The Christie School
While ChristieCare believes the best possible environment in which youth thrive and succeed is their own homes, schools and communities, we recognize residential care is sometimes required for those whose mental health challenges and personal safety call for a more intensive treatment setting.
The Christie School’s programs offer a wide range of residential services – all aimed at integrating family and community resources into treatment while preparing children for a successful and sustainable return to their communities. These programs all include medical, dietary, education, psychiatric and recreation components. Consistent with our Re–EDucation treatment philosophy, we believe ChristieCare services should be part of a child’s care only until the likelihood of success in the community is greater than the likelihood of failure.
Our programs are accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), which sets the standards by which healthcare quality is measured for hospitals and healthcare providers.
Assessment & Evaluation Services
This short–term program (14–30 days) determines the child’s current strengths and ongoing needs. Each child receives a comprehensive evaluation including medical, educational, psychosocial, recreational and psychiatric assessments. A psychological evaluation is completed when needed. Families and caregivers are involved in all assessment and treatment processes. Intensive care coordination is provided to support a safe and effective transition to the child’s home community. Individual, group and family therapy is provided using a Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) model, which is an Evidence Based Practice. The program may be customized to accommodate evaluations from 7–14 days or 30–90 days if needed.
Crisis & Planned Respite Services
This program offers families an effective alternative to a long–term out–of–home placement when their child’s behavior or other significant stress factors produce a crisis – or threat of a crisis – in the home. While the child is placed in a safe, supervised environment, ChristieCare’s clinical team and the child’s family work together to stabilize the home and reduce stress–invoking conditions. The program provides 24–hour access and is designed for children to be out of their homes no longer than 72 hours. It is not recommended for children requiring extensive or immediate medical attention, a comprehensive assessment or the creation of a long–term treatment plan.
Christie After Hours
This program offers short-term shelter care for children who have no other available placement in the system of care, and may possess a history of mental health or behavioral challenges. The ideal length of stay is four days or less, which can be extended up to an additional four days if necessary. During their stay, children are provided basic needs including food, clothing, shelter and 24-hour supervision to ensure their safety. For school-aged children, transportation is arranged to the child’s local school for classes and extracurricular activities. Program staff record behavioral observations and document information such as the eating habits, sleeping habits, hygiene and general functioning abilities of each child. This information is then used to help ensure the effective transition of children to longer-term placements.
ChristieCare provides After Hours care to children, ages 6-17, from Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties. Exceptions to the age range may be made to accommodate younger children in order to keeps sibling groups intact.
Psychiatric Residential Treatment Services
Residential Treatment
This program provides intensive treatment to children requiring a 24–hour therapeutic setting to address and treat their behavioral and mental health needs. Like all ChristieCare services, it takes a strength–based, ecological (or systemic) approach. We focus our work with children and their families in the context of their daily lives, including their natural supports – such as spiritual leaders, educational resources and community members. Residential Treatment staff target their efforts on returning children to their homes or other stable and less restrictive environments as soon as possible. As a vital component of this program, children are integrated into the community through volunteer service and, for some, vocational and work experiences.
Secure Residential Treatment
This program provides a more intensive, secure therapeutic setting for children at risk of self–harm behaviors or other factors that threaten their safety. These children and their families receive a full range of intensive psychiatric and therapeutic services tailored to meet their needs. A strength–based individualized plan is created in collaboration with the child, family and community supports, and is designed to build skills and provide children the opportunity for successful community–based experiences. Although the program serves children with more acute needs than those in Residential Treatment, all efforts are similarly targeted at returning children to their homes or other stable and less restrictive environments as soon as possible. This program features contained school rooms and 24-hour awake staff, all of whom are professionally trained in a systematic approach of intervention and control when a child is in crisis.
Stabilization & Transition Services
These intensive psychiatric services are provided in a secure setting for children with more acute safety needs, who may require one–on–one staffing, additional medical support, or other individualized support.
Sub–acute Care
This program provides an alternative to hospitalization for children who are not in the most acute phase of psychiatric need, but require a higher level of care than the residential treatment setting offers. Subacute Care focuses on stabilization of the child over a short period (7–14 days), allowing a smooth transition to a lower level of care.
By preventing psychiatric hospitalization, this program is consistent with ChristieCare’s belief that children’s needs should be met in the least restrictive setting possible, with the ultimate goal of preparing them for a successful and sustainable return to their homes and communities.