Serving as the top executive of a behavioral healthcare organization takes a lot of hard work, attention to detail, commitment, and courage. Every day brings new challenges complicated by old problems, such as funding and staffing shortages. In the midst of these trying circumstances, some leaders have found ways to help their organizations not only survive, but thrive, serving their communities with excellence.
This is the fourth year Behavioral Healthcare is honoring such 'Champions' in the field. This year's honorees, nominated by readers and selected by the editors, are:
* Scott M. Bock, President/CEO, Riverside Community Care
* Michael D. Flora, MBA, MAEd, LCPC, LSW, President/CEO, Ben Gordon Center
* Dennis R. Jacobs, phD, President/CEO, New Passages Behavioral Health & Rehabilitation Services
* Carol Luna-Anderson, phD, LPCC, Executive Director, The Life Link
* Sam Tsemberis, phD, Founder and Executive Director, Pathways to Housing, Inc.
We hope you find the stories behind this year's honorees interesting, inspiring, and rejuvenating your passion for your own work. To read about past years' champions, visit behavioral.net.champions. To nominate someone for next year's awards, visit behavioral.net/championform.
Scott M. Bock
'I love and am honored to do what I do. I've been in this field, now, for over 35 years. Riverside provides me with an opportunity to serve a large and growing community. We change lives, every day. And, I make sure that I have the opportunity to see this, firsthand, and to hear about it through visits to our service sites, from data we collect, and from meeting weekly with our committed and gifted management team.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
'I've been the CEO at Riverside since coming here 26 years ago. At that time, we had 7 employees and were located in a single site. It's been a fascinating experience growing to 65 sites and 1,000 employees. Through it all we have remained true to our values. We provide one, high standard of care, for everyone--whether a Blue Cross or Medicaid cardholder; we partner with the people we serve to set and meet meaningful goals; and we work hard to support an incredibly dedicated workforce.
'Riverside's mission states that we are helping to build healthy communities. At the end of the day, what makes me most proud is that we have become real change agents at the larger community and state levels. We find ways to meet compelling needs whether with our statewide trauma center or our urgent behavioral healthcare center. It also means thousands of us successfully advocate for better funding and continued support for services.
'The fact that consumers consistently rate us well over 90% for the quality of our services, that external reviewers provide us with top ratings, and that our staff tell us they love to work here means we are doing our jobs well. But, there are always new ideas and ways to improve what we do. The culture we have created is so powerful--we will continue to strive to be even better.'
Photographer: Marcia Dolgin Fine lmages
Position: President/CEO
Organization: Riverside Community Care
Service area: Primarily Eastern and Central Massachusetts
Main services: Mental healthcare, developmental disability and traumatic head injury services, early intervention, substance abuse treatment
Number of staff: 1,000
Most vivid behavioral healthcare memory: 'There is a young man who bounced around in the mental health system for many years. No one knew how to help him. Today, he is a valued employee, who has worked at the front desk in our administrative office for five years. Now, he checks in with me, to see how I'm doing.'
Personal mission statement: 'I firmly believe that each of us can help make the world a better place. Riverside offers the opportunity to put words, like these, into action. In this spirit, we provide exceptional services to people who, in the past, have often been forgotten; we offer a respectful and caring work environment; and we meet critical needs for thousands of people, every day.'
Michael D.
Flora MBA, MAEd, LCPC, LSW
'Like so many of us, having family members with mental illness, I didn't realize how that would influence my career choices and the philosophy and values I would later develop as a clinician and CEO. Building on my early experiences in working with families, and my own family's experience with 'the system,' I began to hold a high standard to care. That meant we did not hire anyone we would not want someone we love to see. This commonsense approach when choosing team members has been very beneficial for our organization.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
'I am very proud of our team of caring professionals and the accomplishments in expanding services we have made together for our community. This was especially true this past February. Our organization took an active role to help our community heal in the aftermath of the shootings on the campus of Northern Illionis University. I am proud of our team's commitment and their caring as they continue to help a community heal.
'Throughout my career, I have been committed to expanding performance and accountability in behavioral healthcare. At the Ben Gordon Center, we have embraced these values by aligning best clinical and management strategies and using data to drive those decisions.
'Together, we have a lot to be proud of. We have been able to decrease no-show rates to less than 6% agency-wide for all services. We have increased service capacity by over 60% and maintained staff retention at 98% annually for the past six years. We have increased consumer outcomes and client satisfaction. We have streamlined our documentation processes, enhanced our utilization and review, and dramatically increased the number of individuals we serve every year. We have diversified our payer sources and increased revenue. We have aligned agency goals, management expectations, and staff satisfaction to achieve optimal results for those we serve.'
Photographer: David Barrow, OC Photos
Position: President/CEO
Organization: Ben Gordon Center
Service area: DeKalb County, Northwest Illinois
Main services: Outpatient behavioral health services for adults, children, and families
Number of staff: 65
Most vivid behavioral healthcare memory: 'I recall to this day working as a young case manager in Akron, Ohio. New on my caseload was a young man the same age as me. There were stories about him, how difficult he was to work with, how dangerous he was. When I met him, I did not see that in him. His struggles and celebrations have made an imprint on my perceptions of recovery. He taught me that recovery is not one size fits all.'
Personal mission statement: 'I have always felt that we should keep the community in community mental health. This is operationalized for me as I believe that the CEO must also be able to grasp an organization's relationships to its surrounding community. We must be active participants in our communities, not just our organizations.'
Dennis R. Jacobs PhD
'I started my career as an educator almost 40 years ago. I think in many ways, I still see myself as a teacher and mentor. As I look back over my career, it is clear that more than anything else, I entered the behavioral health field because I believed that I could help create an organization that believed it could demonstrate new, creative, and innovative ways of supporting and serving people coping with serious mental illness.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
'I often tell people that what keeps me going in this job is the fact that I get to lead an organization that profoundly affects people's lives. All I have to do is visit one of New Passages' programs to feel inspired all over again. I love the fact that I get to be part of a dynamic, purpose-driven, successful organization that assists people in their recovery and helps them become active community members.
'I am also most proud of the growth and successes that New passages has had over the last 21 years. Last year New Passages served 7,900 consumers in 14 Michigan counties, making New passages one of the largest behavioral health organizations in the state. This was a 2,500% increase from 7 years ago. Our budget during that same 7-year period doubled from $12.4 million to $24.5 million and the number of employees increased 74%.
'I am lucky to be able to work with a core leadership team, who are the best and the brightest. Equally important is the fact that I have a remarkable board of directors who have supported me and the organization through thick and thin.'
Photographer: James Lady of Still Water Studio, LLC
Position: President/CEO
Organization: New Passages Behavioral Health and Rehabilitation Services
Service area: 14 Michigan counties
Main services: Specialized residential services, homeless outreach, supported housing, crisis residential and mobile crisis stabilization services, psychosocial rehabilitation, employment and vocational services, case management, outpatient psychiatric services
Number of staff: 750
Most vivid behavioral healthcare memory: 'Some time ago, I visited one of New Passages' 'clubhouses.' I just happened to catch the clubhouse singers practicing for an upcoming event. I was struck by the amount of talent in the new group and how far they had come since starting at the clubhouse. Recently, we asked them to sing at our signature event. They brought the house down. There was not a dry eye in the place. Twenty years ago, many of these same people would have been living in an institution.'
Personal mission statement: 'My personal mission is to help guide our organization to greatness by providing community-based services, which promote recovery, independence, and community integration. I believe the most important thing I can do is to create an organizational culture that believes passionately in the recovery process and one in which every person in the organization contributes in his or her own way to this goal.'
Carol Luna-Anderson PhD, LPCC
'I believe we are drawn to things that have touched our lives and perhaps influenced us into becoming who we are. My childhood story includes my family having psychiatric disabilities, alcoholism, divorce, and a dependence on others to help us eat. But it also included strength, an ability to overcome, encouragement, and stubbornness to succeed.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
'My education includes a master in nursing, a doctorate in counseling, and years of learning from those around me. Career highlights include opening a psychiatric unit and expanding a small homeless shelter into a dynamic agency recognized by SAMHSA in 2007 for its best-practice model. Our over 100 housing units with support services were recognized by HUD in 2006 as a housing best practice. I have had the privilege to sit on councils and committees with decision makers for the state of New Mexico and have my voice heard.
'But best of all I have seen real heroes: a woman who overcomes addiction and sexual abuse, a man with schizophrenia who becomes independent and has his own place, and workers who go the extra mile to advocate and encourage.
'The best accomplishment I can leave our agency is to ensure that the work continues. We have established an endowment fund with the Santa Fe Community Foundation and plan to focus on helping it grow. I am still learning exactly how to do this, but when I have someone drop by my office and say, 'My kids are in school and doing well. I have not used for over three years now and have no depression episodes. And guess what? I got a raise at work,' that's my inspiration. That's my motivation.
'This work is hard. We fight for funds. We compete on all levels to ensure continuation of services. There is never a time when someone else is not at the door. And at the end of the day, I would like everyone to be a change agent--for ourselves, for others, and for agencies.'
Photographer: Carolyn Wright
Position: Executive Director
Organization: The Life Link
Service area: Santa Fe County and five counties in Northeastern New Mexico
Main services: Supportive transitional and permanent housing with home-based comprehensive community services, mental health and substance abuse treatment, homeless services (women with children, people with psychiatric disabilities)
Number of staff: 54
Most vivid behavioral healthcare memory: 'Looking into the eyes of a mother of two in her mid-20s and seeing pain, and hopelessness. Multi-hospitalizations, suicide attempts, long bouts of depression. This is the picture of despair. With shelter, mental health treatment, support services, and a plan of guidance, we jointly work together and finally she's in control. Recovery happens.'
Personal mission statement: 'My mission is to provide the most effective and efficient interventions to a group, the individuals and families who often are forgotten or stepped over. Providing hope, encouragement, and acting as a cheerleader so that others see the potential, the amazing possibilities, and react positively. I believe my glass is always half full!'
Sam Tsemberis PhD
'One of my earliest mentors was Moshe Varde, a psychologist at Bronx State Psychiatric Center and my first clinical supervisor. I had been assigned to work with a man named Vincent. I dutifully met with Vincent and then showed up for my supervision with Moshe with notes and lots of facts about Vincent's life. Moshe listened but kept interrupting me with questions: 'Why did he do that?' 'When did he decide that?' And so it went for the second and third meeting. Finally, I asked Moshe, 'What is the point of asking all these questions about his life?' Moshe answered almost immediately: 'Vincent's story is a series of fragmented experiences. He has suffered many hardships but has not stopped to reflect about how they have affected him. Your questions are possibly helping him to clarify his experiences and to understand himself a little better. And you are getting to understand him, and understanding is the first step to love.'
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
'This is how I learned about compassionate listening: hearing what the person is saying without the filter or bias of the labels or diagnosis. These are the lessons that led my colleagues and me to develop the Pathways' Housing First program. We put what we learned from listening to consumers into action and developed a program based on the expressed needs and wishes of our consumers. Our consumers were very clear about the kind of program they wanted--housing first, then treatment. Our challenge was to work up the courage to trust that our consumers knew what they were talking about and be willing to put our professional and personal reputations on the line to prove them right.
'The success of the Housing First program has been an extraordinary demonstration of the effectiveness of using a consumer-driven approach to solve a complex clinical and social problem.'
Photographer: Pam Parlapiano
Position: Founder and Executive Director
Organization: Pathways to Housing, Inc.
Service areas: New York City; Washington, D.C.; and Philadelphia
Main services: Supportive housing for people with behavioral health issues
Number of staff: 180
Most vivid behavioral healthcare memory: 'There are many wonderful memories: Nathan having dinner with his children in his own apartment after they were released from foster care and he was no longer homeless; Monique leaving the large refrigerator box under the FDR Drive carrying her plastic bags and stepping into the van to be transported to her new apartment; the look on Alan's face as he holds up his new work ID after being unemployed and homeless for 12 years; and a thousand other snapshots just like these.'
Favorite quotes: 'If we cannot trust others to know themselves and their needs, we will end by oppressing them.'--Michael Rowe, author of Crossing the Border: Encounters Between Homeless People and Outreach Workers; 'The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.'--President Franklin D. Roosevelt
