, Mental Health, Military, Thought Leadership

PTSD Awareness Day

PTSD Awareness Day

The National Center for PTSD promotes awareness of PTSD and effective treatments throughout the year. Starting in 2010, Congress named June 27th PTSD Awareness Day.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a disorder that develops in some people who have experienced a shocking, scary, or dangerous event. PTSD can happen to anyone at any age and includes war veterans, children, and people who have been through physical or sexual assault, abuse, accident, disaster, or other serious events. According to the National Center for PTSD, about 7 or 8 out of every 100 people will experience PTSD at some point in their lives. Women are more likely to develop PTSD than men, and genes may make some people more likely to develop PTSD than others.  PTSD happens after traumatic events that cause people to have painful memories. For many people, the effects of the traumatic fade over time, but others are unable to make the thoughts and feelings go away even months or years after the event has occurred.

PTSD symptoms usually start immediately after the traumatic event:

The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs has a list of symptoms for PTSD:

  1. Reliving the event (also called re-experiencing symptoms). You may have bad memories or nightmares. You even may feel like you’re going through the event again. This is called a flashback.
  2. Avoiding situations that remind you of the event. You may try to avoid situations or people that trigger memories of the traumatic event. You may even avoid talking or thinking about the event.
  3. Having more negative beliefs and feelings. The way you think about yourself and others may change because of the trauma. You may feel guilt or shame. Or, you may not be interested in activities you used to enjoy. You may feel that the world is dangerous and you can’t trust anyone. You might be numb, or find it hard to feel happy.
  4. Feeling keyed up (also called hyperarousal). You may be jittery or always alert and on the lookout for danger. Or, you may have trouble concentrating or sleeping. You might suddenly get angry or irritable, startle easily, or act in unhealthy ways (like smoking, using drugs and alcohol, or driving recklessly.

Below is a list of PTSD screens, that is, brief questionnaires that may identify people who are more likely to have PTSD.

For each measure, a brief description, sample items, versions, and references are provided. Information on how to obtain the measure is also provided.

Categories Corporate, Mental Health, News, Suicide Prevention Tags Communications & Outreach, Contracts, Department of Defense (DoD), Health, Maryland State Chair of the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Program (ESGR), Military, Quest Community Development Organization (QCDO)

Bizzell Supports Our Military

Bizzell Supports Our Military

On November 30, 2017, Dr. Anton Bizzell, CEO and President of The Bizzell Group (Bizzell) and senior Bizzell staff met with Jean Hulet, the Maryland State Chair of the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Program (ESGR), to sign a Statement of Support with ESGR.  By signing ESGR’s Statement of Support, Bizzell solidifies its deep commitment as an advocate and supportive employer for our National Guard and Reserve employees. Bizzell is proud to support our military by providing employment and employment opportunities for those who serve in the National Guard and Reserves and Veterans.

ESGR was started by the Department of Defense in the early 1970s to foster cooperation and understanding between employers and Service members. ESGR has more than 3,600 trained volunteers in communities throughout the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  ESGR educates employers about the Reserve component of the military, assists with resolving conflicts that arise from an employee’s Reserve status and commitments, and recognizes employers with policies that support and encourage participation in the Reserves.

Bizzell sponsored a community outreach Veterans’ appreciation luncheon and toiletry donation event on Friday, November 7th in Atlanta GA, in collaboration with National Contract Management Association (NCMA) Atlanta Chapter. The recipient organization, Quest Community Development Organization (QCDO), promotes a best in class, diverse housing model that encourages collaboration and positive community change. QCDO is committed to enhancing and inspiring personal, professional, and team growth through unique experiences, continued education, and strong work ethic.

QCDO provides housing programs and supportive services that are targeted toward the chronically homeless population of men, women and Veterans with a history of mental illness and/or substance addiction directly affecting the human health and welfare of individuals.

Bizzell also supports the military through our Department of Defense (DoD) contract, which focuses on suicide prevention, intervention, and posvention efforts for Service members and their families. We believe that it is our sacred duty to ensure the health and well-being of our brave Service members. We must provide proper care for those who sacrifice so much for the freedom we enjoy. Through the contract, assist the DoD with the development and implementation of a suicide prevention, outreach, and communication plan for Service members, their families, and DoD Civilians.

Categories Insights, Mental Health, Suicide Prevention Tags Behavioral Health, Communications & Outreach, Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), Health, Mental Health, Military, Special Populations, Suicide Prevention, Thought Leadership

Bizzell Group: Addressing Suicide Prevention

Bizzell Group: Addressing Suicide Prevention

The Bizzell Group (Bizzell) continues to demonstrate a strong commitment to advancing and assisting in substantive public discourse around suicide and suicide prevention. Through various contracts, Bizzell works with organizations, Federal clients, non-profits and partners to make an impact with the hope of reducing suicide rates across the country. Some of Bizzell’s work in the area of suicide prevention includes: American Indian and Alaskan Native suicide, military suicide and Arctic region suicide.

The American Indian/Alaskan Native communities have strikingly higher rates of suicides than the overall population in the U.S. The Indian Health Service identifies suicides as the second leading cause of death among AI/AN youth (5 and 24 years old). These AI/AN adolescents are also at greater risk for suicide contagion and suicide clusters, which can be particularly devastating for the often close-knit and rural AI/AN communities. Bizzell examined the research on suicide clusters and contagion in general and within AI/AN communities.

In addition to researching rates of suicide among American Indian/Alaskan Native populations, Bizzell has supported suicide prevention efforts among Veteran and Service member populations. According to a recent study by the Department of Veterans Affairs, roughly 20 veterans a day nationwide commit suicide. Researchers concluded that veterans are at a 21 percent higher risk for suicide than civilian populations. In 2014, the latest year available, more than 7,400 veterans took their own lives, accounting for 18 percent of all suicides in America. Veterans make up less than 9 percent of the U.S. population. Military suicide also has a significant impact on the family members left behind. The University of Southern California found “that military connected adolescents have a higher rate of suicidal thoughts than their civilian counterparts, and other studies indicate that military spouses— particularly those serving as caregivers to support their wounded veterans—are more at risk to suffer mental health problems.” The untold costs of military service on family members is difficult to measure. The National Military Family Association, a nonprofit that serves a quarter of a million military relatives, reported “hearing about an increasing number of stories about family members killing themselves.”

Bizzell recognizes that high suicide rates are not limited to American Indian/Alaskan Native populations or military communities; suicide rates in the Arctic are among the highest in the world. Historically, indigenous people in circumpolar regions had very low rates of death by suicide. However, there is currently no other region that suicide has had such a strong impact and social burden on than in indigenous populations—specifically those in circumpolar regions. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that suicide accounts for roughly 800,000 deaths per year worldwide—although rates differ within countries according to geography,gender, ethnicity and cultural variables. Greenland and the arctic regions of the United States, Canada and Russia have considerably higher suicide rates than the non-Arctic Regions, and where data is available by ethnicity (Alaska, Canada and Russia), the increased risk of suicide in indigenous communities is evident. Bizzell is assisting RISING SUN, an initiative under the U.S. chairmanship of the Arctic Council that is designated to identify a toolkit of common outcomes to be used in evaluating suicide prevention efforts to assess the key correlates associated with suicide prevention intervention across Arctic states. The goal is to generate shared knowledge that will aid health workers in better serving circumpolar communities, and help policymakers measure progress, evaluate interventions, and identify regional and cultural challenges to implementation.

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