Family Support Team Program

Program Description

Family Support Teams (FST) have been specifically utilized for family stabilization when youth are at serious risk of out-of-home placement due to the emotional disturbance of youth and lesser restrictive therapeutic interventions have been tried and shown inadequate or ineffective; OR, when a youth is transitioning home from a higher level of care and the family is identified as needing an intensive intervention to assist with the transition for success of the youth and family as he/she returns home.

The goal of this program is to maintain a therapeutic living environment for emotionally disturbed youth within their family setting. Family Support Teams can occur in natural, adoptive, or foster homes. We believe that the home is a rich environment in which families can maximize therapeutic interventions, and we strive to utilize this strength.
The FST program is a short-term intervention, driven by an individualized treatment plan developed by the youth’s clinical treatment team consisting of the client, guardian, and any persons significant in the mental health treatment of the client. Our staff conduct at least weekly home visits with the parents/guardians to identify and develop strengths in parenting skills, provide face-to-face assessment and family therapy and, in addition to bi-monthly visits with the youth, to strengthen skills and address mental health issues.

Youth Dynamics, Inc. offers a community-based, least intrusive/least restrictive in-home support service, along with crisis intervention and referrals for higher levels of care such as out-of-home placements when deemed necessary by the youth’s treatment team.

Program Benefits

Family Support Teams focus exclusively on the family in which the youth resides or to which the youth recently returned to from a higher level of care. Typically, other mental health services identify and address the issues of the client. In FSTs, although the client is still the youth, the youth’s issues are approached through teaching and supporting the caregiver in how to best parent the youth. FSTs provide education to caregivers to address the youth’s behaviors throughout their entire lives, not just for today or while they are in a specific placement.

Suggested Uses

• Resource and Referral/Recommendations for Intake workers working with youth in natural/kinship/adoptive families determined to be at risk and in need of prevention services, or requests for post adoption service referrals for youth with Serious Emotional and Behavioral Dysfunction.

• Therapeutic intervention services provided for youth in natural/kinship/foster/adoptive family placements.

• Therapeutic intervention services provided to facilitate and support Family Reunification.

• Aftercare services provided for youth stepping down from more intensive therapeutic levels of care.

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