-Messenger photo by Joe Sutter
Clinical Supervisor Glenna Nockels is happy with the new location of her Catholic Charities satellite office, at 3 North 17th St. Nockels said the recently remodeled building is more easily accessible, being closer to bus routes and within walking distance of downtown. Nockles joined the office in December.

With a continuing shortage of providers for mental health services, Glenna Nockels hopes more people will turn to the Catholic Charities Fort Dodge Satellite Office for help.

Nockels, a licensed independent social worker, became clinical supervisor of the Fort Dodge office in December, and has overseen growth in the office.

“We are a mental health clinic. We treat all ages and a variety of mental health needs,” Nockels said.

It’s very important to her that people are able to be treated regardless of income.

“We really pride ourselves on meeting people where they are in life,” Nockels said. “I think it’s important to serve people regardless of their age, ethnicity, income.”

While it is affiliated with the Sioux City Diocese, the clinic is for everyone, not just one faith or one denomination, she said.

“We are proud to be part of the Diocese and that brings great comfort to many people seeking support,” said Nockels. “However, we often serve clients of many other religious and non-religious backgrounds.”

The clinic recently moved to a renovated property at 3 N. 17th St., which Nockels said was more convenient for its clients. The office was formerly located in northwest Fort Dodge.

“We’re happy to be more centrally located, more easily accessible from the bus route, and within walking distance from downtown,” she said. “Especially working with referrals from the YWCA, the Beacon of Hope, we’re in a location they can reach us while they’re transitioning into Fort Dodge.”

One issue Nockels sees locally is families in divorce. Children just need that extra support and space to deal with all the mixed feelings a divorce brings, she said. And children in major conflict need a space to be comforted and relieved of their burden of being “in the middle.”

She said the office also works with local schools to help combat bullying.

Catholic Charities has an on-site mental health provider one day a week at the Fort Dodge Middle School and once a week at St. Edmond Catholic School.

There’s also a free program called Pathway for students.

“That is a free mental health assessment for any school-aged child. Their parent can bring them in to talk through the areas of concern, and make an educated decision about whether services are appropriate, without that cost,” Nockels said.

Stigma and cost of mental health treatment are barriers to getting help in rural communities, she added — and Iowa still has a long way to go.

“We really pride ourselves on having a sliding fee scale and financial assistance,” Nockels said. “Since I have been here, we have yet to turn anybody away. We work with each individual or family on a financial plan to make services accessible to them.”

Nockels transitioned to Fort Dodge from Plains Area Mental Health in Carroll. She got her bachelor’s degree in child and family services from Iowa State University.

“I began my career working in early childhood development, doing home visits with families who have children from birth to 5,” Nockels said. “During that time I was making a lot of referrals for families to seek therapy, and decided I could be the therapist rather than making the referral.”

Nockels received her master’s degree in social work from the University of Iowa, and then worked at a shelter for victims of domestic violence in Ames.

She then relocated with her husband to western Iowa, and was at St. Anthony hospital for a number of years. She most recently served at Plains Area for about 4 1/2 years before coming to Fort Dodge.

“It was a good opportunity to see different types of mental illness and different types of needs,” she said of her past experience.

As far as Catholic Charities, “I value their nonprofit model,” she said. “I’m really impressed with the variety of services they provide, the emphasis they place on holistic care.

“And they really care about their providers as well, and provide a healthy atmosphere to work in. I think that’s evidenced by the retention rate of therapists. They have a lot of career therapists here who haven’t left because it’s a great place to work.”

The office has a large enough staff that clients can be seen quickly, Nockels said. Someone in crisis could likely be seen within one day, and a more general referral for service can usually get the person seen within a week.

“In mental health, there is such a shortage of providers,” Nockels said. “People get full, and get booked out very quickly. The more our community providers can work together to be available, the healthier we are as a community.”

Nockels works along with Darla McEnroe, LMSW (therapist) , Emily McCullough, LMFT, CADC (therapist), and JoDeanna Ramirez, office manager. McEnroe joined the team on July 9.

For more information, call the Fort Dodge office at 576-4156 or visit cathchar.com.