Dover, Delaware – Health officials released a statement that Director of State for the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Kevin Ann Huckshorn already resigned on Friday.
Huckshorn submitted her resignation last Friday with her letter dated October 31 saying that she has to leave her position at once in order to spend time taking care of her old parents.
Secretary of Health and Social Services for the state Rita Landgraf said that it has been hard for Kevin to do her job and take care of her parents at the same time. Landgraf was the one who hired Huckshorn in 2009 to the post. Huckshorn’s parents currently reside in Florida.
Huckshorn arrived with remarkable national credentials way back in 2009 and she was a highly regarded change agent which was delegated at the Delaware Psychiatric Center’s reform efforts. Landgraf was impressed with Huckshorn’s dedication to the population, her knowledge in mental health and her background. Just as Landgraf said, the state was very lucky to have recruited her and have her take the post as the Director of State for the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health.
Under Kevin Ann Huckshorn’s leadership, the Delaware Psychiatric Center’s population dropped considerably, the isolation and restraint uses dropped and the community-based mental health services expanded. She noted in her letter that after helping as division director for 5 years, she feels like she owes her parents some time due to aging and health concerns. She said that she has already fulfilled her promise to those who need urgent care to have the operations at the Delaware Psychiatric Center improved and stabilized.
In the top Delaware health official’s statement, she said that it was an honor for her to serve the Delaware citizens specifically those who’ve had persistent and serious mental illnesses, co-occurring disorders, gambling conditions and substance use disorders that needed the help of the urgent care clinic.
Kevin Ann Huckshorn’s decision to leave her post didn’t surprise Landgraf because she was already seeing a lot of other departures and the cabinet and director levels with the nearing end of Governor Markell’s administration.
Landgraf just assured the patients and their families that the state’s urgent care clinics are well-poised to continue leading the reform efforts that were started by Huckshorn. She said that she’s confident that Delaware Psychiatric Center has a strong operational blueprint to carry them forward and help those who are looking for urgent care near me.
Now that Head of State Kevin Ann Huckshorn is leaving, Secretary of Health and Social Services for Delaware Rita Landgraf relies on Delaware Psychiatric Center Director Greg Valentine and Deputy Director Melissa Smith for immediate leadership.
