I hang this in every office I’m in. It is the last thing I take down when I leave. I look to it and use it as a filter through which I judge whether I fought for what is right for myself, for my clients, and this profession.
I’ve lost jobs because I worked at an agency that was raided due to Medicaid fraud, an outpatient agency who unknowingly had unethical staff that caused irreparable damage, a corporate company that closed their outpatient programming because of profit expectations, and most recently was fired.
I can be outspoken when it comes to client care. I have a passion for my clients needs, their rights, and their services. I didn’t get to this point because I always knew what was right. My biggest mistakes gave me my biggest lessons. Every #failure enlightened me to an area of self that needed work; a role I played in my #termination.
I learned that I didn’t know what I was doing in the agency that was raided when my next role required me to learn operations. I learned the need for #accountability and compliance when staff used telehealth during Covid to commit fraud. I took that small outpatient trauma focused model and used it in my next job working for corporate to help my clients feel seen. I used the voice that couldn’t be heard in a corporate world to stand my ground on client care, program management, and #compliance in my next role. Here, I found my confidence to keep my head up despite a toxic culture and I learned I had more work to do on myself when I emotionally reacted to leadership that was triggering me with their practices. It kicks my ass to do the work but I value the process. If we don’t do our inventory and see where we play a part in the outcomes, we dont grow.
My #integrity is not conditional on a salary. It comes from a previous life lived without integrity, being homeless, and surviving the streets. Today, I won’t compromise client care or look the other way when I’m an agent for change. I know how to live broke.
“…and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly…”
