My name is Carol Brusca and for the last 3 years, I have been the Clinical Director of the ABQ StreetConnect program. I am an independently licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a Trauma specialist. I feel so fortunate to be able to work with such a great team and have the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the individuals we work with. There really is no “typical” day for me, actually. Each day, I have a plan for what I would like to accomplish, but I know that more often than not, my day will be full of twists and turns and unexpected adventures. I’m not sure if you are familiar with the Sunday comic, “Family Circle”, but in that comic strip, you can see the path that one of the children takes when he is going from point A to point B and all the detours and distractions along the way. If you haven’t seen it, go online and take a look. It is a good representation of the path of the StreetConnect staff on a daily basis!
Even though I try to jump in wherever I am needed, there are specific duties that are the main focus of my job. As Clinical Director, I help to assess new clients coming into the program through a tool called a Biopsychosocial Assessment. This is a tool that I use to gather as much current and historical information about the client as I can. I do this because it helps me to understand what the client has been through and what their current needs are. Another job duty I have is to support clients in crisis. This might mean helping to deescalate an individual or to write a Certificate for Evaluation (CfE), so the individual can be assessed at the psychiatric hospital. Often times I work in tandem with the APD officers on CfEs because I can write out the CfE form, but I need support from APD to transport the individual to the hospital. I also coordinate with outside agencies, including hospitals, guardians, doctors, etc. on the care of our clients. This is one of my favorite tasks because I get to tell others about the StreetConnect program and educate them on the work we do. Still another part of my job entails supporting the staff. I do this through staff clinical supervision. The navigators meet with me at least weekly to go over client cases and strategize on what the next steps should be for each individual client. I feel so fortunate to be able to serve the individuals we work with and honored to support our clients in increasing the quality of their lives.
