Her Story
About Emily
Emily Bartek is a behavioral health leader and healthcare quality professional with 14 years of experience dedicated to improving patient safety, staff wellbeing, and operational excellence within psychiatric and behavioral healthcare settings. Currently serving as Director of Risk Management and Performance Improvement at Canyon Creek Behavioral Health, Emily leads initiatives focused on risk mitigation, regulatory compliance, incident prevention, and continuous quality improvement. Her expertise lies in analyzing complex systems, identifying opportunities for improvement, and collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to create safer, more effective environments for both patients and healthcare professionals.
Emily's career began with a determination to enter the mental health field while still in college, where she volunteered more than 250 hours at a psychiatric hospital before earning a full-time position as a mental health technician. Over the years, she gained extensive frontline experience across a variety of behavioral health settings, working directly with patients in acute psychiatric care, emergency behavioral health services, children's mental health programs, and patient advocacy roles. This hands-on foundation continues to shape her leadership philosophy, allowing her to connect authentically with frontline staff and develop practical solutions informed by real-world clinical experience.
A passionate advocate for safety and performance improvement, Emily is particularly proud of leading a facility-wide initiative that achieved a 60% reduction in patient seclusion duration through enhanced data transparency, weekly interdisciplinary reviews, targeted staff training, and collaborative engagement with clinical and direct-care teams. She is committed to fostering a culture where every team member has a voice in improving care delivery and patient outcomes. Through her combination of operational expertise, analytical thinking, and people-centered leadership, Emily continues to drive meaningful change in behavioral healthcare while advancing standards of safety, quality, and compassionate care.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Emily
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say, you know, not just women, but everybody - I want people to feel confident in what they know. When I teach or help new hire classes or lead techs grow, I tell them I want you to be confident in what you know so that you have the ability to speak up. That's a lot of the reasoning why we look at restraints and seclusions and meet with the techs - I tell them, yes, you're not the one with the license on the unit, but you should be an expert in these topics as well. I really focus on teaching people to be confident in what they're saying and to speak up when they know it's not necessarily the best idea at the time, or if they want to try something else. I encourage them to say, 'Hey, can I, before we do this, go hands-on with the patient? I have a good rapport, maybe I can try to talk to the patient.' I teach people that it's okay to speak up - it doesn't mean you're trying to staff split or anything like that, you're just trying to do the best thing for the patient.
02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I'm very family-oriented. If I'm not at work, I'm with my family. That is my priority and my why for the hard days and pushing forward. I have a daughter who's about to turn 18, and anything related to family is what I focus on. I live very close to my parents, so family is really central to everything I do.
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