Residential Treatment Services—Critical Care

Hillside’s Critical Care programs, delivered in out-of-home settings, support the ability of youth to develop skills that can help them overcome challenges which might inhibit their potential in their families, homes and communities. These therapeutic social, recreational and educational services, combined with individual / group / family therapy, provide a coordinated framework of care that helps prepare youth and their families to deal effectively with a wide range of life challenges. Hillside Critical Care services are individualized through ongoing collaborations between staff, youth and families to make sure each youth’s strengths and personal goals are considered.

About this Program

Hillside’s Critical Care programs are provided at three different campuses in the Greater Rochester/Finger Lakes region. Each program is customized to meet the needs of youth at different stages of development (see Eligibility Criteria, below, for details).

CRESTWOOD CAMPUS CRITICAL CARE PROGRAM
The Crestwood Critical Care program assists youth in developing daily living skills, social skills, anger management and improved family and peer relationships. Positive behavioral interventions and supports provide clear expectations and positive reinforcement for meeting these expectations. An enhanced staff-to-youth ratio offers a stable and safe living environment for youth with challenging behaviors. Full-time direct care staff are joined by licensed Clinicians, a certified Recreation Therapist, a certified/licensed Behavior Analyst, a Case Manager, a Permanency Specialist and a Family Advocate. The program uses individual, group and family therapy to help youth develop new coping skills and more appropriate ways to manage their emotions. The treatment team consists of the youth and their family, their individual clinician, psychiatric provider, teacher, cottage staff and nurses, as well as a consulting psychologist and pediatric provider. Interventions include:

• Individual, Group and Family Therapy
• Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy
• Play Therapy
• Therapeutic Recreation (on- and off-site)
• Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports
• Applied Behavior Analysis
• Family Finding

MONROE CAMPUS AND SNELL FARM CAMPUS RISE PROGRAM
The Rise program provides individualized, trauma informed residential services that are of high quality, evidence-based, ethical, comprehensive, strength-based, and culturally relevant. An enhanced staff-to-youth ratio offers a stable and safe living environment for youth with challenging behavior. Youth Care Professionals provide 24-hour supervision. Validation of youth and the impact of trauma in their lives is an integral part of the program. Services include a range of therapeutic social, recreational, and educational services in addition to individual, group and family therapy. The program assists youth in developing coping skills and effective ways to manage their emotions.

The expected duration of treatment is 6-12 months. Permanency planning begins at admission and concurrent planning will take place throughout the course of treatment. The youth’s treatment team consists of their family, direct care staff, the youth’s clinician (individual therapist), case manager, nurses, psychiatric provider, recreation therapist, psychologist and pediatrician. Additional supports, as clinically needed are provided by a Permanency Specialist, Behavior Analyst, Family Advocate, and Crisis Intervention Specialist. Interventions offered include:

• Individual, Group and Family Therapy
• DBT and Group DBT Skills Training
• Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Individual Anger Management
• Therapeutic Recreation (on- and off-site)
• Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports
• Connection with off-site substance abuse treatment

FINGER LAKES CAMPUS GROW PROGRAM
The Gaining Resilience Through Overall Wellness (GROW) Critical Care program is designed to meet the treatment needs of teenage girls (ages 12 to 21 years) who are coping with challenges related to significant trauma they have experienced. Intensive residential care in the GROW program supports the youth and their families by combining structured therapeutic group living experience with individualized Dialectal Behavior Therapy (DBT) treatment. The program uses individual, group and family therapy to help youth develop new coping skills and more appropriate ways to manage their emotions. Older adolescents are also helped in the focus on independent living skills as they prepare for adulthood.

Family contact and the exploration of family dynamics are important treatment components in GROW. Family members are essential members of the child’s treatment team, and are included in decision-making about treatment priorities.

As soon as a youth is admitted to the GROW program, discharge planning begins. Youth make the transition to a lower level of care as soon as that is clinically indicated. Aftercare services are provided for three months following discharge to ensure that youth is succeeding in her post-discharge environment. Interventions offered include:

• Individual, Group and Family Therapy
• DBT and Group DBT Skills Training
• Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Family Finding
• Therapeutic Recreation (on- and off-site)
• Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports
• Connection with off-site substance abuse treatment

PROVIDED IN ALL CRITICAL CARE PROGRAMS

Children and Residential Experience (CARE)—Hillside residential programs follow the CARE model, which is rooted in the theory that children change, grow and develop through meaningful relationships. Fundamental CARE principles require Hillside programs to be developmentally focused, family-involved, relationship-based, competence-centered, trauma-informed and ecologically oriented.

Education Services—Hillside’s campus schools, approved by the New York State Education Department, provide therapeutic education services for youth in our care. Daily instruction is guided by each student’s Individual Education Plan (IEP) and through collaborations between each student and their family, designed to maximize their academic and social learning potential toward the goal of eventually returning to their home district.

Hillside’s educational services are typically provided in classrooms staffed by a ratio of 6 students to 1 teacher and 2 teaching assistants. Classrooms may be self-contained or departmentalized by subject area to meet students’ educational needs. All coursework meets NYS standards, including a core instructional program of English, social studies, science, mathematics, physical education and the arts. Students have access to guidance counseling and a school psychologist for testing and educational planning. Library sciences and business are provided per NYS guidelines. Speech/language therapy and occupational therapy are available for students identified to receive these services by the Committee on Special Education (CSE) of their home district. Our education staff collaborates with the students’ home districts throughout their placement and in preparation for their transition.

Health Care Services—Our campuses provide round-the-clock access to health care services delivered by caring staff trained to attend to most medical/psychiatric needs experienced by youth in residential treatment. Licensed clinical professionals include registered dieticians, licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, psychiatric and pediatric nurse practitioners, pediatricians and child/adolescent psychiatrists. These individuals work closely with program staff to provide high-quality care, while maintaining strong relationships with local hospitals and providers when higher levels of specialty medical, psychiatric and emergency care are needed.

Recreation Services—While at Hillside, youth will be offered a wide variety of therapeutic recreation activities. Each program on campus has a Therapeutic Recreation Specialist assigned to ensure that youth are involved in and help plan out activities that foster creativity, socialization, physical activity, and personal growth. Therapeutic Recreation Specialists work within the entire program team in order to determine and achieve each youth’s individual goals. Recreation programs are consistently run throughout campus, making use of all or our facilities, as well as throughout the community.

Permanency and Treatment Planning—Treatment services are individualized for each youth and based on a goal of making significant improvements in addressing the risk factors that resulted in their referrals to the program. The ultimate goal is the youth’s reunification with their family or other reliable community resources.

Locations

Crestwood Campus
2075 Scottsville Road
Rochester NY 14623

Contact Information

For details about this or any Hillside program, contact us 24 hours a day at 585-256-7500 or info@hillside.com

This Program Supported by the NYS Office of Child and Family Services, local school districts and local counties.