Kay Holmes is a practicing Licensed Marriage Family Therapist (MFT) and Registered Nurse (RN) with a distinguished career working in and running several non-profit substance use programs. She has worked in acute psychiatric services for 17 years and opened the Phoenix Program (drug and alcohol treatment) at El Camino Hospital in 1983, where she served as both Associate Director and Program Director for nine years.

Kay serves the California State Board of Registered Nursing Diversion Program, an initiative designed to assist nurses suffering from drug, alcohol, or psychiatric impairment. The Diversion Program supports and case manages impaired nurses to obtain recovery while protecting public safety from nurses who cannot safely perform their duties. In this role, Kay was appointed to the Board’s Diversion Evaluation Committee (DEC) where she served for eight years leading quarterly meetings to review the effectiveness of the Nursing Diversion Program. She continues to do assessments for the Diversion Program by evaluating and assessing the appropriateness of new applicants to the program.

Kay possesses a Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of San Francisco. She has interned at Bill Wilson Center, worked as a consultant, and has taught at San Jose City College (The Pharmacology of Addiction) and at Gavilan College in Gilroy (Psychiatric Nursing). She has been a Psychotherapist in private practice since 1994.

Kay joined the Board of Directors of Pathway Society in 1992. As past Chairperson of the Board of Directors, she is proud of the organization and the work we do. Her pride and confidence in the organization keeps her actively involved to this day.