Our Program
The Residential Treatment Center promotes family-centered, culturally-competent and developmentally appropriate approaches to treatment. Children and adolescents in our program require a secure environment, with safety, and therapy but do not require inpatient psychiatric hospitalization. Children and adolescents are provided systematic and professional treatment for their behavioral, emotional and academic problems.
Life-Changing Care for Children in Crisis
Our program offers:
- Secure, residential treatment for youth and children
- A secure, therapeutic environment
- Separate environments and programs for children and adolescents
- 24-hour trained professional supervision and consultation
- Medication evaluation and reduction program
- Integrated mental and physical health care
- Licensed school with credit recovery program
- Family centered parent training
- Aftercare program
Individualized Treatment Plans
Treatment plans are specific to each child’s or adolescent’s behavioral and physical and mental health needs and are directed by a Board Certified Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist who works with primary care physicians and licensed mental health providers to develop individualized treatment plans.
Therapy goals related to the individual treatment plan are based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health. Licensed clinical therapists are assigned to each individual for one-on-one therapy, family therapy and group therapy.
A robust tracking system provides real-time behavioral data to address daily progress. Data, along with other qualitative measures, are used to make changes to the treatment plan as needed.
Treatment Model
Our programs base treatment on the nationally recognized Boys Town Psycho-Educational Treatment Model (PEM). The model creates an atmosphere where medical, psychological and social treatment of children and adolescents can be coordinated and interactions between children and adolescents and each treatment professional are enhanced.
The hallmark of PEM is to “Catch kids being good” and reinforce good behavior at a higher rate than bad behavior. It is neither a punishment model nor a standard counseling model. Our goal is not to frustrate youth, but to help them learn to get their needs met in pro-social ways. The model requires a low tolerance for inappropriate behaviors coupled with high warmth and praise for appropriate behaviors. Ours is a self-help model. It is not a control model. It is a youth empowerment model.
More than 40 hours of psycho-educational treatment is provided weekly. Treatment includes skills to increase social development, academic success and independent living skills.
Safety and Security
The Centers are locked facilities with direct care staff working with children and adolescents 24 hours a day. Safety features include:
- Low youth to staff ratios with awake night staff for safety and monitoring
- Approval of all visitors
- All visitations scheduled by legal guardians
- Hallway motion detectors and video recordings to monitor safety at night
- Motion detectors in bedrooms, plus random and frequent checks by security personnel on site to assist in the event of a crisis
