Speaker's Profile

Patrick Hendry is the Vice President of Peer Services for Firsthand, a peer-led mental health organization. He was previously the Vice President of Peer Advocacy, Supports and Services at Mental Health America. He worked at MHA from 2009 to 2021. He has been a mental health advocate for the past thirty-one years. He conceptualized and led the development of MHA's advanced level national peer certification, the National Certified Peer Specialist credential. While at MHA he was the Director of NCSTAC, one of the five large SAMHSA TA centers for the development of statewide peer networks.

Previously he was the Executive Director of the Florida Peer Network, the statewide organization for people with psychiatric disabilities and co-occurring disorders in Florida. Prior to his work with FPN he worked for the Florida Department of Children & Families, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Program Office as the Coordinator of Consumer Affairs for Southwest Florida. His areas of expertise include organizational development, management and sustainability, self-directed care, peer support, community inclusion for people living with behavioral health issues, recovery based training and peer run programs. He served as Coordinator for the Florida Self-Directed Care program in Southwest Florida and as the State spokesperson for SDC. He has lectured and provided consultation services on self-determination, self-directed care, and peer support nationally and internationally.

Prior to joining MHA, he served on numerous Boards for advocacy organizations. He was instrumental in the creation of the Florida Certified Recovery Peer Specialist position and served on the Mental Health Advisory Board and ethics committee.

As a self-disclosed consumer of mental health services, Patrick has presented at numerous national and international conferences on a wide range of recovery topics. In 1992 he co-founded one of the first peer-run organizations in Florida to contract directly with the State for the provision of services and has assisted with the development of numerous peer-run programs. He is a strong supporter of the inclusion of mental health consumers in all aspects of the mental health system.