Jose Manzo-Casio

I joined Comprehensive Healthcare in August of 2023. I work with youth who have significant mental health issues across Benton and Franklin counties. The first thing I would say, is not everyone is willing to receive the help you provide. Clients aren’t always ready to accept the help and they might not be ready to revisit the issues or traumas that are causing their behaviors. It can be tough sometimes, but you have to respect where they’re coming from and be there when they need you.

That acceptance is what I like most about being part of the team here. During my interview process, I said I wanted to work somewhere that gave me the opportunity to fail. What I meant was that I wanted the support to be able to go in and talk to clients, try and work with them and their families and do whatever it takes to find solutions. I wanted to be able to give it everything and, in those times when you can’t find the answer, I needed to know that I’d be part of an organization that would stand up and say, ‘don’t worry, we’re here for you and we’ll be there for them next time, too.’.

I really think I’ve found that at Comprehensive Healthcare. ‘Whatever it takes’ is what we always say in our team and people stand by it. We’ve got a team of seven and the culture is awesome. My supervisor is really great to work with, as is our director. I know everybody on a first name basis and they’re always open to answer questions.

It’s a group of experts who can come up with different solutions, adapt to different situations and bring different skills into the program. Having those kinds of resources and experiences around helps us achieve more. Support is never far away and I always appreciate that.

Being able to help families in these communities means a lot to me. I grew up in a small town and both my parents migrated here from Mexico. They always emphasized the importance of education, and my mom would say to me ‘the one thing they can never take away from you is what you learn.’ I went to two different universities (WSU and UW), built my knowledge and now I want to help others.

Sometimes all families are looking for is their basic needs. Once you connect them with stable housing, clothes, food, the basics, they’ve got the foundation to build on. I’ll run into former clients in the community or I’ll get a phone call telling me, ‘I just got my driver’s license’ or ‘I just graduated high school’. Those are the things that you want to hear, youths engaging in pro-social activities because they were engaging in anti-social things for so long before that.

My family lives in Kennewick, we’ve got two sons, dogs, and chickens running around in the garden. It is such a beautiful place to live and it feels great to be able to do my part and give back something positive to our communities.

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