Core Components of Care

Daily Treatment Plan/Review Group

Held daily, this group is designed to help develop goals and a plan of care, to assess how your treatment is progressing, to plan specific goals for the day, and to review overall treatment goals. Our treatment team is an interdisciplinary group that consists of our Medical Director, Dr. Paras Harshawat, the psychiatrist involved in your treatment, the Chief Nursing Officer, Admissions Department, Therapists, Charge Nurse and Technicians involved with your care. It is in this treatment team meeting that the daily review of your progress by all team members involved in your care will help to determine if changes are needed.

Group Therapy

Group Therapy is offered several times daily and has a number of purposes: developing explicit treatment goals, identifying problems, engaging patients in the therapeutic process, and encouraging patients to continue therapeutic work after discharge. Group therapy is essential to assessing the post-hospitalization coping skills of our patients and their ability to regain the confidence they need to restore quality of life in a social setting.

Psychoeducational Groups

Psychoeducational groups are held several times daily. These groups involve discussing specific topics, taking part in exercises, and completing assignments. Groups in the hospitalization program include:

• Day-to-Day Skills

• Life Skills

• Anger Management

• Relationships

• Medication/Diagnosis Education

• Cognitive Skills

• Mindfulness

Each class lasts between 30 minutes to an hour. Medication/Diagnosis Education Group is taught by a Registered Nurse. All other groups are led by qualified members of the Treatment Team. The selection of groups for your loved ones treatment plan is individualized and determined both by initial and on-going assessments by the treatment team and your input during hospitalization.

Expressive Therapy

Structured activity groups are held daily. Expressive Therapy includes a variety of activities designed to help you learn more about yourself, learn how to solve problems, express feelings in appropriate ways, reduce stress, and improve relationships with others. Therapeutic recreational activities held at Harsha Behavioral Center include arts and crafts, sports and exercise, card games, board games, puzzles, video games, singing, reading, creative writing, reminiscing, music and pet therapy and discussion groups. Expressive and recreational therapy helps individuals reduce depression, stress and anxiety and to channel energy and ideas constructively.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is paying attention on purpose to what is happening in the present moment without judgement and with kindness.  Many people often find themselves spending their time worrying about things that have already happened, or are anxious about things that may happen in the future.  The mindfulness groups assist patients with finding various ways to help their minds and bodies relax, ultimately feeling less stressed and overwhelmed with various emotions.

Music Class

Music helps to promote wellness, manage stress, alleviate pain and express feelings. Music can also inspire our patients to engage in group activities. Our patients benefit from music class weekly on all of our units. We also have a bluegrass band that volunteers once a month in our Savera Geriatric Care Unit.

Pet Therapy

Studies have shown that pets can have a beneficial effect on health and well-being: providing companionship, love, increased physical activity and emotional responsiveness.

Individual Therapy

Each patient at Harsha Behavioral Center will participate in individual therapy sessions. These sessions give our patients the opportunity to open up in a safe surrounding. It is also a time for reflection while allowing our treatment team members the opportunity for essential ongoing individualized assessments. These sessions can help to drive our treatment plan and the successful outcome of our program.

Family Therapy

Family therapy sessions are scheduled within 72 hours of admission. Participation in these sessions is essential to the success of our patients. It is important to see how our patients and their families interact and family input is a critical part of our ongoing assessment process. We also are aware that when your loved one is in crisis, you are in crisis as well. You will meet with our therapists to discuss the treatment plan and to begin discussing goals and discharge planning as well as aftercare instruction.

Discharge Planning

Discharge planning begins at admission. Our therapists will work closely with the family to help establish your loved one’s aftercare treatment that consists of both a physician and a therapist to help keep your loved one on the healthy track. Safety plans are developed and implemented for each patient and with the consent of the parents, guardian or power of attorney, the safety plan is communicated to aftercare providers and schools.

Sensory Room

The Sensory Room is a calming environment designed to assist patients in learning various strategies to help them achieve and maintain self-control. Initially intended to aid children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder, the use of the Sensory Room has proven to be useful with patients experiencing various other emotional and behavioral difficulties. Sensory Rooms help with:

• Emotional self-regulation

• Relaxation and stress reduction

• Symptoms of mental illness

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) influenced groups focus on skill building in 4 specific areas: mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation and interpersonal effectiveness. DBT has shown success when working with:

• Borderline Personality Disorder

• Mood Disorder

• Eating Disorder

• Addiction

• Other Self-harming Behaviors

Dual Diagnosis Program

The purpose of this new program is to offer treatment to adolescents who have been dual-diagnosed with a mental health disorder and an alcohol/drug addiction.

• Individual, family, and group therapy assist patients in receiving education about their diagnoses.

• Provide all patients with education on the dangers of alcohol/drug abuse.