Kiani has been a case manager in Amanecer’s Children’s Clinic for a little over a year now. In that time, she has made a massive impact on the children and families we serve.

Case management is such an integral component to treatment at Amanecer. Case managers assist clients with stabilizing the life domain issues that can create and/or exacerbate mental health struggles. For clients that need additional emotional support, case managers will bolster the tools they are learning with their therapist

During this pandemic, the case managers at Amanecer have been working in overdrive – linking clients with community resources, delivering basic-needs items, and providing emotional support.

What follows is a snapshot of Kiani’s work week.

 

Quick Facts
Name: Kiani
Time at Amanecer: 1.2 years
Number of Clients: 135
Favorite Color: Yellow
Favorite Food: Thai
Favorite TV Show: Criminal Minds
Favorite thing about working at Amanecer: I love having individual rehab session with the kiddos because it gives me an opportunity to be creative and assist them with reviewing their coping skills.

MONDAY
I start the day by completing some notes from the end of last week. Notes are entered into our client database to keep track of client progress. I then check in with three of my new MAT (Multidisciplinary Assessment Team) clients to make sure they are feeling positive about the start of treatment. I then conduct 2 case management introductions over the phone using the community functioning evaluation for their needs. Over the course of the conversation with one client’s mother,  I realize that her 8-year-old is suffering from some developmental disabilities and I refer her to the Regional Center. The Regional Center provides community support, resources and access to services for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. I then check in with two clients who are behind on rent to assist them with applying for the rental assistance subsidy through the city. 

TUESDAY
I start the day with an individual rehab session with a 7-year old client who tested positive for Covid-19. We reviewed coping skills and engaged in positive conversation regarding her home environment and behavior lately. Then, I drove to the office to pick up basic-needs items for 3 of my client families that are struggling immensely right now. I delivered these to each family’s door, taking care to keep my distance. I make these deliveries every week for clients struggling to provide food, hygiene items, diapers, and school supplies for their children. After finishing my deliveries, I had another telehealth session with a 20-year-old client that is struggling with major anxiety. We reviewed her coping skills and just engaged in conversation to calm her down. I then do some prep-work for the CityScape arts therapy group that I will be starting next week. This is the first time we have done CityScape remotely, so I am having to tailor some of the activities to be successful over video. 

WEDNESDAY
I had two consultations with therapists to get an update on client progress. I then called parents for two new clients to introduce myself and explain my role and services. After these introduction calls, I conducted an individual rehab session for a 9-year-old client who has angry outbursts. Through video chatting, we reviewed deep breathing and completed his anger warning signs worksheet. I then have a phone call with a client’s mother about her return to work and help her to locate childcare. 

THURSDAY

Today I had 3 individual rehab sessions with Esperanza Elementary school students; one is 6 years old and two are 9 years old. We go through worksheets that help them identify and verbalize their emotions. I end each session with a Rose and Thorn exercise, which requires them to share a positive and negative event from their week. I then check in with a client to make sure they got their application in for the rental assistance subsidy through the city. 

FRIDAY

I start the day with a 1:1 session with my supervisor to go over my client load. I then go through my client-list and call a few clients to check in on how they are feeling this week and make sure they are stable before the weekend. I also check in with some clients to see how they are managing with food and other needs before the weekend. I then have a standing individual rehab session with a 19-year-old client who has major anxiety and doesn’t/hasn’t come out of the house in months. Before Covid, she would only leave the house for her sessions here at Amanecer because it was down the street from the apartment she shares with her mother. So, the fears around Covid have only exacerbated her existing anxiety around leaving the house. We review her coping skills and work through visualizations of her leaving the house. Each week here at Amanecer is so dependent upon what my clients are going through and I love the variety that brings. I love helping my clients!