Child and Adolescent Crisis Services provide psychiatric and mental health crisis intervention and stabilization for highly symptomatic and challenging children and adolescents. Both emotionally disturbed and severely behaviorally compromised youth are served. Prevalent diagnoses are major depression, bipolar, attention deficit and oppositional defiant disorders. Services have been provided for children as young as four years of age, but the majority fall in the eight to fourteen year age range. Most youth have severe behavioral issues, are impulsive and potentially self-destructive. Parents and other caregivers are exhausted and in need of educative support.

Child and Adolescent Crisis Services offer an evaluation program and the Child and Adolescent Crisis Stabilization Unit (CACSU) offers a crisis residential unit. Services are also provided at the Juvenile Detention Center. Services are available 24-hours a day, seven days a week. Services provided are crisis intervention, diagnostic assessment, pharmacological management, individual/group counseling and crisis-residential treatment.Emergency services are available for client assessment 24 hours/7 days weekly to all clients under 18 years of age. Clients present with a broad range of diagnoses and may be severely mentally ill or suffering from an acute disorder. The parent or guardian is included as staff assess the available support network in determining what the best treatment alternative is for the child. Referrals for ongoing care may be made to other providers including general health practitioners, alcohol and substance abuse services, and social service agencies as well as community health providers.

Youth who can benefit from crisis stabilization can be admitted to the CACSU. A five bed residential treatment program designed as an alternative to inpatient care, the CACSU provides a safe and secure therapeutic environment for youth who are at risk and may or may not meet the criteria for hospitalization. The goal of the CACSU is to provide short-term stabilization rather than longer term treatment; the average length of stay is three days. Individualized treatment plans are established for clients which include individual and group counseling, pharmacological management and mental health assessment. Family meetings and support for parents are an essential component of treatment. The primary emphasis is on aggressive medication management, providing supportive care to the client and their family and case management. The CACSU does 70-80 assessments per month, admitting 30-40 youth to the CACSU..