Casa Pacifica - Clinical Services

Clinical services are fully integrated into all of Casa Pacifica's campus based programs - residential treatment, crisis care (emergency shelter) and educational (including day school) services. Ten licensed or license eligible psychologists, five doctoral student psychology interns, a board certified child and adolescent psychiatrist, a team of therapeutic activities specialists and behavior specialists comprise the on-campus clinical team.

Clinical services which are funded through contracts with County Mental Health Departments include:

• a day rehabilitation program

• psychological and social/emotional assessments

• mental health services including individual, group and family therapy

• case management

• medication support (assessment of the need for medication and administration of meds

• crisis intervention

Also included on the clinical team are two "parent partners" - parents with a child in "the system" who have significant consumer experience and, because of that experience, can act as a liaison between the clinical staff and the families of children receiving services. At every possible opportunity Casa Pacifica includes families in treatment planning and delivery and attempts to build on family strengths. Services to families include frequent "family nights," family therapy, parent participation in cottage life, and parent and sibling support groups.

The focus in all of our programs is on helping children/youth gain personal competence and confidence with a strong emphasis on teaching skills - cognitive and social - that help develop personal effectiveness. The philosophical underpinnings of our treatment approach include (a) strength-based, (b) resilience, (c) family involvement and family focus, (d) values driven, (e) social learning, and (f) cognitive behavioral methods.

A formal psychology internship and post doctoral fellowship program are offered by the clinical department. These training programs are designed to provide supervised clinical and research experience to professionals entering the field. For further information contact Dr. Myra Saltoun at 805-484-7120 or e-mail her at msaltoun@casapacifica.org .