Michelle Sweet, LPC, LCDC, NCC – Chief Operating Officer
As Chief Operating Officer, Michelle assists the Executive Director in developing and implementing policies and procedures, leading a team of high-performing executives to be effective, productive, and efficient.
“Analyzing internal operations and identifying areas of process enhancement to ensure we are providing best care to patients and employees, alike, is very important to me.”
As a former colligate soccer player, Michelle developed a desire for leadership at an early age. Teamwork, honest communication, strategic development, and self-discipline are at the core of what she believes makes a great leader.
Michelle also directs the Utilization Review Department. The business side of addiction treatment has always attracted her, along with being a licensed clinician.
“I have always been interested in seeing that a patient gets the coverage they need. Relieved of worries about financial matters, they can focus on completing the program.” “Ethics and the La Hacienda mission is the heart of this facility. Working within those parameters, you get positive results from insurers.”
“I love talking to clinicians on the insurance side and building relationships with them so we can collaborate for the greater good of this industry,” says Michelle. Those representatives–always clinicians or persons with master’s level licensure—“are like co-workers, even friends. I know about their kids and their families and where they went on vacation.” “That is how you make utilization review work. You build relationships.”
It’s the same dynamic that makes La Hacienda such a “special place.”
“Our clinicians do a really fine job of building rapport with patients and making them feel safe, heard, and valued. That really bleeds into every department, from our housekeeping staff to our medical team. Everyone truly understands the value of relationships.”
Michelle brings a professional and personal background that has uniquely prepared her for her role.
A native New Mexican, Michelle holds a master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Texas A&M University at Corpus Christi. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor, and a Nationally Certified Counselor through the NBCC. She has worked in the mental health/substance abuse field since 2008. She joined the La Hacienda staff as a Continuing Care Specialist in 2014, then moved over to UR in 2015 and then became the Director of UR and COO in 2020 and 2024, respectively.
Michelle resides with her husband and daughter on her family’s historic ranch on the South Fork of the Guadalupe west of Hunt that has been in her family for more than a century. The property is used for hunting leases, but they also raise Nigerian dwarf goats. Floating on the Guadalupe River and dancing the night away at Crider’s Dancehall are her favorite free-time activities. She continues her love for soccer by coaching her daughter’s youth soccer team.
