Parachutes of Hope

Objective of Program:

Substance Abuse counseling for adolescents who cannot otherwise afford high quality treatment.

Description of Program:

Prospective clients will be referred through multiple source intervention units including collaborative clinical staff, student assistance staff within local high schools, and other clients. The prospective client or family of the prospective client will contact the Orchids of Light selected service provider to request clinical services. During this initial introduction a preliminary evaluation will be completed and it will be determined if the client/family fit the Orchid criteria for scholarship and admittance into the Parachutes of Hope program.

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On-Going Services Delivered:

Whenever an individual or family is approved for treatment the referral milestone has been reached. Treatment can last a few sessions or for a few years depending on the situation. This will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Due to the ongoing, life-long nature of chemical dependency and the associated mental health disorders, the treatment will be of an ongoing nature, until both therapist and client feel that all clinical treatment goals have been reached.

Detailed Description of Services:

Evaluation: A prospective teen client is thoroughly interviewed in a non-judgmental manner in order to examine current issues and determine the severity of those issues, revolving around substance abuse and mental health issues.

Psychotherapy: The process of meeting with the client to assist in the transformation process, one therapeutic hour at a time. Individual counseling and group counseling are available at this time. Both types of counseling assist clients in different ways and are required at different times of the recovery process.

Family Therapy: The process of meeting with the family alone and with the client to help assess how supportive they are of the client’s recovery. The stability/resiliency of the family system and any other issues will be addressed in this part of the therapeutic process.

Psycho-education: This process consists of educating the client and family about addiction, recovery, mental health treatment, and coping strategies.

In addition to the list above there are innumerable activities related to client treatment such as phone calls to other support networks, facilitating residential rehab if required, intervention (if client is resistant to treatment), connecting client with psychiatric assistance if mental health issues are insurmountable with counseling alone, etc.

How will success be measured?
Success will be measured by individual assessments performed by counseling agency providing the service and by clients filling out a survey at the end of their treatment. The survey will ask about change in baseline functioning and reduction in drug use and increases in positive coping strategies. These anonymous results will be reviewed by Orchid’s Board of Directors.

What community will be served?
Disadvantaged youth struggling with addiction who live in or near the West Chester, PA area. Inclusion into the Parachutes of Hope program will require that the applicant is an adolescent or young adult between the age of 12-19 and be part of a socially and economically disadvantaged family. The typical population served would be applicants that cannot otherwise afford professional licensed substance abuse treatment and who have been identified by the school system, clinicians and/or peers as needing support.