Counseling and mental health support
Therapy that comes to you.
Mental health care for children and young adults from birth to 21, from licensed clinicians and coaches who meet your child at home, at school and in the community, in your language.
What’s included
Six services. Plain names first.
Together these make up Children and Family Treatment and Support Services (CFTSS), a New York State Medicaid program for children and young adults under 21. The official name is beside each one, for the professionals who need it.
Counseling and evaluation
Official name: Other Licensed Practitioner (OLP)
Delivered by: Licensed clinicians: LCSW, LMHC, LMFT, psychologist
The front door. At our center, a licensed clinician meets your child, does a clinical assessment, and plans treatment with you. Individual, family or group therapy follows, at home or in the community. This clinician can recommend the other services.
Practical support for daily life
Official name: Community Psychiatric Supports and Treatment (CPST)
Delivered by: Master’s-level practitioners
Goal-directed support for children and families dealing with emotional or behavioral challenges: coping strategies, stronger relationships, managing symptoms, and getting through the day at home and in the community.
Skill-building coaching
Official name: Psychosocial Rehabilitation (PSR)
Delivered by: Skills coaches
Practicing the skills of daily life, in the places they are needed: communication, getting along with others, handling big feelings, solving problems, staying organized, and age-appropriate independence.
Parent-to-parent support
Official name: Family Peer Support Services (FPSS)
Delivered by: Credentialed Family Peer Advocates
A parent who has navigated the same systems supports you: information, advocacy, encouragement, skill-building and connections to resources. More on parent-to-parent support.
Youth peer mentor
Official name: Youth Peer Support and Training (YPST)
Delivered by: Credentialed Youth Peer Advocates, ages 18 to 30
A young adult with relevant lived experience helps a teen or young adult build self-advocacy, communication, confidence, decision-making and the skills to work toward their own goals.
Crisis support
Official name: Crisis Intervention
Delivered by: On-call licensed social worker, 24/7
Short-term help when a crisis is happening now: calming the situation, handling what is urgent, and connecting the family with follow-up. A licensed social worker is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Crisis details and emergency numbers.
At a glance
Where, when and who.
Where
Home, school, community
Most sessions happen in your home. With your permission we also work at your child’s school, and out in the neighborhood where skills get used.
When
Around your family’s day
Daytime, after-school and evening hours, with evening sessions from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Sessions are scheduled with you, not assigned to you.
Who
A team that speaks your language
Licensed clinicians (LCSW, LMHC, LMFT), master’s-level practitioners, skills coaches, and credentialed Family and Youth Peer Advocates. We speak Yiddish, English, Spanish and more.
How it works
Five steps, and we walk them with you.
- 1
You reach out
A form or a call. That’s it. Anyone can reach out for a child with a parent’s consent: you, a school, a pediatrician, a care manager.
- 2
A licensed clinician meets your child
At our center, at a time that works for you. This is intake and the first evaluation: they listen, meet your child, and get to know your family. A signed recommendation from an outside clinician can speed things up, and you can start without one.
- 3
A plan is written with you
Which services, how often, and what you are working toward. You are in the room for every decision.
- 4
We notify your insurance plan
Medicaid managed care plans each have their own steps. We handle them for you. Typically the first session is three to five business days after your first call.
- 5
Support begins where you are
At home, at school, around the neighborhood. We check in, adjust, and stay as long as it helps.
For professionals: four of the six services need a written, signed recommendation from a licensed practitioner (an LPHA). Our own clinician can provide it after the first evaluation, so a family never has to chase paperwork before getting help. Details for referrers.
Also available
ABA therapy, separately.
Applied Behavior Analysis is a separate program from CFTSS, with its own eligibility and insurance steps. It builds everyday skills through individual, evidence-based strategies, delivered by a licensed behavior analyst.
Tell us a little about what’s going on.
We’ll call you back within one business day, in your language, and figure out the next step together.
No cost to your family with insurance. We accept New York State Medicaid, MVP, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan and most private insurance, and we check your coverage for you. No coverage yet? We’ll help you apply.