In our Humans of CommuniCare campaign, our employees (many of who stay for decades) explain why they chose to work at CommuniCare Health Centers over all other options.
“I love it here. I love the atmosphere and the patient population we serve. We are here for a purpose. We go above and beyond for our patients. We give our patients not only the proper care but whatever services they might need. And we work to keep our staff happy.
There is this patient who is in his eighties now. When I was an MA with Cathy, he was brand new to us. He only spoke Spanish. He took the bus here because his children weren’t able to bring him to the clinic. That seemed impressive given his age. When he got here, he seemed really worried. He said that when he was getting here, he left one bag behind at the bus stop. It contained his passport and other important documents. Every Friday, there was a program to help replace documents. He had an upcoming trip to Mexico. The next time I saw him, he had his paperwork and had been on his trip to Mexico. That made me feel good.”
|
“I never officially applied to work at CCHC. I dropped my resume off on Main Street in Woodland at a BH location. Lorraine brought it to HR. When they called me to interview, I didn’t know where I was going. I was hired on the spot and that is when I learned about all of the different programs we have.
This was my first official job as a MA fifteen years ago. I was going to work CCHC for a year because I heard you could have a lot more experiences. I loved the populations. Populations that needed the extra help including migrant farmworkers. They were so grateful to get the help. It felt like family. So, I never wanted to leave.”
“I started two years ago in Respite. During the pandemic, we really did so much for the clients. It was amazing that we kept providing services. What led me to CommuniCare was a phone call from my friend’s mom who is a clinician. She saw that I worked well with people. I started as a safety ambassador and then Bobbie offered me a job in Youth Services. CommuniCare sees the good in its employees. There are just positive vibes – you just want to be here to learn and build a future. CommuniCare is a family. You wake up and want to go to work.” |
“I feel really passionate about impacting people to better their quality of life. I think it is really important for people to be heard. Being that person in the community to offer that support feels really valuable.
I think about my own resilience and recovery. I think about how to give back and be that person that I might have needed. My recovery was while I was in school in social work. I was being a service provider and also really struggling personally. I was a helper and also needed to be helped at the same. There was a line that I eventually crossed over. It is a line that isn’t instantly crossed over. It is a journey of accepting yourself and the help that you might continue to need. You might cross a line to be a support to other people in a consistent way. But you still need to rely on your social supports to keep going.”
“CommuniCare does a good job of recognizing that some of the difficult things we have experienced are really our strengths. It is amazing to own that, look in the mirror, and feel proud.
It is an honor to walk people through what is sometimes the hardest time of their life. I literally just finished graduating a client that I had worked with for two years. She applied to college after struggling with debilitating social anxiety.”
