Above and Beyond: Kevin Petranu’s empathy and hard work stand out
08/25/20 09:39:am
“He has always found great new ideas to help better his relationship with our residents,” says Jessica Reckling, manager of operations, Focus Depression Recovery adolescent care. “He has had some more challenging situations recently, but he always works with his team to come up with creative ideas to better manage behaviors.”
Kevin first came to Rogers two years ago as a residential care specialist after graduating from Marquette University. At first, his plan in college was to major in biomedical science and minor in psychology. However, he found himself getting more of a sense of accomplishment from his psychology classes, and switched his major. He says that practicing applied behavioral analysis therapy was especially useful for him, and seeing the progress of kids he was working with is what drove him to investigate other mental health fields.
In addition to his creativity, Sara Jagdfeld, another behavioral specialist who works with Kevin on the unit, adds that he always “goes above and beyond for his residents.”
“He takes the time to research and learn new ways to address exposures and other treatment related assignments when the traditional ways are not working,” Sara says. “He is patient and a genuine human that has empathy for every resident. I consider it a privilege to work alongside him. I have learned so much from him and look forward to seeing what he does in the future. He is absolutely brilliant.”
Kevin says that it is gratifying and reassuring to know his work is being recognized, and that the efforts of him and his peers are being noticed. He adds that the best part of working at Rogers is getting to know the residents.
“I learn a lot from them—not just about mental health, but about their resilience and ability to progress through treatment,” he says. “I enjoy learning about their great qualities and personality traits so we can work to emphasize them.”
