Open to opportunities

Larry Bolster

@larrybolster

Licensed Clinical Social Worker combining 20+ years of crisis counseling with an interst in AI quality and mental health AI safety expertise.

United States

Message

What I'm looking for

I want to help build safer, higher-quality mental health AI by doing clinician-in-the-loop evaluations, crisis-risk review, and workflow quality assurance that improves documentation, access, and real-world patient care.

I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 20+ years of experience in clinical counseling, crisis support, psychosocial assessment, safety planning, and treatment planning. I bring deep clinical judgment to multidisciplinary care, helping patients, families, and teams navigate high-stakes situations with clarity and follow-through.

I also pair my clinical work with hands-on, self-taught technology experience, translating clinical needs into practical digital workflows. My focus is mental-health AI safety: reviewing how systems respond to vulnerable users, crisis-risk assessment, escalation standards, and clinical quality assurance — bringing the judgment of real-world care to whether these tools are genuinely safe and useful.

Since 2009, I've worked as a Clinical Therapist at Penobscot Community Health Center, completing psychosocial assessments, providing individual and brief therapy, and supporting multidisciplinary team care. Earlier, as a Consultation Clinician at Acadia Hospital Consult Services, I delivered crisis intervention, safety planning, treatment recommendations, care coordination, and patient advocacy.

On the technical side, I'm self-taught and hands-on: I built and run a self-hosted AI lab — local language models and a custom retrieval-augmented (RAG) system — and earlier, at the University of Maine, I helped stand up distance-learning and campus technology, supporting faculty and students. I'm energized by roles that pair clinical-to-technical collaboration with clinician-in-the-loop evaluation, documentation quality, and workflow testing — work that leads to safer, more effective digital health and mental-health AI.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Clinical Therapist

Current

Penobscot Community Health Center

Aug 2009 - Present (16 years 10 months)

Conduct psychosocial assessments and deliver individual and brief therapy, including treatment planning and family education. Provide crisis intervention and support multidisciplinary care through ongoing coordination.

Individual Therapy Treatment Planning Family Education Crisis Intervention

Consultation Clinician

Acadia Hospital Consult Services

Dec 2007 - Dec 2009 (2 years)

Performed clinical assessments and provided crisis intervention, safety planning, and treatment recommendations in hospital settings. Coordinated care and advocated for patients, families, and medical teams.

Clinical Assessment Crisis Intervention Clinical Recommendations Care Coordination Patient Advocacy

Behavioral Therapist

Gentiva

Dec 2005 - Dec 2007 (2 years)

Delivered in-home assessment and treatment planning within a multidisciplinary in-home care model. Provided BHP supervision for Section 65/65M services and supported medical social work needs for patients and families.

In Home Assessment Treatment Planning Behavioral Health Services BHP Supervision Section 65 65M Services Medical Social Work

Outpatient Clinician

Acadia Narcotics Treatment / CDIOP Program

Aug 2005 - Aug 2007 (2 years)

Managed an outpatient caseload of approximately 50 patients receiving methadone and Suboxone treatment. Facilitated relapse prevention, psychoeducation, methadone treatment, and dual-diagnosis groups.

Methadone Treatment Suboxone Treatment Medication Assisted Treatment Caseload Management Dual Diagnosis Group Facilitation Group Therapy

Inpatient Clinician

Acadia

Aug 2002 - Aug 2005 (3 years)

Completed psychosocial assessments and developed inpatient treatment plans, including brief therapy and family education. Produced discharge summaries and coordinated with outpatient providers to support continuity of care.

Family Education Care Coordination Clinical Documentation

Distance Learning Assistant

University of Maine at Orono

Aug 1999 - Aug 2003 (4 years)

Provided distance-learning course setup and instructional technology support to faculty across departments. Assisted with deployment of the University of Maine Hutchinson Center satellite office in Belfast during a summer project.

Distance Learning Support Course Setup Instructional Technology Faculty Assistance Distance Learning Satellite Office Deployment Technical Troubleshooting User Support

Student Tech Support

University of Maine at Farmington

Aug 1996 - Jul 1999 (2 years 11 months)

Supported campus dorm networking by installing and configuring network cards and connecting student computers to the campus network. Troubleshot setup issues and coordinated with facilities and the computer center staff.

Networking Network Cards Dorm Networking end user support