While pursuing a degree in education put him in a classroom for short while, Garrett quickly realized it was making personal connections with the kids that were inspiring and fulfilling, not teaching curriculum. So when a fellow teacher encouraged him to pursue a career ‘helping others’, he took a pivot and became an addiction counsellor. From there he hopped over to community mental health, and then to a role as an employment counsellor before circling back to Sevita where he’s thriving today as an Intensive Case Manager supervisor.
Garrett’s advice? “If someone is interested in the field of helping others, there is no one set way of doing it. Don’t be afraid to try different fields that you’re not used to, that you didn’t go to school for, or
it’s not the field of study that you wanted.”
Garrett adds, “When I look back years from now I’ll feel proud that I spent my career, my whole heart and my whole effort, helping as many people as I could in the best possible ways.”
Now that’s what we call a career well lived.
Let's hear more from Garrett...
Now that’s what we call a career well lived.
Let's hear more from Garrett...
What’s an Intensive Case Manager?
An Intensive Care Manager is someone who goes out in the community and helps people who have varying degrees of mental health diagnosis stay on track with life in general. We’re connecting them with resources in their community, making sure they’re staying on track with life at home—bills paid, lights on, a place to live.
If we see they’re struggling in those areas, then we connect them with community resources so they can get financial assistance or other help they need to make sure they stay out of the hospital, in the community, and living their best lives as they see fit. Our main goal is providing support so the individual remains in the community and out of the hospital.
What brought you to Sevita in the community mental health role?
I wanted to work out in the community in this role and be my own individual. It’s not the most lucrative kind of work, but Sevita offers a competitive salary, full benefits, mileage reimbursement, all that and I could do something I really enjoy. It was nice to know I was working for a company that shows that they value their employees financially, with benefits, supporting them. The more I read about it, the more I liked it. So I took the chance and applied for the position.
It sounds like that’s a lot of the reason why you stay at Sevita.
An Intensive Care Manager is someone who goes out in the community and helps people who have varying degrees of mental health diagnosis stay on track with life in general. We’re connecting them with resources in their community, making sure they’re staying on track with life at home—bills paid, lights on, a place to live.
If we see they’re struggling in those areas, then we connect them with community resources so they can get financial assistance or other help they need to make sure they stay out of the hospital, in the community, and living their best lives as they see fit. Our main goal is providing support so the individual remains in the community and out of the hospital.
What brought you to Sevita in the community mental health role?
I wanted to work out in the community in this role and be my own individual. It’s not the most lucrative kind of work, but Sevita offers a competitive salary, full benefits, mileage reimbursement, all that and I could do something I really enjoy. It was nice to know I was working for a company that shows that they value their employees financially, with benefits, supporting them. The more I read about it, the more I liked it. So I took the chance and applied for the position.
It sounds like that’s a lot of the reason why you stay at Sevita.
“Working for Sevita has been the best choice I’ve ever made for my professional career.”
I love who I work with –I started as an Intensive Case Manager and worked my way up to Supervisor. The other supervisors that I work with are amazing, our Program Director is amazing, the Case Managers we have are also amazing. There’s not a lot of opportunities out there that allow me to work with individuals that genuinely care about people in the community and care about providing good work.
If I was thinking about applying for an ICM role at Sevita, what should I know about what makes a great ICM?
The best ICM are always the most flexible. Understanding this job isn’t rigid, there’s give and take. It’s as simple as that. Because you’re out in the community going to people’s homes, you’re working on their terms, you’re in their environment. So being flexible and understanding that not everyone lives the same way you do, their home may look different than you’re used to, or this may not be a 9-5 job. A client may need to push their time with you back or move it up, or meet a different day.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Every day I wake up knowing that everything I’m working towards is having a direct impact, a positive impact. I like knowing I’m helping people grow professionally, and supporting my team means I know I’m helping the individuals we serve have a healthy, stable life.
Your top 5 reasons to join the company:
- Autonomy; ability to control your work day
- Pay and benefits
- Overall mission of the program; goal is to help individuals and it’s laid out there as plain as the eye can see
- Co-workers; everyone is always working towards the goal of helping someone.
- Freedom and autonomy; you’re out in the community so you’re free to do as you please. You can eat an early lunch, driving around listen to your own music, listen to podcasts. You’re free to be yourself.