Outpatient Treatment Services
There are times in day-to-day family living when things go wrong. A child acts out, a parent loses control, or life's stresses become unbearable. During these times, Touchstone offers help. Treatment programs are available to children and their families to assist them through the difficult times when outside support is needed. The experienced, educated, and certified counselors, therapists, and psychiatrists who have come together to make up this professional team are trained to 'partner' with families in order to find solutions to the problems causing stress, discomfort, and anxiety.
Treatment services encompass home, school and office-based services as well as an out of home program for those unique times when a child's needs require treatment outside of the home. You may "QuickJump" to a subject by clicking on the subject names here, or scroll down and continue reading.
Direct Behavioral Health Services / Behavioral Health Aides » Autism » Brief Strategic Family Therapy » Functional Family Therapy » In-Home Outpatient Treatment » In-Office Outpatient Treatment » Intensive Outpatient Program (Partial Care) » Multisystemic Therapy » Multisystemic Therapy for Problem Sexual Behaviors » Respite Weekend Program » School Based Services » Treatment Homes » Become a Treatment Home Foster Parent
Direct Behavioral Health Services / Behavioral Health Aides
Our Behavioral Health Aides are skilled in providing direct services to our families either in the home or out in the community. Touchstone Behavioral Health prides itself on working together to achieve success, so with that, our Behavioral Health Aides work very closely with the Child and Family Team members. Our focus is to help the child and family with behavior coaching, living skills, parenting skills, in-home respite, and crisis intervention. We are very knowledgeable about resources in our community and can provide our families with the tools they need to become successful. (back to top)
Autism Program on Threshold
In August 2007, Touchstone Behavioral Health developed a team of individuals with the drive and interest in working with children on the autism spectrum and their families. This team currently holds monthly meetings to discuss and design new ways of helping these families. The team has developed a family centered approach that will provide services in the environment that best meets the needs of that family. All of Touchstone's services are strengths-based and individualized to achieve positive outcomes. Members of this team are currently trained and will receive future trainings on specific interventions for children on the spectrum to provide more consistent services and positive results. We also have consultation services from Joseph Gentry, Ph.D, BCBA from Gentry PBS to assist us in developing this program to its full potential.
As part of a plan of care, our family centered autism program can provide individual therapy, family therapy, behavior modification, case management, groups, and community resources. Touchstone anticipates having this program begin by July 2009 with a strong team of eager, energetic and dedicated individuals. This program is a new venture for Touchstone and we are looking forward to assisting our families with best practices, professional staff and a fun learning environment for children on the spectrum and their families. (back to top)
Brief Strategic Family Therapy
Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) has been shown to reduce drug use in adolescents and can be effective in dealing with other problematic behaviors in teens. BSFT has been implemented as a prevention, early intervention and intervention strategy for delinquent and substance-abusing youth. Benefits of BSFT:
Empowers families to foster healthy relationships with one another
Improves communication skills within the family
Helps parents regain authority and leadership
Aids in healing relationships with family members
Assists with conflict resolution
Teaches how to work together to parent a child (when two or more parents/caregivers are involved)
Lays the groundwork for healthy boundaries in families
Promotes positive behaviors in youth
Improves overall family functioning
Treatment is brief, generally 12-15 session (back to top)
Functional Family Therapy
As the lead provider in Arizona of the clinically proven, evidence based Blueprints Project, Touchstone Behavioral Health provides positive family strengthening resources to youth-at-risk and in-need. Functional Family Therapy is a short term intervention and targets youth ages 11 to 18 and their younger siblings. There is clear identification of specific intervention phases. These phases help organize therapy into a coherent manner. Each phase includes specific goals and assessments. A strong cognitive and behavioral component is integrated into systematic skill-training in family communication, parenting, and conflict management skills.
Our Functional Family Therapy program is one of 10 evidence based programs with documented positive results which are used as models for the nationally-recognized Blueprints for Violence Prevention Project. The Blueprints Project is a creation of the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV) at the University of Colorado. For more information on the Blueprints Project, click here for a link to their website.
Additionally, in an article appearing in the July/August 2003 issue of Monitor on Psychology, Tori DeAngelis discusses three of the four Blueprints Project programs available at Touchstone Behavioral Health, including Functional Family Therapy. (back to top)
In-Home Outpatient Treatment
Touchstone Behavioral Health knows that there are times when the therapeutic process must take place away from the office and in the home of the family being treated. Therapists make in-home visits to either enroll a family or to conduct programs such as the Blueprints' Functional Family Therapy and Family/Placement Preservation. (back to top)
In-Office Outpatient Treatment
Touchstone has three office locations for the convenience of our clients. The Glendale office at 61st Ave & Olive, the Phoenix office at Tatum & Shea, and the Mesa office at Dobson Road, just north of Baseline Road. All three offices have psychiatrists available to schedule appointments for such needs as psychiatric medication monitoring and psychiatric evaluations. Sessions with our experienced therapists for individual counseling, family counseling, or support groups are also available at all three locations. (back to top)
Intensive Outpatient Program (Partial Care)
This program provides services to children and adolescents who have special emotional and behavioral problems. During the school year Touchstone's Partial Care is an after-school program. During winter, spring, and summer breaks, full day programs are in place. An important component of this program is the mandatory bi-weekly Multi-Family meeting. (back to top)
Multisystemic Therapy
The major goal of Multisystemic Therapy is to empower parents with the skills and resources needed to independently address the difficulties that arise in raising teenagers, and to empower youth to cope with family, peer, school, and neighborhood problems. Within a context of support and skill building, the therapist places developmentally appropriate demands on the adolescent and family for responsible behavior. Intervention strategies are integrated into a social ecological context and include strategic family therapy, structural family therapy, behavioral parent training, and cognitive behavior therapies.
An article by Tori DeAngeles in the July/August 2003 issue of Monitor On Psychology features additional advantages of MultiSystemic Therapy. For additional information and research, please visit www.mstservices.com (back to top)
Multisystemic Therapy for Problem Sexual Behaviors
MST-PSB is a clinical adaptation of MST that has been specifically designed and developed to treat youth and their families for problematic sexual behavior. The MST-PSB model is a new innovation in the treatment world; previously there has not been an evidenced-based treatment protocol for youth with problem sexual behaviors. MST-PSB is delivered in the community, in client's homes, schools and neighborhoods, and has the primary goal of assisting the parents to maintain safety of the youth and the community. Extensive assessment and planning underlie the individualized treatment plan of each youth and family. Treatment typically includes intensive family therapy, parent training, cognitive-behavioral therapy, skills building school and other community system interventions and clarification.
For more information and research on the MST-PSB program, please visit www.mstpsb.com (back to top)
Respite Weekend Program (clients only, referral required)
NOTE: This program is available ONLY to Clients, with a Case Manager or Therapist Referral required.
The Respite Weekend Program (available to clients only) is a supervised (non-therapeutic) break time for families. The program is for youth ages 5 to 17 with mild to moderate behavioral health issues. Space is limited and a case manager or therapist referral is required. Availability is better on Sundays. Hours are Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Sunday 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Contact the Program Coordinator at (623) 930-8705. (back to top)
School Based Services
Touchstone Behavioral Health has developed informal and formal relationships with traditional and charter public schools over several decades to provide a variety of services. Many outpatient services such as crisis therapeutic support, group therapy and anger management can be provided on school campuses. Touchstone Behavioral Health is always ready to respond to the needs of local schools. (back to top)
Treatment Homes
The Treatment Homes program is a Treatment Foster Care model for children with behavioral issues who are a risk of being removed from their home and placed in a group home or other out-of-home treatment facility. These clients require a more structured environment to be successful in their treatment. Treatment Homes can also provide a place of transition for a child after leaving an out-of-home treatment facility.
Treatment homes give children a chance to be a part of a structured family setting to learn to better develop social skills, and to strive towards positive outcomes in their daily lives. The adolescent is taught how to interact in a family setting and at school with intensive supervision and consistent behavior modification. The levels of supervision and discipline are adjusted according to the level of progress.
Throughout the placement, the biological or adoptive family participates in the program (if applicable), if not appropriate, permanent placement setting is incorporated. The natural or adoptive parents have opportunities to practice skills during home visits and to improve their ability to provide a successful home environment once the youth returns home. (back to top)
Become a Treatment Home Foster Parent
Interested in becoming a Treatment Home Foster Parent in Touchstone's Treatment Home Program? Call (623) 930-8705 or click here to learn more details about the licensing process and how to become involved in this richly rewarding program. (back to top)