Woodlands like Hotel California
Published 2:05 am Tuesday, April 22, 2003
By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
CASSOPOLIS -- Why is there so little turnover at Woodlands Behavioral Healthcare Network?
Woodlands bestowed its fourth annual Community Partner award on Suzanne Colley, executive director of the Cass County Council on Aging since 1986.
Bob Eady, treasurer for most of his 18 years on the Woodland board, and Ruth Newton, a seven-year board member and secretary since 1999, were honored for their quarter century of volunteer service.
Board Vice Chair Mike Raab was honored for five years.
25 years
May Myers
May is Woodlands' administrative secretary. She is responsible for assisting Carter and the CMH board with clerical and record-keeping tasks related to managing the agency. Carter is her fourth director, after Larry Hermen, Dr. Jerry Wilson and Linda Leggett. She started when CMH was in the basement of what is now Lakeland Immediate Care Center in February 1978.
20 years
Jane Keller
Jane is mental health technician at the Residential Treatment Center (RTC). Jane's duties include shift leadership, monitoring medicines, treatment planning, supervision of clients and a variety of other assigned tasks.
Jane, employed by Woodlands since December 1982, previously held the position of research secretary and aide to the family support services and respite care programs.
15 years
Tim Rosenboom
Tim is a substance abuse counselor for the drug and alcohol program. He provides substance abuse screening, assessments, referrals and counseling to adolescents and adults served by the addictions program.
Tim joined Woodlands in January 1998.
10 years
Glenda Hass
Glenda is employed as an occupational therapist at Austin Street. Her duties include occupational therapy assessments and plans, staff training and consultation and program monitoring for clients. She also trains day program and residential staff to deliver services as appropriate.
Woodlands contracted for OT services with Glenda from 1986 through 1990 on a part-time basise. She rejoined the agency in August 1992 as occupational therapist for clients in specialized residential treatment.
Leslie Payne
Leslie is a program manager, community skills instructor and attendance monitor. Her duties include, but are not limited to, day-to-day operation of the community options program.
She assists in development, implementation and monitoring of consumer treatment plans.
Leslie serves as program manager for assigned consumers and plans and monitors consumers' daily activities. She also provides functional living skills instruction to consumers.
Leslie joined Woodlands in April 1993 as a personal care aide. Her position was reclassified to program trainer and attendance monitor in July 1994.
Mike Peterson
Mike is a mental health aide at the RTC. He is responsible for a variety of tasks, including client supervision, community living skills monitoring and the administration of prescribed services to all consumers residing at the RTC.
Mike has been a Woodlands employee since November 1992.
Beverly Richardson
Bev is a substance abuse secretary and receptionist. She coordinates general office management, clerical and record maintenance services for program operations.
Prior to accepting the position of substance abuse secretary, Bev held the position of prevention secretary and part-time mail courier.
Bev has been employed at Woodlands since September 1992.
Five years
Tammy Bentley
Tammy is an employment training specialist. She provides employment training to consumers in work services programs and community jobs. Tammy provides job development, job placement and follow-along services as needed.
Tammy has been employed at Woodlands since March 1998.
Terry Brilliandt
Terry is a psychiatric nurse and team leader. She is responsible for providing professional nursing and assigned direct treatment activities to designated mentally ill and developmentally disabled clientele.
She is responsible for the coordination of health and safety training and in-service activities required by accreditation and governmental bodies, including the updating of staff on developments in psychopharmacological treatment issues.
Prior to fulltime employment with Woodlands, Terry was hired as an independent nursing contractor in November 1997.
Rona Darr
Rona is a supported living aide and case management assistant at Austin Street.
Her position provides a broad range of supportive services to promote least restrictive living options for designated individuals with developmental disabilities.
She monitors and coordinates services for individuals who reside in independent living or who are preparing for placement in independent living or supported employment situations. She also works in conjunction with case management staff to provide assistance, as needed.
Rona joined Woodlands in June 1998.
Carol Gillison
Carol is an RTC mental health aide. She is responsible for client supervision, community living skills monitoring and the administration of prescribed services to all clients residing in the RTC.
Carol was previously employed part-time as a mental health aide at Austin Street from 1990 to 1993. She has been employed at the RTC since January 1998.
Helen Hartman
Helen is clinical services secretary and receptionist. She is responsible for performing a wide range of clerical and support duties, including switchboard, reception, filing, word processing and distribution of client satisfaction surveys. Helen is also responsible for completion of behavior management commitee paperwork, attends BMC meetings and records meeting minutes.
Helen was employed by Lewis Cass Intermediate School District prior to joining Woodlands in March 1998.
Lori Lutz
Lori is a case manager at Austin Street. She provides coordination of services and resources to assigned clients with a developmental disability or a diagnosis of chronic mental illness.
Her responsibilities include adult foster care placement, treatment planning, transportation of clients as appropriate, crisis intervention and facilitating the guardianship process, to mention but a few.
Woodlands has employed Lori since August 1997.
Cindy Pinkowski
Ciny is a case management supervisor at Austin Street. She is responsible for directly supervising professional mentally impaired and developmentally disabled case managment and independent living staff who provide a range of intensive aftercare programming for chronic MI/DD consumers.
She also provides crisis interventon, evaluation for hospitalization and is the liaison between Community Mental Health (CMH) and other local agencies serving Woodlands consumers.
Cindy was the Woodlands Behavioral Healthcare System psychological services provider, part-time, under contract from 1993 to 1997, when she was hired part-time as case manager (CM). She assumed the responsibilities of CM supervisor in January 2002.
Margot Przybysz
Margo is an administrative and community support secretary. In the midst of her many job functions, Margot assists the recipient rights director, performs clerical services for the QI and the Human Services Coordinating Council coordinator, assists marketing/consumer relations, customer services, computer graphics and is responsible for limited English proficiency functions in the agency.
Woodlands hired Margot in October 1997.