When you speak with Janet – Head of Operational Treatment Affairs – you immediately feel her dedication and passion for care. On the first of November, she will not only celebrate 12.5 years as part of Yes We Can, but also reach a remarkable milestone: 35 years of working in healthcare. A perfect moment to reflect on her journey from young nurse to passionate leader who stands unconditionally ready every day for our fellows, colleagues and families.
According to Janet, her path into healthcare began with the classic choice between teacher training or nursing. In hindsight, that choice was no coincidence. As a child, she often heard stories at the kitchen table from her father, who worked in Social Services, about families facing severe challenges. On her mother’s side, there were relatives struggling with psychiatric issues. “I came into contact with psychiatry at a young age and was immediately fascinated. I wanted to understand people, to know what was going on inside them.”
During her nursing training, Janet worked in a wide range of organisations, from hospitals to community nursing. Although her psychiatric placement proved to be the toughest, it was precisely there that she felt most at home. “I was less interested in caring for physical complaints. I wanted to understand people’s stories, behaviours and lives.”
"The way we connect and engage with one another has always remained at the heart of Yes We Can throughout the years."
Care became personal for Janet at a certain moment. “I had been working in outpatient addiction care for years, but I noticed I was gradually losing control over my own substance use. I really needed help.” It was a harsh confrontation. As a care professional, Janet had often seen clients who repeatedly relapsed, and now she found herself on the other side. “Addiction felt like something you bring upon yourself, in contrast to psychiatric problems – those just happen to you. I felt that stigma myself.”
In 2011 she reached her lowest point and started treatment. There, Janet was introduced to the Minnesota 12-Step Programme. “That’s when it clicked: I am addicted. I always tried to find ways to keep going. Only in recovery did I learn to let go.” The multidisciplinary treatment – including people with lived experience – not only helped her towards recovery, but continues to inspire her to show understanding and compassion in her role.
“Addiction felt like something you bring upon yourself, in contrast to psychiatric problems – those just happen to you.”
Through her aftercare counsellor, Janet came into contact with Jan Willem, the founder of Yes We Can. She began her career in the parent programme, where she combined her lived experience with her knowledge of addiction care and psychiatry. “When I started, Yes We Can was still very small. Because of that, you took on many different tasks – from HR and Recruitment to aftercare for fellows or conducting intake interviews when someone was ill.” It turned out to be the perfect way to get to know the organisation and the mission of Yes We Can from the inside out.
In a short period of time, Janet progressed from group counsellor to coordinator and later to team leader of practitioners. She developed the parent programme into what it is today, guided complex family conversations and continued to support colleagues in the field. Six years ago, she made the transition to the clinic, where she has since fully focused on leadership and on connecting people, processes and policy.
What is it that has made Janet work for Yes We Can with such love and passion for 12.5 years? She doesn’t have to think long about the answer. “The equality you feel within the treatment team when working with fellows truly stands out for me. You are genuinely on equal footing with one another, including with the young people themselves. I’ve certainly experienced that differently in the past. Here, you are really connected with each other. Aside from the fact that it’s also a beautiful, clean place to work. The way we connect with people and the relationships we have with fellows and their families – that has, throughout all the years, always remained the core of Yes We Can.”
“We are genuinely on equal footing with one another, including with the young people themselves.”
After 35 years of working in healthcare, Janet knows better than anyone which things have changed and which have stayed the same. “My perspective on care hasn’t changed over the years, but I have grown and developed as a person. When I was young, I wanted to change the world. Now I know that care is never ‘finished’; there will always be people who need help. For me, the art is not to find that discouraging, but meaningful. Every day, I look again at what I can contribute today.”
The strength of Yes We Can lies in our colleagues. They are also the reason Janet still goes to work with pleasure after all these years. “I work with colleagues who radiate hope and trust from the moment they walk through the door. My own recovery story helps me stay close to the lived-experience specialists. We hardly need to explain things to each other; we speak the same language. I learn from my colleagues every single day. It truly remains people-driven work.”
In her current role as Head of Operational Treatment Affairs, Janet has less direct contact with fellows, but her influence is felt in everything she does. “I make sure that everything needed to provide our fellows with good treatment is in place. I look day by day at how I can connect people, processes and policy to offer appropriate, future-proof care. Leadership, to me, means building trust, connection and improvement every single day.”
“I still get goosebumps when I’m able to help a family move forward.”
What Janet loves most about her work is the impact she can make. “When I have to have difficult conversations with fellows and their parents, the truth eventually comes to the surface. However intense and painful that may be, those moments are also successes. It’s wonderful when it works, and you can help a family move forward. I still genuinely get goosebumps from that.”
What would Janet like to pass on to her colleagues? “If you truly want to learn something, stay in the role you’ve been given and just do it. Practise, keep trying, and give yourself the time to grow. Success comes from continually investing.” With a smile, she adds: “I’m incredibly content with where I am now. I enjoy what I do, and as long as that remains the case, I’ll stay right here.”
