CLEVELAND, Ohio —Maggie Tolbert grew up in a small town in Alabama, where Jim Crow laws were still in effect. Black people were not allowed to eat at the local drug store’s lunch counter, and the local hospital was segregated.
Those experiences led to her resolve to fight for equity in healthcare and break down barriers to care during her career as a registered nurse.
“I want to make sure that no matter what your lot in life is, no matter what money you have, you have access to equal and high-quality behavioral healthcare services,” said Tolbert, 64.
Tolbert is the winner of the Nurse Innovator Award for cleveland.com’s Top Nurses for her commitment to innovation.
Tolbert is assistant chief clinical officer with the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board of Cuyahoga County, which funds and monitors public mental health and addiction treatment and recovery services for county residents.
She is being recognized for her work as project manager for the Cuyahoga County Diversion Center, a 50-bed facility that provides a place for people with symptoms of a mental illness and/or addiction receive treatment instead of going to jail. Treatment costs are covered by Medicaid or the ADAMHS Board.
While the diversion center was in the planning stages, Tolbert was a key figure in bringing together a broad coalition that included law enforcement, mental health advocacy groups, ministers, and other community leaders to discuss what type of facility was needed and develop its standards.
“We wanted to make sure we got buy-in and that it was going to meet the needs of the community,” she said.
The ADAMHS Board designated Oriana House, which provides behavioral health and community corrections services, to operate the diversion center.
“Maggie’s clinical skills were critical for developing the standards for the Cuyahoga County Diversion Center,” Mike Randle, executive vice president for operations for Oriana House, said in an email. “Her knowledge of behavioral health practices and commitment to helping individuals who struggle with mental health helped us develop services that were critical to getting the diversion center up and running.”
Even though she hasn’t worked directly with patients for years, she still gets calls from the family members of former patients asking for her advice. She uses her knowledge of the available resources to identify places that can help, even if the person has no insurance.
“I’ve worked with Maggie for over 20 years and have been so impressed with her passion and advocacy for individuals living with mental health and substance use disorders that I knew I wanted her on my leadership team when I became CEO,” Scott S. Osiecki, CEO of the ADAMHS Board of Cuyahoga County, said in an email.
“She is dependable, knowledgeable and does not let anything get in her way of accomplishing her work. I’m proud of her for so many things, especially her work on the establishment and oversight of the Cuyahoga County Diversion Center. Maggie is deserving of this award and our community is better because of her dedication.”
Tolbert also has worked to ensure that ADAMHS Board services are equally available on the West Side and East Side.
“It doesn’t matter who you are,” said Tolbert, who lives in Cleveland Heights. “You’re going to still get a service. And you shouldn’t have to go 50 miles across the bridge to get that service.”
“I like to remove barriers, because I always see that this (patient) could be my family member,” said registered nurse Maggie Tolbert, assistant chief clinical officer with the ADAMHS Board of Cuyahoga County. Credit: Julie E. Washington
Solving problems, removing barriers
Behavioral health is often misunderstood, Tolbert said. She tells patients and families that the patient has a brain disease, and that they are not to blame.
“But that doesn’t mean you can’t do something to (help you) function at the best that you can,” said Tolbert, who has also worked as a psychiatric nurse at University Hospitals. “Behavioral health nurses teach people how to cope at the highest level of functioning that they’re able to do.”
Tolbert started at the ADAMHS board as a clinical nurse specialist 21 years ago. She enjoys the problem-solving aspect of her job.
“I like to remove barriers, because I always see that this (patient) could be my family member,” she said. “How would I want my family to be treated? Sometimes with health care, it can be difficult if you don’t get to the right person.”
In a previous position as a behavioral health nurse with the Visiting Nurse Association of Ohio, she visited patients who had been discharged from the hospital but were still experiencing depression or hallucinations. She helped with medications and coordinated other medical care.
Tolbert recalls visiting an elderly Black woman to assess if she was depressed. The woman and her home were immaculate. When Tolbert asked if she had ever experienced sexual abuse, the woman started to cry.
“She said this was the first time anybody had ever asked her that,” Tolbert said. “I would think at her age, at that time, those were things she didn’t talk about.” Tolbert urged the woman to address the early trauma that was contributing to her depression.
Tolbert plans to stay at the ADAMHS Board until retirement.
“I truly believe God will tell me when it’s time to move on,” Tolbert said. “I don’t believe in staying on forever.”
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