Brightside for Families and Children

When a family is in turmoil, or when a child is in crisis or has school or behavioral difficulties, Brightside's team of trained professionals is ready to help. When a parent or treatment provider needs the right help for a severely troubled child, or when a family or a child needs services to support transition from a hospital or other setting,  Brightside offers expert Family Support Services which includes:  Family Stabilization Team, Community Support Programs, CBHI In-Home Therapy and Therapeutic Mentoring, as well as specialized assessments such as neuropsychological evaluations and other testing. 

What Families and Referring Agents Say About Brightside

"The whole experience with FST was a very special one - you helped me to find myself and showed me how to handle situations that before I found too difficult to deal with.  You have touched this family in ways you can't imagine.  You will not be forgotten.  I will carry you in my heart forever...  You will always be thought of as friends sent from heaven." 

"Your upfront and professional manner was very reassuring to me and I immediately sensed you had been trough similar, probably far more severe, situations.  You in no way discounted our case and you immediately related to us as a regular "family"."

"I am compelled to write this letter to tell you how extraordinary our (FST workers) have been...They have been able to accomodate so quickly to our needs...we are all in a much stronger place than when we started four months ago.  We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but I feel so blessed that we have had this time with (the FST workers) - they have touched our family in a beautiful way and forever changed and strengthened our lives."

"I would really like to thank you for making our Christmas a very special one.  You can't imiagine what that did for all of us..."

Brightside Offers Neuropsychological Assessments and Diagnostic Evaluations

Brightside is now able to conduct neuropsychological and other assessments as part of services offered to the community.   Dr. Robert Ferguson has expertise in evaluating brain function in neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders of childhood.  Neuropsychological assessments help to clarify diagnosis and provide recommendations about treatment and intervention.  Evaluations include assessment of Attention, Memory, Language, Visuo-spatial, and Executive functions.  Comprehensive evaluations may include assessment of general cognitive ability, academic achievement, and activities of daily living.  Dr. Ferguson can also perform projective and other personality assessments when indicated.  As part of the Brightside professional training program, doctoral level psychology students may perform some of the test administration under supervision.

Save the Date

Please Save-the-Date for the 30th Anniversary of the Brightside Golf Classic - Monday, July 19, 2010. The Brightside Golf Classic supports the programs and services of Brightside for Families and Children, as well as provides an excellent opportunity for business networking and promotion.  Please join this year's co-chairs, Paul Accorsi, Senior Vice President and Regional Director of Massachusetts Operations for New Alliance Bank and Paul Scully, President for Country Bank, for another great tournament. 
For more about Golf call (413) 748-9997, or click on Events, above.

Brightside In-Home Counseling

The call came... "I don't know what to do and I'm afraid that I may hurt my child."  Forty clinicians and behavioral specialists from Brightside visit with families desperate for assistance.  Over 400 families have asked for help this year and are seeking guidance in navigating through troubled waters, afraid that their child may not be able to remain in their home.  Caring members of the Brightside team are in their homes right now helping them sort out complicated family problems.
Brightside Family Support Services - there every step of the way... A transforming, healing presence within our community.

Brightside 20th Annual Toy Run Draws Over 4000 Motorcyclists

More than 4000 riders and their motorcycles from all over New England filled the Wal-Mart parking lot in Chicopee on a recent Sunday morning before lining up and riding in formation along their traditional route through South Hadley, Holyoke, and West Springfield and arriving at the Brightside Campus.  The riders, with several dressed as Santa, delivered gifts, gift cards, and cash donations for the children and families served by Brightside.  The growing roar of the motorcycles could be heard for miles, and the children thoroughly enjoyed walking amongst and examining all the parked bikes.  We at Brightside are honored and greatly appreciate this outpouring of support from the community.  Please join us for our 21st annual Toy Run next year.  For more information, please call Deidre Treanor at (413) 748-9997 or call Hog Wild Cycles at (413) 737-9543.

  

2009 Angel Campaign

The 2009 Brightside Angel Campaign was once a again a huge success thanks to the efforts of its many sponsors and volunteers, as well as the community members who purchase items and donate every year!  Now 25 years in existence, the Angel Campaign sells Brightside Angel Works decorations and collectibles at multiple locations (including the Holyoke Mall at Ingleside and Mercy Medical Center) during the Christmas season to raise funds that benefit the programs and services of Brightside.  Each year, our success is due to the generosity of business sponsors, parishes and churches, individuals and hundreds of helpful volunteers.  This year the Angel Campaign raised over $103,000.00 to help support the services at Brightside.  Thank you for making a difference in the lives of families and children in our community.  Please look under the "Events" section of the web site for more details.  Interested in being part of next year's campaign by being a sponsor or volunteering? Please call Deidre Treanor at (413) 748-9997 or contact deidre.treanor@sphs.com.

Brightside Family Support Services

Brightside provides a variety of skilled treatment services through it Family Support Services Program. 

In-Home Therapy
develops a structured, strength-based, therapeutic relationship between a Master and/or Bachelor level clinician and the family for the purpose of treating the youth's behavioral health needs.  Emphasis is placed upon improving the family's ability to provide effective support for the youth and promote healthy functioning within the family.  Interventions are designed to enhance the family's capacity to support the youth in the home and community, and may prevent the need for out-of-home placements in hospitals, residential programs, or foster care.  In-Home Therapy offers a combination of therapy as well as training and support, and is provided by one or more members of a team that includes a clinician and an outreach worker.  It is available to the youth and family as long as the service is medically necessary.  Bilingual Spanish speaking staff are available.  Eligibility:  Youth under 21 with a serious emotional/behavioral disturbance and their families - especially for those youth at risk of out-of-home placement or those transitioning from placement back to home.  Must have MassHealth.
 
Therapeutic Mentoring provides a structured 1:1 strength-based relationship between a youth and a mentor to address identified daily living, social, and/or communication needs in the home and community.  Therapeutic mentors support, coach, and teach skills related to age-appropriate behaviors, effective interpersonal communication, problem-solving, and conflict resolution.  Mentors can help youth expand natural supports and get involved in chosen community activities.  Eligibility:  Youth under age 21 with a serious emotional disturbance.  Youth must have MassHealth and must be receiving a clinical "hub" service: outpatient therapy, in-home therapy, or intensive care coordination.  Best suited for youth who with some distress tolerance skills and not at imminent risk of harming self or others.

In-Home Behavioral Therapy (coming soon) is behavior therapy provided in the home or community for children and youth with specific problem behviors that may not be helped by other therapeutic approaches. 

Brightside's Family Stabilization Team (FST) clinicians provide time-limited, intensive, innovative, and solution-oriented services designed to meet the individual needs of the family.  These home-based services may be implemented as a post-acute follow-up service (i.e., following hospitalization or other placement) so as to help re-integrate the youth and stabilize the family, or they may be used to prevent the need to enter higher levels of care in the first place.  Services include:
-  Skill Building:  Behavior management and modification, including communication and listening skills, creating structure and routines, decision making, anger management, etc.
-  Education:  Topics may include substance abuse, community resources, suicide prevention, etc.
-  Crisis Intervention:  24-hour coverage available to de-escalate crisis situations.
-  Treatment Planning and Coordination:  Goals and action plans developed jointly with the family and coordinated/communicated with other service providers.
-  Family Therapy Clinicians:  Specializing in Family System Therapy to assist in improving parent/child communication, strategies for specific mental health disorders, behavior modification, etc.
-  Parent Education:  Understanding child development, improved limit setting and boundaries, alternative forms of discipline, etc.
-  Service Referral and Linkages:  Referrals to other clinicians, services, community resources, recreation and tutoring, etc.
-  Bilingual Spanish speaking staff are available.
Eligibility:  Children in need of greater in-home support (than that provided in typical once-a-week outpatient therapy) to stabilize the child in the home and prevent escalation to a possible out of home placement.  Funded by MassHealth and some private insurances.

Community Support Program (CSP) Services are short-term transitional services with the goal of assisting children, adolescents, and their families by providing outreach, resources, and wrap-around services needed to live successfully in the community.  CSP services are frequently used as a step-down from FST if the goals from FST have not been fully completed.  CSP services include advocacy, coordination of treatment, assistance with basic needs, skill building, and facilitating linkages with other support systems.  Bilingual Spanish speaking staff are available.  Eligibility: CSP services are appropriate if the child is not in a state of mental health crisis and the primary goal is case management of community services/programs.  Referrals can come directly from parents or community providers.  CSP services are funded by MassHealth.