We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Leslie Bravo. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Leslie below.
Leslie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with education – we’d love to hear your thoughts about how we can better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career
I am Leslie Bravo an entrepreneur, Founder & CEO at For A Better Day Foundation and Co-Founder at SoFlo Behavioral Health. I recognize the healthcare industry’s immense potential to offer innovating/new, exciting opportunities in the mental health space.
I believe that my passion for providing tools and resources to those afflicted by the stigma of mental illness inspired me to form “For A Better Day Foundation”, a community driven, non-profit organization raising awareness and increasing access to mental health services. Our top priorities, the prevention of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Toxic Stress. I am a member of the advisory board at the Designers and Creative Teams Against Domestic Violence Foundation. As a Board member at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Co-Chair of the CFF South Florida Finest Chapter for 2 years, I was essential to many community campaigns.
During the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020, I was blessed with the opportunity to work hand-in-hand with frontline workers in several locations to provide COVID testing, HIV testing, counseling, and linkage to services (including mental health treatment) directly to patients who typically experience barriers to accessing care. These most vulnerable members of our community were especially at risk during this challenging time, and I was grateful to be able to help provide care directly to those in need. This experience motivated me to continue this work in partnership with other individuals who share this same passion. Now, in collaboration with For A Better Day Foundation and SoFlo Behavioral Health, we are building a program that will be sustainable for the long term, and that will support those in desperate need of care.
Leslie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
At SoFlo Behavioral Health we offer both standalone office-based psychiatric care, as well as Recovery treatments for substance abuse disorder.
What problem we solve: Access to quality care is a huge issue in this country. At SoFlo we provide access to high quality care that is affordable, compassionate, and holistically focused.
What sets us apart: Our focus on the patient as a whole person, our commitment to putting the needs of the patient first before profits.
What are you most proud of: Having the ability to work on something that I’m very passionate about, providing access to critical care for people who face significant challenges accessing care traditionally.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Definitely, it has been a very challenging road. We have a lot to do to help people who suffer from mental or emotional health issues. Currently, there is a shortage of professionals in the healthcare space. This is not the only challenge, it is also very difficult to gain access to insurance networks including; private insurance, Medicaid and Medicare. In addition, many states are with a record deficit of their budgets, cutting prevention-trauma programs that in the long term, will be much more expensive. The direct or indirect cost of mental health problems constitutes one of the most expensive public health issues in the United States. Regardless, we are always actively creating community campaigns, outreach events, fundraising and willing to help all community-driven organization’s efforts.
I feel very grateful to have people close to me who are always supporting me: my family, friends, my team, Kiwanis Club Pompano Beach, Rotary Club Pompano, Palm Beach Department of Health HIV prevention Rob Scott, Palm Beach County Rehabilitation Teams-Mr. Houston Tate, Broward County Farm Bureau Mr. Fred Segal, Broward County Vice- Mayor Lamar Fisher, The New pelican Jay Ghanem, Financial Advisor & Executive Women Club former President my dear friend Chadia Ghanem, my amazing friend and selfless CMO Dr Ethan Anglemyer, Dr. Violet L Howard among many others.
Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?
I love to participate in community outreach; supporting and collaborating with the For A Better Day Foundation, local charities and community leaders with initiatives to serve and benefit diverse populations in need.
I also find that robust and active social media presence is extremely important for connecting with clients and the community we serve. I enjoy being present in the social media space, and because raising awareness is such a huge part of our mission, it just seems natural that most of my outreach happens this way, communicating what we’re doing, what we believe in, and what we are working on is something I really enjoy.
I would like to invite you to join us at the South Florida’s Soul Entrepreneur Luncheon. Thursday September 29, 2022 at 11am to 3pm. Location: Signature Grand Davie Florida.
A fundraising event in support of victims of domestic violence and survivor of human trafficking.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-fashion-soul-entrepreneur-event-tickets-374398695577
Stay tuned for our BELIEVE event hosted by the For A Better Day Foundation. February 25, 2022 at the Hard Rock Guitar Shape Hotel and Casino in Hollywood Florida. The event is to support mental health initiatives: break the stigma, create awareness about mental health and bring access to mental health services and self-care practices.
https://www.forabetterdayfoundation.org/event-details/believe
Contact Info:
- Website: www.forabetterdayfoundation.org | http://www.medicalessentials.me/ www.SoFloBehavirolHealth.com
- Instagram: For A Better Day Foundation | SoFlo Behavioral Health
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ForABetterDayFDN | https://www.facebook.com/SoFloBehavioralHealth/
- Linkedin: For A Better Day Foundation | SoFlo Behavioral Health
Image Credits
Designer and Creative Times Against Domestic Violence Foundation – Katina Milagros Gomez. For A Better Day Foundation. SOFLO Behavioral Health. Palm Beach County – Houston Tate OCR Director. Kiwanis Club of Pompano. Beach Rotary Club of Pompano Beach. Palm Beach County Department of Health HIV Prevention team. Medical Essentials. Optimist Journey Foundation – Violet L Howard