Residential
Independent Living
Mental Health
Non Public School
Day Treatment
Nutrition

MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES PROGRAM

Charis Youth Center provides comprehensive specialty mental health services that include Day Treatment Intensive, Medication Support, and Mental Health Services. In addition, Charis staff is able to provide Therapeutic Behavioral Services through our TBS program if a contracting county deems that these services are needed for a specific client. Charis’ Mental Health Services provide a thorough assessment of each youth’s mental health status, the development of a comprehensive treatment plan and interventions, and an integrated approach to alleviating symptoms related to the youth’s identified DSM IV diagnosis.

Adolescents placed in Charis’ program have typically experienced numerous placement failures in less restrictive environments. For many of these youth, the mental health interventions they receive through Day Treatment Program, Medication Support Services, and Mental Health Services are critical to their success in a community-based program, and to help avoid placement in a more restrictive setting, such as a Community Treatment Facility or acute hospital.

Charis’ Mental Health Services component provides a range of mental health interventions that are the key to a successful course of treatment for emotionally challenged youth. Charis provides a thorough assessment of each youth’s mental health status, the development of a comprehensive treatment plan, and an integrated approach to alleviating symptoms related to each client’s identified DSM IV diagnosis.

INTENSIVE DAY TREATMENT: Our 5-day-a-week, full-day Day Treatment Intensive Program provides individual, group, and family therapy, a structured milieu program, and collateral services. Rehabilitative services provided within this program include (but are not limited to) therapeutic recreation, goal-specific therapy groups, process-oriented groups, transitional groups, life skills, stress management training, and anger management training. Qualified mental health staff also provides assessment, evaluation, and plan development services as part of this package of services.

Charis’ Day Treatment program provides at least one licensed (or waived/ registered) mental health professional per 8 clients throughout the hours of the program. This mental health clinician meets all Title 9 requirements.

MEDICATION SUPPORT SERVICES: Medication support services include the prescription, administration, dispensing, and monitoring of psychotropic medications. Charis’ medication support services program provides the following:
· Evaluation of the need for medication
· Evaluation of clinical effectiveness and side effects
· Obtaining informed consent from the client’s guardian
· Collateral medication education
· Plan development
· Prescribing, dispensing, and/or administration of medications

MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES: Charis’ Mental Health Services are designed to provide interventions which reduce the symptoms of the youth’s mental disability and improve or maintain his/her functioning consistent with the goals of learning, development, independent living, and enhanced self-sufficiency. These services are provided outside the hours of the Day Treatment Program.

THERAPEUTIC BEHAVIORAL SERVICES: Charis’ Therapeutic Behavioral Services (TBS) serve as a short-term, time-limited, targeted supplement to a youth’s specialty mental health treatment plan. Services are planned and implemented with a youth by a trained, experienced staff person in response to or to prevent an imminent life crisis, or to facilitate a transition into a residential placement from an institution or RCL 12-14 group home to a lower level of residential care/foster care.

QUALITY IMPROVMENT
In providing Medi-Cal reimbursable services concurrent with group home or educational services, it is of utmost importance that clear audit trails are provided that identify how services are provided, documented, and billed.

Charis’ Quality Imporvment staff has designed systems that assist us in overseeing and clearly delineating how services are documented and billed. Regular case reviews, chart reviews, and ongoing internal audits provide methods of oversight for our Medi-Cal services.

In addition, Charis has contracted several independent consultants to review its program implementation, fiscal, and quality improvment systems, and to provide ongoing feedback and training to agency staff.