SSHP
Observer Ofthehaps
A Crisis of Accountability at Summitstone Health Partners
Over the past three decades, I have watched an organization meant to provide behavioral health care in Northern Colorado devolve from a dedicated community pillar into a closed-loop system of executive favoritism.
Clinical expertise has been sacrificed for a need for administrative control as well as personal vendettas at SummitStone Health Partners. This phenomenon did not happen overnight. The shift began with an idea to maximize services while decreasing the cost of employing therapists. Some young, supposedly ‘innovative’ folks from out of state called it “synergy” and sold the concept as good business practice.
Leadership agreed and began the ongoing practice of decreasing clinical staff while increasing administrative personnel.
At the same time, significant shifts were occurring in the organizational chart. One of two Chief Operations Officers was lost after an injury resulted in an earlier-than-expected retirement. The COO we lost had experience, dedication, and the moral compass that is currently lacking at Summitstone.
The remaining COO, the CEO, and the Board of Directors were still present and committed to a bloated pyramid that valued power rather than clinical excellence. Executives controlled directors. Directors dominated managers. Managers governed supervisors, who tapped team leads that often had no connection to client services, while clinicians bore the brunt by providing services and meeting the obligations to the population. Fewer staff met with clients, while top heavy management continued the party line and celebrated their wisdom while individuals who focused on upward mobility and little else flocked to join the ranks.
Alongside this chaos, Larimer County was tasked with building a new facility and funneling grant dollars into mental health throughout the whole county. Laurie Stolen at Larimer County Behavioral Health, whose vision helped the dream of this facility become a reality was pushed out after pouring many years of her life into this project. When she was about to see her dream come to fruition, a ‘mutual decision’ came for her to leave with an NDA after she proposed more stringent oversight in the county contracts with Summitstone.
Meanwhile, one of the “Fabulous Under Forty” was brought to Summitstone with moving expenses paid, along with her buddy. She morphed assorted programs into unrecognizable silos, with 2-3 administrative staff for every clinician able to serve the clients. She also managed to convince the powers-that-be to have “independent” auditors come and eradicate a competent Human Resources department along with a panel of committed Quality Assurance professionals and their protocol. (DJ/KB & PBS/BB)
She and her coterie pushed for a much too large and way too expensive Electronic Medical Record that very few staff understood, but her husband obtained certification on in 2022.
The crew sung one another’s praises and the executive leadership allowed vacationing friendships with subordinates (Temecula! Snowshoeing! Holidays! Oh My!) utilized the real estate connections, and became community advisors on various boards influencing even more outcomes.
After the Reduction in Force 2024 eliminated 75 staff members—including front-line clinicians and an ethical anchor of a director, (SMP) clients faced immediate increases in wait times and a drastic lack of services. The CEO was sacrificed with his comfy severance, making an excellent patsy. All other parties in the decision making remained.
After the CEO was dispatched, it was business as usual with public opinion appeased. Executives maintained six-figure salaries, offered sign-on bonuses, gave astronomical raises, and favored a particular real estate agent in the area for their elitist home buying experiences. A deficit was blamed for laying off 75 souls, adversely affecting hundreds of families in our community. Yet and still, FTE numbers were higher than ever 18 months later. We lost excellent clinicians who prioritized client care and quality of services; before, during, and after the RIF. As one community member requested of our public servants, “Interestingly, I have had several positions pop up on my Linkedin for administrative jobs that pay well into six figures. At the same time I have heard of very long waitlists and high needs clients only being able to see a clinician once a month. I would really appreciate a request for review of their org chart and their budgetary decisions around Admin roles versus Clinician roles.”
Sounds like a reasonable inquiry. Why would the County Manager forward this message to Cyndi Dodds? Why would Cyndi reach out to the individual and invite them to lunch? Exerting influence and smoothing ruffled feathers is not demonstrating transparency. This behavior is part and parcel of the problem. The circle of influence is intrinsic to the issue at hand.
What is missing? The ethics, the experience, the ability to make decisions to serve the greater good, the institutional memory, the history of a 70 year mission.
What is left? The heart of cowardice: self-preservation at someone else's expense. The refusal to accept responsibility or to absorb the cost of choices made, so it’s transferred to the most vulnerable people, the clients. Disturbingly, a trend of re-hiring social allies and promotion of individuals to high-stakes made up roles, like the “Director of Improvement” occurred, cementing the status quo (This director’s background is in administrative work and MLM retail).
It’s a real "Fox Guarding the Henhouse" situation when data is controlled before it reaches oversight. Further, the data does not speak to much of the issues plaguing our community today.
This is not just a personal issue, nor a one off; it is a breach of public trust, a long con, a travesty for institutions, and a risk to community safety. The taxpayers of Larimer County deserve better. They should demand an independent audit of SummitStone’s hiring practices and the 2024 RIF. It is time for the County Commissioners to stop co-signing this culture of cronyism and restore the clinical excellence this community was promised.