senior case manager

senior residential counselor

mental health case manager

case manager

licensed clinical social worker

WellPower

I have worked at MHCD for a number of years. I think it's a great place to work for new clinicians and case managers who want to be exposed to a diverse population of individuals. The caseload demands are high across all community mental health agencies, and MHCD is no different. Therapists on outpatient teams usually have 80-90 client caseloads, and CTT case managers can have upwards of 40. Both of these numbers are ridiculous, but this is the current model of care around the US. The leadership has been around for a long time, which is both a benefit and drawback, depending on how you look at it. The org leadership is focused on financial sustainability, which is generally a good thing. We haven't had layoffs since I've been there. The downside is they are constantly focused on billing, treatment plans, and documentation, which isn't really why most of us got into the helping professions. Healthcare in general documents way too much--it's a big waste of time IMO. But if you want to work in the system, you have no choice but to play along and jump through all the "Golden Thread" hoops to make the powers that be happy. Be prepared to pathologize everyone, too, because we have to give everyone we see a DSM-V diagnosis. The good news, if you choose to look at this way, is that because of the changes in the new DSM, virtually everyone in your life, including you, probably qualifies for a diagnosis! Congratulations. Anyway, I have real qualms about how these systems operate but I do think we do some good work. MHCD is a good place to learn, but most people don't stay for more than a few years, especially case managers, due to workload expectations. I mainly stay now because it's predictable, convenient, pay and benefits are sufficient (I now have 27 days of PTO per year), and my coworkers are pretty helpful and nice. Covid has changed how we provide care through telemedicine which is burning many of us out. Doing therapy over the phone or video isn't the same and is more draining. 

I enjoyed working at Mental Health Center of Denver.  My typical day would be to answer incoming calls from clients, receive clients and confirm their appointments.I was the first point of contact for the corporate office, so I received visitors that had come in for meetings with employees.  I was also responsible for scheduling appointments for clients. I was responsible for scheduling meetings in each of the conference rooms for management as well as some outside companies.  I assisted various departments in the business office when requested, such as HR and the Training Department.
I learned to deal with mentally ill people in a positive and proactive way. I learned about the various mental illnesses and how best to appease the people who were ill.  I learned to multitask answering phones while doing data entry and answering peoples questions about the function of the company.
We had a wellness culture which promoted teamwork and everyone to use their strengths in their job.
The hardest part of the job was to calm upset clients down and find a resolution to their complaints or problems.
The best part of the job is that I felt that I played an important and vital role in helping people.

When I decided to leave the company to pursue a job in a different city, I was told by many Wellpower employees that people stay here for a reason, essentially warning me that I might regret leaving. I hate being wrong, so I hate admitting this, but it's SO TRUE. Yes, it's community mental health, so there are still issues, like I still think clinicians should be payed more across the board. However, the supportive atmosphere, inclusive culture/community, yearly raises, and phenomenal benefits make it so worth it... No wonder people stay there for so long! Plus, it's as of now the only mental health organization in Colorado that is unionized. I would return here in a heartbeat if they had what I was looking for at this time. Reflecting back, I felt genuinely valued by my immediate supervisors, program managers, even the freaking CEO... UGH I MISS THAT. Plus seriously the best benefits I have had so far while working in community mental health, which makes the less-than-ideal (but not terrible) pay more worth it. Overall, still community mental health, so still have to deal with all the bureaucracy (the CEO is one of the highest-paid in the state, yet master's level clinicians don't even make $30/hr), but I'd rather work at this organization than any other community mental health organization I've come across. 

A typical day at work was fun and full of new challenges that I used to strengthen my desire to the best volunteer the company has ever had (I learned that it was just as easy done as it is said). The organization's management practices could not be better since it is a non-profit network that deals with at risk adults there are more than enough leaders within the network. My co-workers were mostly nice and if I had an issue with any of them they were usual on the verge of retirement and mean to everyone so I took comfort in knowing that it had nothing to do with me. The hardest part of volunteering at MHCD was managing free time because I was so exciting about assisting the organization that I wanted to never cease being productive for them. The most enjoyable part of volunteering for MHCD was even though I was not receiving a paycheck the organization was willing to treat me as though I was just as productive a member of society as their paid salary employees.

-Unrealistic expectations for performance/productivity
-Poor/non-existent continued education opportunities
-Upper management is completely disconnected and does not know what it is like to provide direct care
-Immediate supervisor is great! But their advocacy even falls on deaf ears with upper management
-Every random job falls to the responsibility of therapists or case managers
-Therapists are expected to do TONS of administrative work and track multiple factors outside of their clinical responsibilities
-Caseloads average 90+ people
-Clients are not able to have a therapist and case manager, only one or the other, which causes many barriers to treatment

Positives I have experienced were the support of my teammates, flex Fridays, and clean and spacious office environment.

Pros: The most most welcoming and supportive staff I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with worked in mental health rehabilitation. Not to be confused with drug rehab, the outpatient career services and education services are for all mental health patients. That building offers very unique services and the staff work closely as a team. 
Cons: Top Management bonuses every year (hundreds of thousands to millions) are enormous while the housing, education and education services staff are grossly  underpaid. They interact and work with hundreds of mentally ill patients per day and support the patients much more than the therapists or social workers, and they only make enough to scrape by financially. I worked with many people with depth of experience and masters degrees in making a pittance for the hard work they did while upper management flagrantly, generously paid themselves handsomely. Rather than a non-profit company, it is a profit-making machine for top execs. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Management is not supportive weather it be with a client or outside distraction.  Management does not abide by the union bylaws. Regardless of what the contract with the union, Management will actively ignore the rights of the staff.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Working with the people we serve when they are decompinsating, the team member is in direct line of fire. There is no support nor can a staff member request a client be removed until they are threatened.  The management does not trust that a staff member understands feeling threats and knowing when a client needs a higher level of care. 



What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Being a case manager does have some positive experiences.  It can have rewards with the people we serve. 


What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Find people who are not engaged. 
Working on services that a person we serve needs, including shelter, food, hygiene.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The pay and my schedule can be adjusted if I needed it. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Dealing with management. They say they understand but they don't. Management can also be click-ish as well. Sometimes dealing with difficult clients can be stressful as well. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is laid back to an extent. Everyone is friendly enough but there tends to be a lot of backstabbing and throwing people under the bus. I am not happy with some of the small changes made like the rotation of employees and lack of decor, but these are small things considering my previous experience with other companies. Not enough to make me leave.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I work part time so a typical day for me can be a bit busy sometimes but it is a relatively relaxed job compared to other positions . I do appreciate my coworkers because we help each other even of its just talking it out

This was my first clinical job out of college… my teammates made this job incredibly enjoyable for me. Fellow case managers were always there for support and laughs. The demographics of the team had a similar age range and experience level. There was little to no clinical training before being given a caseload and I was often told by my supervisor to just consult my teammates for clinical advice. Ironically enough, the lack of clinical guidance forced me to figure things out on my own and I owe most of my clinical skills to this job. It validated my career interests and played a huge role in where I am today. I have been told that a lot of case management teams have great clinical supervisors and guidance from program managers. 

A typical day at work is arriving at 7:15 am my unit is closed when I arrive so I basically begin my work without any other co-workers there until after 8:30am.  I have had a chance to slowly grow into using many different computer programs considering I have only 7 years of on hands experience using Microsoft and other programs.  I respect the management, they are good people and very understanding of their employees and lenient as well.  I have not had any problems with any of the co-workers in my five years of working at the Mental Health Center of Denver.  The hardest part of my job is working with a program called SPSS, it is a program working the numbers of statistics.  The most enjoyable part of the job I have had at MHCD is having lax time and conversing with the other members of the team I worked with.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Senior case manager 64 salaries reported	$30.03 per hour
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Mental health case manager 201 salaries reported	$50,000 per year
Case manager 4 salaries reported	$30.51 per hour
Licensed clinical social worker 7 salaries reported	$34.32 per hour

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