In Denver, many don’t get treatment because they can’t get an appointment. A workforce-development program aims to change that.
By Cory Phare
A 2023 Colorado Health Access survey found that 26.2% of Denver residents reported poor mental health. Even more troubling is that cost is no longer the primary barrier to accessing care but rather the logistics of finding and securing an appointment from a mental-health practitioner.
Over 57% of Coloradans surveyed cited difficulty in getting an appointment as the primary reason for not getting needed counseling. This situation is often caused or exacerbated by personnel shortages, which don’t seem to be getting better. In fact, the number of behavioral-health job openings in Colorado could rise by 30% between 2023 and 2030, The Denver Post reported.
That’s what Metropolitan State University of Denver plans to address, thanks to a two-year, $800,000 grant from Caring for Denver. The Building Denver’s Mental Health Workforce program, which launched this semester, provides $15,000 stipends to Social Work and Addictions Counseling graduate students on the condition that they commit to working in mental and behavioral health in Denver for a full year postgraduation.
“When you talk about serving a region’s community health, you really have to focus on population and purpose — it’s great to partner with someone who really gets your mission,” said Jo Bailey, Ph.D., associate dean for the University’s College of Health and Human Sciences and principal investigator for the grant, referring to the Caring for Denver partnership.
Gaby Torres belongs to the first cohort of students and is an inaugural recipient of the grant. She knew early on she wanted to help others. “It just feels important to show up for others the way that people have shown up for me,” the Master of Social Work student said.
Torres is interning as a clinician with Denver’s Better Life Therapy, where she helps clients identify and navigate challenges, drawing on her background as a dancer to emphasize the importance of the mind-body connection. She’s grateful to the program for making a difference at the individual and community levels.
“Social workers show up for communities and individuals as champions and advocates, giving a voice to those who typically aren’t heard,” Torres said. “I’m proud to be connected to that … and excited for this opportunity.”
Students such as Torres, who participate as Health Scholars in the program, are anticipated to have a significant impact on the shortage of health care providers. In the year following graduation, students are estimated to provide up to 2,000 hours of mental-health and substance-misuse care to an average of 25 clients per week. Between this and field placements while in school, the total reach is expected to be more than 5,800 clients in the city — a strong step forward in closing a critical workforce gap.
“MSU Denver’s diverse student body and deep community partnerships ensure that students are placed in settings where they can make a lasting impact,” said Lorez Meinhold, executive director of the Caring for Denver Foundation. “By aligning students with the values and needs of the communities they serve, we are building a representative and deeply connected workforce in Denver.”
In addition to financial assistance, students receive wraparound support to ensure success. This includes being paired with a Health Career Navigator, a kind of “academic concierge” who helps them maneuver the frequently labyrinthine route into health care careers, and professional-development workshops rooted in community-building and belonging.
This, too, is a proven formula. The Gina and Frank Day Health Institute, which has piloted the wraparound life-design curriculum, boasts a 94% semester-to-semester retention rate for participants in similar Health Scholar programs.
Lissette Uribe, an MSU Denver Master of Social Work student and participant in the inaugural Health Scholar cohort, knows firsthand the importance of personalized mentorship. While in high school, as she attempted to navigate systems not designed with students of color in mind, she began thinking she didn’t belong in school — until a teacher in her math class changed her trajectory.
“I just wanted someone to show that they cared right there,” Uribe said. “Not a surface-level ‘just do your work’ conversation but someone to actually ask, ‘What is really going on?’”
Now nearing the end of her academic program, Uribe has been deeply involved in various health initiatives within the Day Health Institute: as an intern at the Colorado Dream Foundation, a graduate assistant with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Practice-based Health Education Grant Program and a fellow of the Mental and Behavioral Health Workforce Accelerator Collaborative.
Uribe emphasized the importance of representation, systemic change and ensuring that students know about the opportunities available to them.
“I want to be one of those people who steers students toward success,” she said. “If you don’t know anyone in your community who went to college, who went to grad school, how could you possibly know those opportunities are there for you as well?”