The Atlantic County Children's Inter-Agency Coordinating Council (CIACC) and Join Together Atlantic County (JTAC) hosted a series of virtual community presentations to raise awareness about unknown or overlooked services for Atlantic County’s children, youth and adolescents.
Even before the global pandemic, the 2019 New Jersey School Board Association’s Task Force on Mental Health Services in Public Schools called for expanded efforts to address the emotional well-being of the state’s young people. The changes in social behavior brought on by the pandemic has impacted youth and generated even more concern. In addition to schools, families and employers can also benefit from understanding the variety of the programs and services available in the County.
Session 1 - Overview of the NJ Children’s System of Care set of services: PerformCare, Care Management, Children’s Crisis Mobile Response and Stabilization, and the Family Support Organization
Session 2 - Youth Outpatient Community Mental Health: This presentation will provide information on connecting youth and families to mental health services in their communities. Atlantic County has more outpatients services agencies now than in the last 10 years plus a number of therapists practicing independently. Learn how to access these services, what types of therapists are available, how youth can get connected to outpatient therapists through PerformCare, the Children's System of Care and through commercial or public insurance.
Session 3 - Youth Employment and Career Training: Students often don’t have any idea what type of work environment they ultimately want and summer jobs can help them to keep their eyes open to different professions and work environments. Some students may have disenrolled or graduated but could benefit from services to support skills and career choices. Learn about programs that help prepare youth for their futures, explore career interests, and build work-related skills while supplementing income. Programs may help to develop valuable skills like responsibility, punctuality, following directions, getting along with others, establishing a good work ethic, and managing money. Specific programs may also lead to special training certificates
Session 4 - Psychiatric Intervention Program/PIP: Parents, caregivers and school staff sometimes become concerned that there is a crisis and that a child, youth, adolescent or young adult’s statements, actions or demeanor raises concerns about the safety of the young person or of others. The designated screening center for Atlantic County is part of the Emergency Room at the AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center City Campus in Atlantic City. Professionals from the Psychiatric Intervention Program/PIP at this site in Atlantic City will outline what parents and caregivers who accompany the young person can expect as they go through the evaluation processes for both the emergency room and PIP to determine if the young person needs to be hospitalized or referred to outpatient mental health services in the community.
Session 5 - Juvenile Family Crisis Intervention Program: Families who are experiencing serious difficulties in managing the behavior of children 10-17 years old for whom they are responsible can seek assistance through the Atlantic County Juvenile/Family Crisis Intervention Unit (FCIU). FCIU is a legally mandated program that is available 24-hours to intercede in family conflicts and help strengthen the family unit. Its services include short-term crisis stabilization, family assessment, case management, treatment planning and referrals to appropriate community-based services.
Session 6 - Family Success Centers: Family Success Centers are community-based neighborhood gathering places that offer families and individuals convenient access to information, support and resources that help develop and maximize their strength and potential. In Atlantic County, there are five (5) of these “one-stop” shops that provide wrap-around resources and supports for families before they find themselves in crisis. Family Success Centers bring together concerned community residents, leaders, and community agencies to address the problems that threaten the safety and stability of families and the community. There is no cost to access services provided by Family Success Centers (FSCs).
PerformCare Frequently Asked Questions
https://www.performcarenj.org/families/fees-commercial-insurance-faqs.aspx
https://www.performcarenj.org/families/fees-commercial-insurance-faqs.aspx