Nikki Issacs’ career has primarily focused on both the management and delivery of health care services to Indigenous groups, juvenile offenders, physically and mentally disabled adults, and chemical dependency adults. She has a doctorate in Human Science with an emphasis on systems science and also holds credentials with the National Forensic Counselors Association with a doctorate in addiction counseling. She is a nationally certified psychologist and has credentials as a handwriting expert to provide expert testimony in forgery cases or for personality profiling. She is unique in that she has a wide diversity of experience with many criminal justice modalities. Her grasp of research, ethics, business management, federal requirements, and visionary processes to tackle difficult health care problems bring considerable knowledge to facilitate PSYmore’s goals in research that involves human consciousness from both a therapeutic and a multi-cultural spiritual framework.
Current Work
Nikki is currently with the State of Nevada as the coordinator for the Ryan White CARE center where she provides healthcare administration, treatment and the pharmaceutical needs for Nevada’s low income HIV/AIDS patients.
Nikki’s career has spanned 15 states from east to west coasts and north to Alaska; however, she claims that Nevada will be home base for the rest of her life. Her primary hobbies, which she shares with her husband, include home remodeling, working with Nevada’s wild horse rescue groups, and developing a line of organic soaps and lotions with essential oils that are imported from all over the world. Her interest in organic soaps and lotions emerged out of her work with cancer patients and survivors who needed chemical-free products. Her extensive review of psychological research has revealed that many psychiatric disturbances are connected with an over toxicity of chemicals. Thus, Nikki and her husband formed their soap company, named Ageless Wisdom, with many product lines designed to retard the aging process without potentially damaging chemicals.
In addition to her current employment with the state of Nevada, the formation of her soap company, and her involvement with PsyMore, she has several books in progress. Nikki has also developed a “landmark” that is the only barn in the county that is filled with artwork and Mayan masks
for the horses to enjoy.
Background
Prior to Nikki’s current position, she held the position of the Director of Health & Human Services for the Fallon Paiute Shoshone Tribe in Fallon, Nevada. While there she supervised nearly 100 positions and 6 separate divisions that included a full-service outpatient clinic, a 10-bed adolescent Behavioral Health Treatment Center, and a Senior Center. The services of the Senior Center involved programs, such as meals-on-wheels, homemaker programs, and a Social Services Program. The Social Services Program entailed addressing the concerns of foster care, adoption, and Indian Child Welfare that involved the abuse and/or neglect of Indian children. Also under Nikki’s supervision were the Domestic Violence Program and the Tribal Youth Program that focused on delinquency and substance abuse prevention. She accomplished several important achievements while there. She implemented many system changes that resulted in tribal savings of $1.8 million dollars in seven months and an annualized income of over $1.2 million dollars with new revenue streams from third party insurance reimbursements.
Nikki held several positions while living in Florida before moving to the Nevada area. She was the Regional Administrator for the Duvall Presbyterian Home in Glenwood, Florida. She also held the position of Medicaid Administrator for the Medicaid Program Integrity Fraud Unit for the State of Florida. At the Duvall Home, she supervised multiple disability development delivery systems that included a 150-bed institution and 70 additional disability residents for ten group homes. The residents ranged in age from 8 to over 90. She provided leadership in FEMA disaster planning and evacuation during three major hurricanes that involved over 600 individuals. In addition, she reversed the organization’s $50,000 monthly budget deficit within four months of hire. As a Medicaid administrator, she supervised a team of investigators who conducted Medicaid fraud analysis of 6,500 disability development and mental retardation providers, audited programs for medical necessity appropriate billing, and evaluated quality assurance of Medicaid programs. In this position, she reviewed subordinates documentation that was prepared as a discovery for prosecution for Medicaid fraud in which
she achieved a 95% recovery rate.
Before moving to Florida, Nikki held various positions in multiple states, such as New Mexico, Nebraska, Arkansas, Washington state, Arizona, Michigan, and in Alaska. She held the position of Regional Superintendent in the State of New Mexico Boys School where she supervised the 211-bed juvenile justice institution, provided extensive government liaison, and worked with the Mexican Consulate and Immigration in addition to supervising the Farmington, Eagle’s Nest, and Portales facilities located in New Mexico.
In Beatrice, Nebraska, she was the administrator for the Martin Luther Homes, a 130-bed residential immediate care facility for the mentally retarded in which she provided fiduciary, administrative, and clinical responsibilities for the physically challenged, developmentally delayed, and spine ad traumatic brain injury patient services. In Lincoln, Nebraska, she held the position of National Marketing Director for the United Phone Book Advertisers in which she acted as the national spokesperson, expanded the phone company presence to 22 field offices in 7 states in one year, and developed the marketing campaign for these national field offices.
In Arkansas, Nikki was a clinician and Treatment Director for the Transpersonal Psychology Institute in Pine Bluff. While there, she supervised the startup operation of a 154-bed chemical dependency/poly-diagnosis prison based program and provided individual, group, and family therapy services.
While in East Wentachee, Washington, Nikki worked as a case manager where she provided counseling and case management services for juveniles in a state of Washington step-down facility for juveniles who had been released from the institution. She was involved in interstate compact documentation, court testimony, and acted as a liaison with parole and probation officers.
Afterward leaving Washington, Nikki held the position of Administrator at the South Central Foundation in Anchorage, Alaska where she managed the startup operation including construction, initial policies, and manuals to address the multicultural needs of a novel 25-bed treatment center for pregnant Alaska Natives and Native American women who had substance abuse problems and/or were in danger of fetal risks. The program, a first program of its kind, was funded by congressional appropriation and Indian Health Services and provided for a state wide health service delivery area for over 50 tribes and Eskimo (Inuit) women and children.
In Arizona, she was the Regional Director for Young Acres in Peoria and a Case Manager for Vision Quest in Tucson. At Young Acres, she was responsible for the administrative, medical, and physical supervision of a four community based 24-hour therapeutic mental health homes that focused on substance abuse, abuse, abandonment, and criminality issues. At Vision Quest, Nikki provided case management using a wilderness and boot camp model of residential therapeutic and chemical dependency rehabilitation services. She participated in the community therapeutic program that included traveling roundtrip from the Mexican border to Canada on a horse-drawn wagon train with dual diagnosed patients.
While in Michigan, she held the position of Union Chairperson and Industrial Security Officer for the General Motors Corporation in Pontiac. She became the first woman chair of the local union and was elected to two consecutive terms. She trained as an industrial security officer in white-collar crime prevention, emergency management, fire rescue, and employee monitoring and surveillance. In addition, she participated in national and international labor negotiations representing her Detroit, Michigan area local union from 1976−1980.
Education
Ph.D. (Human Science/Psychology), 2000, Saybrook Graduate School and Research Center, San Francisco, California
M.A., (Human Science/Psychology), 1998, Saybrook Graduate School and Research Center, San Francisco, California
B.S., (General Studies/Social Science), 1985, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska
Internship with Boys Town, Omaha, Nebraska, 1983
Educational or Professional Honors and Association Memberships
Current
Past
Consulting
Unpublished Manuscripts
Methodological Expertise
Content Analysis
Descriptive Statistics
Correlation Analysis
Indigenous Research Methods and Indigenous Ethics
Other Certifications
Nikki lives with her husband, three dogs, and four horses on a ranch in Silver Springs, Nevada. This high plains desert location abuts over 500,000 wilderness acres, which is perfect for trail riding in the great outdoors, and they enjoy the view of the Sierra Mountain range in Tahoe. She may be contacted via email at nisaacs@psymore.org.
