Moses joined Third Horizon Strategies (THS) as a manager in September 2021. He is an educator and health advocate that consistently seeks opportunities to broaden his horizons and understand different perspectives. Born in Israel and raised in North Carolina, he received his bachelor’s in psychology and criminal justice from University of North Carolina at Charlotte and then moved to Denver to complete his master’s in forensic psychology at the University of Denver. He still resides in Denver with his cat Calcifer.
Humanizing health care
Moses started his career by interning at a re-entry center – a program that helps individuals coming out of jails and prisons have a successful re-entry by preparing them to rejoin to the workforce, find resources, and reconnect to health care. His internship helped him start to gain a deeper understanding of health care. “I realized that if you don’t have your health, it is really hard to do these other things that society is asking you to do,” he said. This realization served as his foundation for his career.
After receiving his Masters in forensic psychology, he worked as a clinician with a program for complex individuals who were on probation or parole, living with a serious and persistent mental illness, and experiencing homelessness. His clinical experience prompted curiosity about the policy and macrolevel side of the field. He went on to work with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) primarily engaging with Naxolone promotion programs and then served as the policy director at the Colorado Behavioral Healthcare Council.
When asked what he thinks is the biggest challenge facing the health care industry, Moses responded that the health care system has let down its most valuable asset: its workforce. This is especially true in behavioral health. “In many cases, these highly-educated, highly-committed professionals are being underpaid, overbooked, and asked to do things they don’t want to be doing,” Moses said. “When we don’t empower and value the people working in the system, the entire system suffers because it is built on people.” He feels strongly that if the workforce felt valued, it would change daily interactions and the way care is delivered.
Inspired by the current generation
In addition to his full-time role at THS, Moses teaches macrolevel social work classes at the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Denver. He said that teaching is both “really fun” and very motivating because the students he teaches are very activated to make the world a better place. “I am inspired by the current generation that is gaining their voice right now,” he said. “They are very dedicated to having conversations about what is going on in the world, educating themselves about how to get involved, and empowered and that taking a ‘this is my world and I want to make it better’ approach.” When asked what he would be doing it he didn’t work at THS, he said teaching.
Moses and a former colleague at a fundraiser
Building connections
In the next ten years, Moses anticipates that we will get better at being virtual – both in terms of being more productive virtually and in learning the value of spending more time together. “One thing we learned from the COVID-19 pandemic is that you can be successful and accomplish life behind a screen, but you aren’t going to feel very good if you don’t connect with people – you need meaningful connections somewhere,” Moses said. He feels that going forward, we will see more and more of our communities coming together and finding ways for people to connect and build relationships.