Family Support Services
1. Wraparound Facilitation:
Rocky Mountain Youth Resources provides High Fidelity Wraparound Facilitation and Family Support Services as a part of the State of Montana Children’s Mental Health Bureau’s PRTF (psychiatric residential treatment facility) Waiver program.
The goal of High Fidelity Wraparound Facilitation is to provide home and community-based services as an alternative for youth who meet criteria for Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility level of care, using a community-based Wraparound service delivery model. The High Fidelity Wraparound model is:
• Family Driven • Team Based • Community Based • Strengths Based
• Individualized • Culturally Competent …and built on… • Communication
• Collaboration • Natural Family Supports • Partnerships
High Fidelity Wraparound Facilitation provides unconditional care. When things do not go well, the child and family aren’t “kicked out," but rather, the individual services and supports are changed. The team ties the goals of the Wraparound plan to measurable indicators of success, monitors progress in terms of these indicators, and revises the plan accordingly.
Requirements
- Youth and family must choose to be in the program.
- Youth must have a SED, a Serious Emotional Disturbance Diagnosis.
- Youth must be Medicaid eligible.
- Youth must meet criteria for PRTF (psychiatric residential treatment facility level of care).
- The youth’s parent or guardian must commit to supporting and participating in the Waiver.
- Youth must reside in a community where services are available.
- Youth must live in a stable, safe, and consistent environment.
- Services must not cost more than services would in a PRTF.
- Youth have to be between the ages of 6 and 18.
2. Family Support Services
Family Support Services are a component of the State of Montana Children’s Mental Health Bureau’s PRTF Waiver program.
The goal of Family Support Services is to work directly with the Wraparound Facilitator, to provide direct support for the family and to connect families with other families who experience similar challenges or to other useful community resources.
A Family Support Services Specialist is often someone who:
- Is a primary caregiver for a child with a severe emotional challenge
- Has graduated from the Wraparound program
- Provides direct support to families or young adults especially those without their own support networks
- Emphasizes and advocates for and with the family
- Supports the family to have the competencies necessary for self-efficiency
- Helps carry out significant aspects of the Wraparound plan
- Knows all facilitation roles but rarely provides that service
The seven primary roles of the Family Support Specialist are:
- The FSS models effective personal interventions and behavior.
- The FSS advocates for and supports families to identify their own strengths, needs, culture and vision and gets these needs met.
- The FSS shares his or her own experiences to build relationships with help families be successful in wraparound.
- The FSS mentors families to improve their confidence and ability to advocate for and effectively manage the services and supports for their own family.
- The FSS supports development, reconnection and strengthening of natural supports for families.
- The FSS partners with the Wraparound staff to provide a high fidelity wraparound process.
- The FSS supports development of Family to Family supports.
4. Peer-to-Peer Support
Peer-to-Peer Support specialists offer and promote support to the parent or guardian of the youth in the Wraparound program. The services are geared toward promoting self-empowerment of the parent, enchancing community living skills and development natural supports. These services include:
- Supporting parents to make informed, independent choices in order to develop a network for information and support from others.
- Coaching parents in developing systems advocacy skills in order to take a proactive role in their youth's treatment and to obain information and advocate with the school system.
- Assisting parents in developing supports including formal and informal community supports.
Caregiver Peer-to-Peer support services are provided by a qualified person who meets the following guidelines:
- A family member of a youth with SED that have received services in the children's mental health system.
- Experience in direct day-to-day care of a youth SED.
- Knowledge of the children's mental health system and other applicaticable community resources.
- Training in Wraparound facilitation.
5. Support Group Meetings
Parent/Guardian Information Support Meetings
Every month parents and guardians meed to provide support to one another, learn about services, give input and identify services needed for their families.
Meetings are ordinarily held on the third Thursday of every month in the Neighborhood Center Dining Room (200 S. Cruse) at 6:00 pm.
High School Youth Support Group Meetings
Youth also meet monthly to provide support to each other, discuss the stigma around the issue of mental illness, and identify ways to raise awareness in the community.
These meetings are ordinarily held on the htird Thursday of every month in the Neighborhood Center (200 S. Cruse) at 6:00 pm.
For additional information about any RMYR Family Support Services call (406) 449-3038.
