How we're making Groups a better place for counselors

When I joined Groups in 2019, I did it for two reasons: first, I was inspired by our mission to fight America’s opioid crisis by offering treatment to all who need it.  I felt called to this role; called to help people struggling under the weight of addiction. The people we serve are mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends, co-workers, and members of our communities. They deserve the highest quality of care and I am proud and humbled to be a small part of that mission. 

The second reason I joined was the people. The people who work at Groups are the heart and soul of our organization. At Groups, recovery is about trust, not blame—progress, not perfection. All of that starts with our people. 

Recently, we interviewed some counselors to better understand how to give them support; make them feel good about their role at Groups, and make sure that they have the right resources.  What we found was that most of the counselors we interviewed were happy and felt deeply connected to our mission. They like the work, and feel motivated by what we have in place. 

But we can always get better, here’s how we’re doing our part...

At Groups, we never put our counselors on an island.   Counselors are the leaders on our care teams that include prescribers, clinical supervisors, care navigators, case managers, peer recovery coaches, and office managers. The team works together in service of our members; they support each other, and they always put our members first.  

Counselors are responsible for leading weekly group therapy.  They often have the most touch points with members and can be the first to sense when a member needs extra help.  When this happens, counselors can lean on their care team including prescribers, navigators, case managers, and peers to make sure members receive the right support.  This allows counselors to really focus on leading groups and using their clinical expertise.   

In addition to our group based counselors, we have a dedicated team of counselors and clinicians responsible for conducting psychosocial intake assessments and helping members begin their recovery journey.  Separating intake and admission responsibilities from group responsibilities means that counselors do not have to wear multiple hats.  

At Groups, every counselor has a clinical supervisor and receives consistent mentorship, regular feedback, and clear expectations.  Our Clinical Supervisors are supported by Clinical Directors as well as a set of unified tools to coach and grow their supervisees.  We provide a clear career path for our counselors, based on both background and merit. Our structure begins with Counselor I and continues through Counselor II, Clinical Supervisor, and Clinical Director roles.  Our Counselor I positions are designed to support a counselor new to our model, and when they’re ready, they are considered for promotion to Counselor II, and when appropriate they can move towards supervisory and director positions on our clinical team.

This model works, and keeps our members in recovery.  In fact, we have a 6-month member retention rate that’s 3X the national average. As one counselor told us when comparing Groups to a competitor: “We get actual comments back from members and we see a lot of comments such as if it weren't for groups, I would be dead now. I think that the most reinforcing thing to me is knowing that, although I can't put a number to it, we're undoubtedly preventing overdoses and saving lives.”

We know that this work isn’t always easy, we support our clinical team with paid time off for vacation, sick time, an annual mental health day and separate PTO for professional development.  Employees have access to an annual stipend to offset the cost of continued education and participate in an internal training series called The Road to Excellence.  This helps counselors strengthen their clinical skill set while also helping them keep up with their CEU requirements.  

Our counselors shared that they value flexibility and we have prioritized giving them a voice in schedule creation. This allows counselors to make time for families, their studies, and passions outside of Groups.  We work to make this happen as often as possible because flexible hours mean more work-life balance, which we know is critical to our success as workers and as people.  

Lastly, as part of our effort to expand employee benefits, Groups recently achieved a federal designation that will allow employees to participate in the Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery (STAR) Loan Repayment Program (LRP).  This means that eligible full and part time direct care employees will have the ability to apply for federal loan repayment.  When the 2022 application process begins in the Spring, employees that apply may receive up to $250,000 for eligible educational loans after 6 years of service at a Groups site or other STAR LPR designated facility. 

Perhaps most important, our mission seems to be what’s attracting counselors in the first place and keeping them here long term.  All of the counselors interviewed—all of them—said they joined Groups because they believed in our mission. Every time I think about that, I feel so proud of our team and the work we do. 

There’s no question in my mind that there are things that need to change. I know we have a journey ahead of us; I know there is more we need to do to support our counselors… and that’s exactly what we plan to do.

We will continue to put resources towards supporting our existing clinical workforce and are working hard to hire more counselors and clinicians so that our care teams are not spread too thin. 

Most importantly, we are listening and want to learn from our counselors and clinicians who are on the front lines of this epidemic.  If you have something to share please talk to us, your voice is important. If you do not work at Groups but want to become more involved in our mission, we encourage you to reach out. 

As one counselor shared, “I’ve never been one to sit on the sidelines for anything. I want to help. I want to be a part of the solution.”

That’s how I feel too, I won’t stay on the sidelines.  I will help fight the opioid epidemic by making sure that Groups is a place where counselors and clinicians feel valued, know that they have purpose, and are proud of the impact they have on those with OUD.