Understanding the Need for Adolescent Residential Care

When we talk about Adolescent Residential Care, we are dealing with a large age group comprising children between the age of 10 to 19 years and some programs even include young adults aged 20 to 24- this implies 21 percent of the population of the United States. It becomes imperative for parents to pay special attention to the mental and physical health of young folks at this age because children exhibit varied behavioral patterns and emotional swings during this time. In fact, the behavioral patterns established during this developmental phase also have an impact on the health status of the adolescents. Several studies have established that major social problems and issues concerning public health start during these years of a person’s life.

Due to peer pressure, worries related to studies and socializing challenges, some adolescents are at risk of committing homicide, suicide, DUI, substance use and abuse, unplanned pregnancies and may even become prone to sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. A lot of contextual and surrounding influences also determine the social behavior and mental fitness of adolescents. Ensuring positive developmental environment for teenagers and adolescents is essential for them adopting healthy behavior and developing into productive adults in the future. 

Emerging Issues in Adolescent Health

Since, adolescence is a transitional period comprising the changes of puberty and increasing independence, the young ones often become prone to substance abuse or alcohol addiction. With ethnic diversity increasing with the growing number of Hispanic and Asian American youth, cultural responsiveness to health care has become important. Secondly, to prevent behavioral risk patterns among adolescents positive youth development interventions are required. This includes providing the youth support regarding relationships, resources and opportunities. It has been observed that the leading causes of illness and death among adolescents are largely preventable if proper attention is paid. This is where the role of Adolescent ResidentialCare comes into play.

How Adolescent Residential Care Programs Can Help?

Many behavioral health centers are providing comprehensive diagnostic assessment and intensive adolescent treatment programs to youth in the age bracket of 11 to 17 years. This is effective for both mental health and addiction related issues. The focus is on building life skills, formulating a recovery plan, family education and their participation in the treatment process. Anxiety issues, substance abuse and relapse prevention are dealt with in behavioral therapy and group sessions. Spiritual enrichment and fitness activities are incorporated into the daily schedule. 

The first step, of course is comprehensive diagnosis to understand the problem an individual is dealing with. Then a whole set of treatment comprising psychiatric care, dialectical behavior therapy, therapeutic recreation and educational treatment is decided for the patient. Outdoor programs are designed to provide adolescents a holistic approach towards recovery. Family counselling sessions are conducted in order to let the family members assist in the recovery process and improve family bonds as well. Evidence based programs also form part of the Adolescent Residential Care services, formulated to deal with anger management issues.

In order to meet with the educational needs of adolescents, classes are conducted in self-contained classrooms. Some of the residential service providers even provide assistance for GED and ACT preparation to adolescents of minimum 17 years of age for their higher education needs. Quapaw House, Inc. is a licensed provider of Adolescent Residential Care offering a holistic program comprising recreational therapy, residential treatment and education programs. We recommend logging on to http://quapawhouseinc.org/programs/adolescent-residential-services for complete details.

Summary- Adolescent Residential Care Programs are designed to help young adults deal with and recover from substance abuse and other behavioral imbalances. The focus is on developing self-management skills and leadership capabilities in a positive peer culture.