Massachusetts nonprofit Youth Villages partnered with the state Health and Human Services Department to create Intercept, a program that provides immediate in-home mental health treatment for children and teens who would otherwise be taken to the ER, Public News Service reported June 21.
"The vast majority of the children and adolescents that we are serving in this program … don't need a bed in a facility," Matt Stone, executive director of Youth Villages, told Public News Service. "What they need is intensive in-home support, to help the parents and caregivers be able to manage the crisis."
Intercept has worked with more than 100 families and has treated patients referred by 20 different hospitals.
Intercept's treatment plan is as follows:
- Family intervention specialists meet with families two to three times each week for sessions in the home that are built around the family’s schedule and convenience. They are on-call 24/7 in case of a family emergency.
- Family intervention specialists address issues with schools, courts and children's services that can seem overwhelming. They stand with parents at school or legal meetings and advocate for them as multiple expectations and requirements are met.
- Family intervention specialists work with licensed clinicians to build treatment plans and work step-by-step with the family and child as new parenting techniques are learned and interventions change behavior.
The program accepts anyone, regardless of insurance.