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As a part of the program, a range of therapeutic programming is provided, with continual integration with the milieu treatment that is the foundation of the program. These include:
Individual Counseling
Each student is assigned a primary counselor from the educateur (residential) staff, who provides formal counseling at least weekly. The work of counseling is focused on helping the student concretely plan ways to overcome personal barriers and achieve successfully in the program. Also assigned is one of the teachers as the student's academic advisor.
Group Therapy
Group therapy is provided as a part of the class schedule by two clinicians three times a week. In this group, students present personal issues, get feedback from group members, and discuss common issues with a view toward coping more successfully.
Community Meeting
This weekly meeting, is a community forum of staff and students to review their most serious behaviors and make plans to resolve them. This process is an important opportunity for students to make a commitment to the group and to themselves.
Coping Skills Learning
In this weekly class, student learn about identifying their reactions to challenging situations and developing a range of new, more positive alternatives for responding to these challenges.
Substance Abuse Group
For those students for whom substance abuse is an issue, a weekly substance abuse group at Castle is a required part of their program, in addition to at least weekly attendance at a young people's AA in the community. The Castle group focuses on identifying their histories, developing specific treatment plans and coping skills, and monitoring their on-going progress.
Family Therapy
Each student and family is assigned a Castle family therapist with whom they meet regularly. The family therapist is the hub of the team working with each child and the liaison to outside treatment providers Parents also attend a twice-monthly parent support group on visiting night.
Individual Psychotherapy
Weekly individual therapy is provided outside the program in the community, usually through the family's health insurance. This is a carefully thought out decision, designed to provide an experience in community support and a separate therapeutic relationship that can be "neutral ground" outside the intensity of residential treatment. We do insist on good communication with the therapist, given confidentiality guidelines, and their attendance at the periodic case conferences here as well.
We recommend the Cambridge Youth Guidance Center, a local children's clinic with whom we have a long-standing relationship, as a resource, but students may continue with therapy already in place, if logistically feasible. Various funding agreements for this component have been worked out, but it is important for everyone to be aware of the need to resolve this before placement.
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© 2006
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