Mental Health Resources

Children’s Core Provider System

Access to comprehensive services is through the core provider system.

To receive any of the following services the child/adolescent must have a mental health diagnosis and his/her doctor (psychiatrist) must prescribe that it is medically necessary.

Eligible children (see below) can register for services with the County’s Children’s Core Providers (Creative Health Services, Devereux Community Services, Child Guidance Resource Centers, and Holcomb Behavioral Health Services in Kennett Square).

All children with a mental health diagnoses qualify for Medical Assistance regardless of parental income. (Documentation of income must be provided to determine if the child and family qualify for any additional benefits) The Core Provider agencies can assist a family in applying for MA.

If a child is already receiving MA and needs a mental health assessment you can contact Community Care Behavioral Health (1-866-622-4228) for referral to an assessment site. If you have private insurance that must be exhausted first. If you are going for a level of care assessment because you are requesting Behavioral Health Rehabilitation Services (BHRS) services private insurance does not have to be accessed first. You must specify that this is the reason for the assessment.

Treatment Services

All mental health services are voluntary with the exception of when someone presents as a danger to self or others.

At the age of 14 the child is able to consent to their own treatment. Parents may also consent for them. Adolescents are also responsible for release of any records. This is outlined in Act 147 (Minors’ Consent Act, as Amended.)

• Outpatient – Counseling services for children, adolescents, and families provided at an agency. Psychiatric, psychological and medication monitoring can also be provided.

• Partial Hospital - A program operated during the daytime hours, which provides individual and group counseling as well as medication monitoring. Education is also provided at these programs via the Intermediate unit.

• Family Based Mental health Services - Intensive in home services that usually include several hours per week of service for up to 32 weeks. The number of hours is tailored to the needs of the family and is family therapy focused. This program is used to divert children from the need for a higher level of treatment or to assist them in adjusting when leaving a higher level of treatment.

• Behavioral Health Rehabilitation Services (BHRS) – (Also referred to as “wrap around”). This program provides services to children in their own home and community with a strong emphasis on natural supports. There are three services funded under BHRS as described below. Other specialized programs can also be developed.

  • Therapeutic Staff Support (TSS) - TSS staff assists family in applying behavioral techniques to work with their child in various situations.

  • Mobile Therapist (MT) - Provides counseling to the child and family in the home and community and supervises the TSS/TSSA. MT staff can write up behavior programs.

  • Behavior Specialist Consultant (BSC) - Develops behavior plans. They can be experts in specific areas of treatment.

• Summer Therapeutic Activities Program (STAP) – Camp like program with an emphasis on psychosocial rehabilitation.

• Functional Family Therapy (FFT) - Intensive evidenced based family treatment. FFT consists of 12-16 sessions. 24 hour on call is not part of the service. Other clinical services are not recommended to be provided at the same time. This service works extremely well with those also involved in the juvenile justice system.

• Multisystemic Therapy (MST) - Over a period of 4 - 6 months, MST is delivered in homes, neighborhoods, schools and communities by master’s level professionals or experienced bachelor’s level professionals with low case loads. A crucial aspect of MST is its emphasis on promoting behavioral change in the youth’s natural environment.

• Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is a short term, evidence based therapy that works with families to increase the child’s pro-social behaviors and increase the parent’s behavior management skills while improving the quality of the parent/child relationship. This model targets children ages 2-7 who are exhibiting externalized disruptive behaviors (i.e. verbal and physical aggression, noncompliance, defiance, temper tantrums, and ADHD symptoms).

• Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) is a research based therapy model that supports children and their families in trauma related challenges. The goal of TF-CBT is to help address the bio-psychosocial needs of children, with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or other problems related to traumatic life experiences. TF-CBT is a model of psychotherapy that combines trauma-sensitive interventions with cognitive behavioral therapy. Children and parents are provided knowledge and skills related to processing the trauma; managing distressing thoughts, feelings, and behaviors; and enhancing safety, parenting skills, and family communication.

• Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is an evidenced based therapy model. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is a behavior therapy approach that effectively teaches how to better manage powerful emotions, urges and thoughts that seem to be too difficult for the teen to control under their regular ways of coping and dealing with day-to-day life. It is not a “process” based therapy in which change occurs through exploring feelings and thoughts leading to insight, but rather it is a skills based therapy in which skills are taught, learned, practiced and measured leading to changes in behavior.

• Therapeutic Foster Care (TFC) A specially trained foster care home with 24-hour supervision for children and adolescents with serious MH needs.

• Residential Treatment Facility (RTF) – Residential program that provides individual, group, family and milieu therapies.

• Inpatient - Psychiatric hospital stays for the acute stage of mental illness or behavioral difficulties. Inpatient stays are very short term, usually no longer than 10 days.

Case management Services

• Administrative Management - Short-term, office-based case management to assist in accessing needed services.

• Resource Coordination – (Usually) office-based case management that does not include a 24-hour on call system.

• Blended Case Management (BCM) – Case management services that include both intensive case management level and resource coordination level of service intensity. Children/families may move between levels according to need without changing their case manager. Intensive case management level includes a 24-hour on-call service. .

• Children's Review Team - This group assists with all referrals for RTF or TFC. They also provide case management for children while in placement and assistance with discharge planning. This group is located at Child and Family Focus.

LISTING of PROVIDERS

Full Service (Core) Providers

• Creative Health Services, Inc. (Spring City) One Mennonite Road Spring City PA 19475 (610) 948-6490; Children's Intake Specialist:  (610) 948-6490 ext. 1525

• Devereux Community Services: (Phoenixville) 1041 West Bridge Street Phoenixville PA; Children’s Intake Specialist: (610) 933-8110 ext: 2841

• Holcomb (Kennett Square) 920 E. Baltimore Pike Kennett Square 19348; Children's Intake Specialist: (610) 388-7400

• Child Guidance Resource Centers (Coatesville) 744 E. Lincoln Highway Suite 420 Coatesville PA 19320; Contact: Intake Specialist: (610) 383-5635 ext 3212

BHRS (Wrap-Around) Only Providers

• Network for Behavior Change (Exton) (610) 524-8701 ext. 160

• CCIU (Downingtown) (484) 237-5241

• Penn Psychiatric (Phoenixville) (610) 917-2200 for evaluations only (Collegeville) (610) 489-3340

• Devereux Whitlock (Berwyn) (610) 942-5900 or (610) 296-6800

• TW Ponessa (Exton) (610) 363-5500

Family-based Mental Health Services Providers

• Child and Family Focus (Phoenixville) (610) 783-1788 ext. 225 (Family-based and Family-based for children with autism)

• Northwestern Human Services Chester County Division (Kennett Square) (610) 444-1552 Contact: Tim Sosar (215) 442-1570 ext. 11 or Pete Demeester (Family Based)

• Creative Health Services, Inc. (Spring City) Contact Intake: (610) 948-6490 ext. 1521

• Devereux Community Services (Phoenixville) ontact Intake: (610) 933-8110

• Holcomb- (Exton & Kennett Square) Contact Intake: (610) 363-1488

• Warwick Family Services (Malvern) Contact Intake: (267) 210-6966

PCIT Providers

• Child Guidance Resource Centers: (Coatesville) Contact Intake: 610-383-5635 ext. 3212

• Devereux Community Services (Phoenixville) Contact: 610-933-8110

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Providers

• Devereux Community Services (Phoenixville) Contact Intake: 610-933-8110

Therapeutic Foster Care

• Child and Family Focus: (Kennett Square) Contact Intake: (484) 732-8459 ext. 40

Functional Family Therapy

• Vision Quest East Chester County (Downingtown) Contact Intake: (610) 486-2280 ext. 3217

Multisystemic Therapy

• Child Guidance Resource Centers – Contact : (484) 454-8700 ext.1404

Therapeutic Summer Activities Program

Child Guidance Resource Centers: Contact Intake: (484) 484-8700 ext. 1465

Advocates

Child and Family Focus

Audubon Office (610) 650-7750 Contact Supervisor: Paul Karaman

Ed McKenna

Kim Booz

Deb Willett (JPO Children)

Education Advocate at the ARC: (610) 696-8090 ext. 220 Contact: Jodi Dill

CCIU Parent Mentor (Downingtown) (484) 237-5123 Contact: Maryann Amici

Chester County Dept of MH/IDD: (610) 344-6265 or 1-800-692-1100 ext 6265

Contact Maureen Stryker (610) 344-5358 Strykerme@chesco.org

Life Counseling Services

491 John Young Way, Suite 300

Exton, PA 19341

610-644-6464

1-800-882-2799

www.lifecounseling.org

Human Services

520 E. Lancaster Ave.

Downingtown, PA 19335

610-873-1010

http://www.hsi-cmhs.com/

Child Guidance Resource Centers

744 Lincoln Hwy E #420

Coatesville, PA 19320

610-383-5635

https://cgrc.org/

Holcomb Behavioral Health

930 E. Lancaster Ave. Suite 220

Exton, PA 19341

610-363-1488

http://www.chimes.org/holcomb/

Child and Family Focus

Valley Forge Office Colony, Building 2

Suite 300 and 320

11 Davis Road

Valley Forge, PA 19481

Phone: (610) 783-1788