What are Respite Care Services?

Respite Care Services gives temporary relief to families that are providing day-to-day care to children ages 7-17 that have a Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED). The family may receive an allotment of funds that can be used to enroll their child in an after school program, to register their child for summer camp or day camp, and/or for their child to attend an enrichment class. The amount of respite funds for each family depends on the individual needs of each family as well as the annual program budget. When funds are limited, a list of criteria is used to prioritize individuals who are assessed to have the highest care needs. Respite services include assessment, treatment planning, information on respite opportunities and actual respite funds.

How does Respite Care Services help a family?

Respite Care Services gives families a break from the intense care needs of their child/children. It gives parents and guardians the opportunity to relax, nurture other marital, family or social relationships, and to attend to business outside the home. Respite may not be used to engage in outside employment. By supporting the family we help them continue to care for their child at home

Outpatient Therapy and Clinical Specialist Services are technically the same service – they are just known to different people by different names.

What are Outpatient Therapy/Clinical Specialist Services?

Outpatient Therapy uses a talk therapy approach to help children with a serious emotional disturbance or developmental disability focus on improving their emotional, mental, and social functioning. Services are provided on a one-on-one basis. Outpatient therapy may include the following services: Individual and Family Therapy, Assistance with accessing community resources, Advocacy, and Crisis Intervention.

Services may be provided in the person’s home or at the clinic. The frequency of contact is based on the needs of the individual and/or family. Services begin with a complete assessment of the individual and/or family including presenting problem, reason for requesting services, past treatment, family history, etc.

How do Outpatient Therapy Services help an individual?

A person-centered treatment approach is used to help identify an individual’s strengths, dreams, goals and desires. In this confidential environment, the individual is encouraged to share feelings and experiences with his or her mental health professional. Treatment is focused on helping individual maximize their independence, cope with their illness and/or other life situation, increase their daily living skills, improve their communication, problem solving and coping skills, become involved with community resources and to above all improve their overall quality of life.

How to access Outpatient Therapy Services?

If the individual is involved with Case Management or Supports Coordination services they should discuss the possibility of a referral with their mental health worker. If the Case Manager or Supports Coordinator agrees that a referral to Outpatient Therapy/Clinical Specialist services is appropriate, they will then make the referral directly.

Infant Mental Health Services provide mental health treatment to families with young Children Age Birth to 5 to help prevent the development of mental health issues in infants and toddlers. The focus of this home based program is to provide services that will maximize the social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development of the infant and toddler. Nurturing the attachment between the parent and the child is a key component.

Services include: Individual and Family Therapy, Parent-Child Psychotherapy, Case Management, Education on Child Development, Parenting Strategies, Strategies to handle common childhood problems and access to a psychiatrist for medication to treat mental health conditions when appropriate.

What is Juvenile Detention Diversion?

The Juvenile Detention Diversion Program provides services to youth with a serious emotional disturbance and or a developmental disability that have court involvement. The Juvenile Detention Diversion Coordinator is available for mental health and risk assessment screenings, consultation, and meeting with individuals involved with the court system as needed or when requested. The Juvenile Detention Diversion Coordinator provides technical assistance, consultation, and training related to mental health issues to juvenile home employees, probate court staff and others.

How does the Juvenile Detention Diversion Program help youth and families?

All families that have a youth involved with the court can request a screening. Based on the results of the MAYSI-2 screening tool the Juvenile Detention Diversion Coordinator links the child and their family to appropriate community resources. The coordinator also provides some of those families with Brief Strategic Family Therapy. A primary goal of the program is to divert children with a severe emotional disturbance or a developmental disability from placement in a secure detention facility into appropriate services and treatment programs. Such programs may include outpatient therapy, case management, psychiatric services, substance abuse treatment, anger management, social skills training or self-esteem groups and educational or vocational services.

What are Home-Based Services?

Home-Based Services help children and families with a child between the ages of 3-17) that have many needs, and who require access to a comprehensive array of mental health services. The family unit is the focus of intensive, in-home treatment, which can include individual and family therapy, collateral contacts, case management, parenting education, child and family skill building, psychiatric services, coordination with the school system and crisis intervention. Frequency of contact and intensity of service is based on the individual needs of each individual and family but at a minimum, the therapist will see the individual/family once per week.

How do Home Based-Services help an individual?

A Home Based Clinical Specialist helps the child and family increase their interpersonal functioning, their functioning within the school and community and their overall quality of life. A family-centered treatment approach is used to help identify strengths, dreams, goals and desires. The program is committed to helping family’s access community resources and to advocate for responsiveness from the community systems which impact the family’s ability to function.

Bay-Arenac Behavioral Health offers a variety of groups for children, adolescents and parents. Groups often meet for six-to-eight weeks at the Bay-Arenac Behavioral Health Children’s Clinic. Groups are led by professional mental health staff using established curriculum. Groups are free to those with Medicaid. Persons without Medicaid are assessed a fee based on a sliding scale according to their income.

What groups are offered?

Groups for youth are typically based on age such as elementary, middle or high school.

Groups offered throughout the year may include the following: Anger Management and Conflict Resolution; Social Skills Groups; Parenting Angry and Defiant Children ; Sibshops ( a group for youth that have a sibling with a special need)

What is Respite Care Services?

Respite Care Services gives temporary relief to families that are providing day-to-day care to adults and children that have a Developmental Disability. The family receives an annual allotment of funds that they can use to hire someone to care for their child, to register their child for summer camp or day camp. The amount of respite funds for each family depends on the individual needs of each family as well as the annual program budget. When funds are limited, a list of criteria is used to prioritize individuals who are assessed to have the highest care needs. Respite services include assessment, treatment planning, information on respite opportunities and actual respite funds.

How does Respite Care Services help a family?

Respite Care Services gives families a break from the intense care needs of their child/children. It gives parents and guardians the opportunity to relax, nurture other marital, family or social relationships, and to attend to business outside the home. Respite may not be used as daycare to engage in outside employment. By supporting the family we help them continue to care for their child at home.

Consumer Packet

Provider Packet

Respite Invoices

What is the Family Support Program?

The Family Support Program helps families that have a child or adult child who has been diagnosed with a developmental disability and who is residing in the family home. Services are geared toward maintaining the child/adult child in the family home and helping them to function well at home, school and the community. The Family Support Program provides the following services: Individual, Group, and Family Therapy, Case Coordination, Access to Psychiatric and Medication Services, Respite Services, Life Skills and Parent Skills Training, Family Support Subsidy

How do Family Support Services help an individual or family?

In most cases, the healthiest option for families who have children with developmental disabilities is to keep them living in the family home. The family may be headed by a natural parent, adoptive parent, or legal guardian. Services are based on each family’s specific needs. Services may include:

Family Support Subsidy – Can help you successfully maintain your child in your home by financially subsidizing some of the additional expenses required in caring for your child. Children must be certified by the school district as severely mentally impaired (SMI), severely multiply impaired (SXI), or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and be under the age of 18. The student with Autism Spectrum Disorder must also be in a school program designated as a ASD program.

Family Skills Development: Education and counseling for families who are caring for and/or are living with a family member who has a developmental disability.

Respite Care Services: Provides families with temporary relief from caring for their developmentally disabled child or family member.

Families entering into any children’s program at Bay-Arenac Behavioral Health are involved in a thorough clinical assessment to identify current concerns, obtain background and previous treatment information, identify and assign a diagnosis, and to make treatment recommendations. Following the assessment, a Family Centered Plan is developed with the family and a referral is then made to the appropriate treatment program which may include any of the following services: Infant Mental Health, Home Based Services, Children’s Case Management, and/or Psychiatric and Medication Services

What are Children’s Waiver Services?

Children’s Waiver Services provide support to a family whose child may be at risk for placement out of the home because of extremely severe behavioral challenges or serious medical conditions requiring daily in home skilled nursing services. Children’s Waiver Services are generally provided within the home, or in a community setting. They can vary in intensity based on the needs of each individual child and family.

Children who have been diagnosed with a developmental disability, and who have multiple service needs, may be eligible for Children’s Waiver Services. They must be under the age of 18 and live in either Bay County or Arenac County. Children will be pre-screened for services locally. Priority to receive services is determined by the Clinical Review Team and the Department of Community Health at the state level. There are a limited number of Children’s Waiver slots in the state so families are prioritized based on need and there are sometimes waiting lists to receive waiver services.

How do Children’s Waiver Services help a family?

In most cases, the healthiest option for families who have children with developmental disabilities is to keep them living in the family home. (A family may be headed by a natural parent, adoptive parent, or legal guardian.) A Supports Coordinator can help the child – and the family – find the support they need to maintain this living arrangement. A person-centered planning approach is used to help identify an individual’s strengths, dreams, goals and desires. Services provided may include professional assessment and treatment monitoring, behavior management, support coordination, therapy for the child and family, crisis intervention, respite care, enhanced health services, skilled nursing care, behavioral aids, medication administration and review, and therapy in occupational, physical, speech, hearing, and language areas. Services are based on the individual needs of each child/family.

What is Children’s Case Management?

Children’s Case Management Services are for children ages birth through 17 years (and their families) who have a serious emotional disturbance. The Services includes assessment, treatment planning, advocacy, linking and coordinating with community services and monitoring of services.  Case Management helps people gain access to needed community services and resources in the areas of basic needs, education, health care, financial, social and/or recreational. The service helps individuals and families coordinate resources when they are involved with multiple agencies and/or programs. Services assist individuals and families coordinate with the psychiatrist when they are receiving medication services for a mental health condition. Children’s Case Management also provides supportive services such as social skills training, parent education, help learning new coping skills, supportive counseling, and crisis intervention,

Children’s Case Management Services are typically provided within the family home and in other community settings. Frequency of contact depends on the needs of each individual child and family.

How do Case Management Services help an individual?

Case Management helps people connect with services that they need to be healthy, to meet their basic needs, to be part of their community and to manage their mental health condition. A Family Centered Planning approach is used to help identify the family’s strengths, dreams, goals and desires.