Andrea MacKay has had a long and varied history with Ranch Ehrlo, beginning in 2004 when she began as a sports instructor with Sports Venture. She next moved in to the residential program, working as a youth care worker. She did a stint as a housemother and finally became a case worker at Woodward House in Regina where she has remained for the past four years.
Case workers provide clinical assessment, counselling, and group work services to youth and families.
“We advocate for the best treatment plan for each youth, based on their individual strengths,” Andrea clarified.
Youth who live at Woodward House have generally been at the Pilot Butte campus for a year or two. They are kids with varying emotional, cognitive, and behavioural needs. Each youth receives an individual service plan which includes but is not limited to, individual counselling, group counselling session, access to community resources to give youth the opportunities to form support outside the Ranch, therapeutic camping trips, and help with family communication if possible.
Andrea added, “With the kids here I do a lot of cognitive behavioural therapy. It involves getting the on-line staff and the kids to focus not so much on their behaviour, but on their thoughts. Our thoughts control how we feel and how we act.”
So rather than focusing on the behavior a child is exhibiting, such as refusing to go to school, Andrea focuses on the youth’s thoughts to determine what other issues are preventing them from wanting to learn and have fun at class.
“Once you get behind the thought process you can help them think differently about the problem and to solve it or to teach them how to retrain their thoughts.”
Kids have different needs that arise at different times so having an office in Woodward House allows Andrea to work with youth when they need help. She works from 9 to 5 each day in the home taking part in group meals and other day-to-day activities. She adds that seeing the youth everyday is the key to creating a beneficial therapeutic relationship built on trust, respect, and the fact that you genuinely care about the kids.
“Some kids are open books and you can develop that relationship in a couple weeks. Others take six months. Without this relationship you can’t do treatment.”
Service plans are always evolving for youth but the important aspect is to always focus on their strengths and foster them. Many of the youth that come to the Ranch don’t yet have a concrete identity and the Ranch gives them the opportunity to try various activities and sports to help them find their passion and build their self-esteem.
Case workers also work with the house’s unit manager and the front line staff to provide clinical leadership and resources to their assigned unit.
“Case workers help staff stay positive. On-line staff have very frustrating and demanding jobs and it takes a lot of hard work,” Andrea explained. “Our team has been together for quite a while and we have been working with some very difficult youth and we have seen these kids progress so as a team we try to remember these stories. Case workers also help staff problem solve and provide them with different strategies they can try with youth. “
Woodward House has a team meeting every two weeks that covers youth updates and staff training. Case workers also meet monthly for training and information sessions.
“The Ranch is wonderful about doing training and with the support of the assessment team I think we are really well prepared. The assessment team is the more experienced caseworkers that have been around longer, so we can call them with questions or collaborate with them.”
Andrea added, “There is nowhere else you can work with a team so closely and so intimately while looking after at-risk youth and seeing the progress you make. It’s a home away from home, and there hasn’t been a day since I worked here that I haven’t loved coming to work.”
Being a case worker also involves a lot of paperwork. The position provides a key communications link between stakeholders through written reports, consults, and daily communication. Andrea also follows up with youth after they left Ranch Ehrlo with two, six and twelve month follow ups.
“With Facebook and Blackberries now, I’m in contact with most of my kids anyway and it’s a good way to keep tabs on them.” She added that many of the staff continue to have a relationship with youth after they have discharged and many youth will still stop in for an occasional supper.
Andrea added that many of the youth that she has worked with have left the Ranch and maintained positive changes. In a few cases, the youth haven’t been so successful but as Andrea pointed out, everyone has the opportunity to break the chains and if they couldn’t do that, they have learnt something that has made them stronger for their time at the Ranch.
