Whatever you wish for emotionally, you have to give first, and only then you get. Cassandra Ruela, a trailblazer in the healthcare industry, is embarked on her journey with the same thought, making her way as an Executive Director of Paramount Wellness Retreat.
Overcoming age-related challenges, Cassandra’s leadership has been instrumental in establishing and growing this innovative substance abuse addiction treatment facility. Her vision extends beyond her current role, aspiring to contribute to the integration of medical and behavioral health in healthcare’s next transformative phase.
Cassandra’s impactful leadership exemplifies the convergence of clinical expertise and executive acumen, shaping the future of wellness and recovery. In order to get more from her, we at CIO Business World interviewed her to know more about her life story.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at Paramount Wellness Retreat What challenges have you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
Beginning as an unlicensed clinician in 2013, I worked within residential and outpatient programs while wanting to move forward in my career. In 2017, I took on the role of a leader at CT Renaissance’s outpatient clinic, working to impart my priority of client care to my clinicians. From 2017 to 2021, I held the positions of Lead Clinician, Clinical Supervisor, Program Director, Dual Program Director and finally, Assistant Director of Clinical Outpatient Services, prioritizing staff development, revenue growth, and service expansion. In May of 2023, my journey led me to become the Clinical Director of Paramount Wellness Retreat, where i successfully established established a residential facility from scratch. Being a part of a start-up with such significance placed on client care was ideal. In July of 2023, I was promoted to the role of Executive Director of Paramount Wellness Retreat. My age has always been a challenge for me to overcome. I am 33 years old and an Executive Director in my field. I had to learn early in my career to ignore the people who would tell me that I’m too young and that I need to “wait my turn.” My turn is when I decide it is and believing in myself to do these things, no matter my age, is how I have become the person I am and the role model I want my kids to look up to.
Tell us something more about Paramount Wellness Retreat and its mission and vision.
Paramount Wellness Retreat is a 3.7 and 3.5 level of care for substance abuse addiction treatment. Our mission statement is “Care with Purpose.” With a low staff-to-patient ratio of 1.5:1, our clinicians and providers can offer an unmatched level of care and attention to every patient. Individualized treatment programs are developed for everyone and will incorporate a variety of industry-leading and alternative modalities. Our focus is on healing the whole person and not just alleviating the symptoms of the disorder. We pair evidence-based therapy with holistic programming, recovery coaching, and therapy dogs to allow guests to determine their own best path to recovery.
How do you build and manage a motivated and effective team?
One of my significant supervisors said something to me once that I have never forgotten: “If you never make a mistake, it means you have never tried to make things better.” I believe that fostering a team that understands that perfection is not the goal is the key to allowing people the grace to be human. If my team feels that they can make mistakes without judgement, then my team will bring me new and innovative ideas to make things more efficient and effective. Will they all be killer ideas? No. But will my team be filled with independent thinkers? I really hope so.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run and what are your future goals for Paramount Wellness Retreat?
In the long run, I plan to remain Executive Director for Paramount Wellness Retreat and finish my book outlining my challenges I have faced with the glass ceiling (gender and age) and providing therapy in a non-confirmative way. Additionally, I plan to move toward an adjunct professor role when my children are old enough. If I had my way, Paramount would continue to expand until we couldn’t do it anymore. Our philosophy and team should be accessible to all who struggle with addiction and want an innovative approach to their wellness!
What, according to you, could be the next big change in the Healthcare? How is Paramount Wellness Retreat preparing to be a part of that change?
The next change in healthcare is the imperative integration between medical and behavioral health. It is unacceptable that providers do not collaborate in the way that they should, and it needs to be rectified as immediately as possible. PWR guests have daily access to our Medical Director, PA, and/or APRN and our nursing staff is in unit 24/7. Additionally, PWR just partnered with Poplar Wellness and rolled out a wearable device for all detox clients to wear (a watch) 24/7. This feeds vital signs to our monitor in the nursing station and allows our team to monitor any changes in real-time. This type of integration is just the beginning, and I am dedicated to being a frontrunner in collaboration.
How have you made an impact in the Healthcare industry? Any impact on any industry is a result of many small steps that someone has taken.
In venturing into this role, I have made many small changes that I believe will help those who come after me. I hope that continuing to push into leadership in this realm will allow the next generation to continue to push no matter their gender or age. Currently, I am in a position where I lead a medical level of care and a clinical level of care in the same building.
Being the Executive and Clinical Director of PWR, I work closely with our Medical Director, Director of Nursing, and our Chief Executive Officer. Allowing these roles to meet with my role as the catalyst inspires collaboration between realms of the Healthcare industry and demonstrates how much stronger the results can be.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the health care sector?
My advice is to not allow your education or other professionals to dictate what path you can take. I never pictured myself being a leader in an agency, corporation, or the field because it was always dictated to me that as a Licensed Professional Counselor, I could only be a therapist. If I had bought that information, I would never be in a position where I can be a therapist and an executive at the same time. Additionally, I would tell anyone that you can be a working woman who has it all. I have an incredibly rewarding job, a husband, three kids (3 and under!) and am working on a book. Find yourself a partner, a family, a team that can support your goals. I would tell them that they aren’t wrong for wanting more, even if they already have the most.
