EASTHAMPTON — The city’s Health Department has hired Elizabeth “Liz” Plouffe as its first-ever community social worker.
Plouffe, who started the new full-time position at the city’s Municipal Building on Monday, will offer support, education and referrals for needs pertaining to substance use and mental health for all ages.
Health Director Bri Eichstaedt had previously learned of this kind of position in central Massachusetts and has seen the need for the role in Easthampton.
“As code enforcement inspectors, we come across many situations where a social worker could help connect someone to local resources, such as helping them find stable housing or bringing a current housing situation to a clean and habitable state,” Eichstaedt said. “We often rely on outside agencies to assist us, and we’re excited to have a city employee dedicated to this work.”
Last year, the department hired Brian Chapdelaine to tackle health compliance inspections. In doing so, Eichstaedt said she and the rest of the department have been able to expand and do more than simply being reactive to the city’s inspections.
“We receive over 150 complaints (annually) on top of inspecting restaurants twice a year. Before hiring Brian, it was me running around doing all that,” she said. “While that’s an important part of public health, that’s not all that this department can do.”
The highest number of complaints received by the Health Department pertain to renting issues, food establishments, exterior trash, and hoarding/unsanitary conditions.
In the immediate future, Plouffe is communicating with and finding ways to collaborate with the city’s Fire and Police departments and the Council on Aging to assess how she can best navigate some of the city’s long-term needs.
“There are gaps that have existed that I can fill for the Health Department and for the emergency response teams. Everybody is so busy in the role that they’re already doing and you don’t want to feel like you’ve gone out and done your part and then you’re leaving people to pick up the pieces on their own. They may need resources, referrals, just support, someone to talk to — they may not know the resources they need,” she said.
Plouffe holds a bachelor’s degree in human development and family studies from the University of Connecticut as well as two minor certificates in Spanish and Puerto Rican and Latino studies. She also holds a master’s degree in social work from Springfield College.
After graduating Springfield College in 2018, Plouffe began working as a medical social worker with Baystate Health. For the past four years, she has been working in the emergency department at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield.
“I loved the emergency department. It’s a busy place … but you’re limited in what you can do in that environment. In the hospital, you can have people for five minutes to hours or days. You have a very short window to work with patients and their families,” she said. ” In community social work, one of the biggest things I’m excited about is the long-term working with committees and different teams of people and things that go on longer than a short window and onto the next. The exciting part about community social work is that I can be everywhere in Easthampton and do a number of different things, which is something I’m really looking forward to.”
Through a partnership with behavioral health nonprofit Clinical & Support Options, the Easthampton and Hadley police departments began piloting a co-response program in October. Through this program, the departments share co-response clinician Emma Reilly, who aids departments in responding to crisis calls or situations that have been deemed an emergency.
Comparatively, Plouffe will be assisting with situations that may require more oversight and don’t necessarily involve an immediate emergency, she said.
The position is being funded with the city’s American Rescue Plan Act funds for fiscal year 2023, according to Mayor Nicole LaChapelle. Moving forward, the plan is to build capacity in the operating budget for this position in fiscal year 2025, she added. Plouffe’s annual salary is $65,247.
“With the hiring of a community social worker, my office continues to embed public health/harm reduction services into the daily operations of the city of Easthampton,” said LaChapelle.
While the Health Department has been consistently busy, the need for the position was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Eichstedt said.
“I witnessed first hand how devastating the effects of the pandemic have been on the physical, emotional, and mental health of individuals and families in the local area,” said Plouffe. “My primary goal in returning to community work is to aid in the recovery from the challenges of the past few years. I am looking forward to collaborating with the existing resources available in Easthampton and implementing new supports along the way.”
Emily Thurlow can be reached at ethurlow@gazettenet.com.
