Intercept
strengthens families to prevent or limit the need for foster care
Youth Villages Intercept program model receives well-supported designation from Family First Clearinghouse
Youth Villages offers Intercept through direct services and certified organizations that are licensed to implement the program model. For more information on bringing Intercept to your jurisdiction, email: strategic.partnerships@youthvillages.org
Circumstances can overwhelm any family
Problems can come when a child acts out continually at school, causing school suspensions… Opioids prescribed for an injury lead to parental substance use and child neglect… A layoff brings mounting bills and possible eviction… domestic violence… incarceration… hundreds of different issues can throw a family into crisis.
When children are at high risk of entering foster care or have been taken into state custody, Youth Villages Intercept can step in to change a family’s trajectory with intensive support, new parenting and communication skills, and evidence- and strengths-based mental health intervention services.
- Youth Villages Intercept serves children of any age (infant to age 18) who have serious emotional and behavioral problems or have experienced trauma, including abuse and/or neglect.
- Prevention services last four to six months.
- Family reunification services are six to nine months in duration.
Overview
“Well-Supported” by IV-E Clearinghouse
Program Model
Rigorous Clinical Studies
How Intercept Works
Clinical Process
We Are A Force For Families®
Intercept is an integrated approach to in-home parent skill development that offers a variety of evidence-based practices to meet the individualized needs of a family and child. Intercept is appropriate for families with children of all ages who have serious emotional and behavioral problems or who have experienced abuse and/or neglect. The program specializes in working with children who are at high risk of entry or re-entry into foster care by helping families retain children in their custody (prevention and reunification).
How does Intercept Work?
Family intervention specialists work intensely with only four to five families at a time, allowing them to focus on meeting a child and family’s individual needs.
- Family intervention specialists meet with families two to three times each week for sessions in the home that are built around the family’s schedule and convenience. They are on-call 24/7 in case of family emergency.
- Family intervention specialists address issues with schools, courts and children’s services that can seem overwhelming. They stand with parents at school or legal meetings and advocate for them as multiple expectations and requirements are met.
- Family intervention specialists work with licensed clinicians to build treatment plans and work step-by-step with the family and child as new parenting techniques are learned and interventions change behavior.
Why is Youth Villages Intercept successful?
Intercept does “whatever it takes” to help children and parents succeed. Specialists bring intensity and focus to a family’s individual challenges.
- It’s a comprehensive program that includes a therapeutic approach to parenting skills education, school interventions, development of positive peer groups, and extensive help for families and children in accessing community resources and long-term, ongoing support.
- Family intervention specialists work with both the child and the parents or caregivers to address issues that are impacting the stability of the family.
- Intercept includes GuideTree, a comprehensive online database of evidence-based interventions and tools that specialists use to identify drivers of behavior and family issues. They consult with licensed clinicians to develop treatment plans that are continually updated as the family’s skills develop and their needs change.
- Specialists work in teams with a supportive supervision and consultation process.
- Outcomes are continually tracked and results analyzed to enhance the program model.
Stories of Hope
Helping children and families live successfully
Focusing on mental health to mend a family
Having children is a life-changing experience, and most parents will admit you’re never ready until you become one. There is certainly not a universal manual on how to parent, and at the end of the day, most parents want to raise their children the best way they know how.
Through hardships, Jayden and Carina get the support they need
At Youth Villages, we believe children are raised best at home. However, some families need extra support to unload those extra stressors off their shoulders and learn tools to ease some of that weight.
Intercept specialists bring creativity to clinical methods
When working with children experiencing behavioral and mental health challenges, a little creativity goes a long way. And for Intercept specialist Noah Galiffi-Caster, making a connection with the young people he works with is often a key to success.
One state looks to get kids in crisis out of the ER — and back home
When Haley was brought to the emergency department in October, she was one of 115 children and teenagers who went to a hospital emergency room in a mental health crisis and got stuck there.
From Hallway to Home – Haley’s Story
The lack of mental health resources has become a crisis across the country, especially in Massachusetts. On any given day in Massachusetts, there are over 100 children boarding in hospital emergency departments (EDs) because there are no psychiatric beds available.
As ER waits stretch for days, Mass. turns to in-home care for children’s mental health
When Haley was brought to the emergency department in October, she was one of 115 children and teenagers who went to a hospital emergency room in a mental health crisis and got stuck there.
Youth Villages, MDCPS partner to introduce new program to state
Youth Villages Intercept® has launched in Mississippi! A release from Youth Villages and the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services (MDCPS) on the Intercept program coming to Mississippi.
Caiden’s Story
On a rainy spring day, an Intercept specialist received a voicemail from Jade, a 23-year-old mother whose son, Caiden, was in our Intercept program. “Thank you so much for coming here today and always supporting me through this whole thing.
Determination and support helps Lexi overcome challenges
In high school, 17-year-old Lexi struggled with disordered eating. Her anorexia led to body-image issues, suicidal ideation and self-harming behaviors. She was in a residential facility to receive treatment for her anorexia
Private, non-profit organization expands mental health services to ENC
A new mental health service is expanding in Eastern North Carolina. The program is part of Youth Villages, a private non-profit group that helps children and families.
Lack of adequate mental health care places heavy burden on young people
A PBS NewsHour team followed staff in our Intercept and Specialized Crisis Services programs in East Tennessee for this powerful report on the children’s mental health crisis.
Mental-Health Program Provides Alternative to Emergency-Room Boarding
On a given day in Massachusetts, more than 100 children and teenagers are brought to hospital emergency rooms because they’re facing a mental-health crisis and sometimes have to stay there for days or weeks.
Youth Villages Spring Celebration Gala raises $830,000
The Youth Villages Massachusetts and New Hampshire Spring Celebration gala raised $830,000 to help young people live successfully. The annual event celebrated the organization’s milestone of 15 years of serving children, youth and families in New England.
Youth Villages’ Intercept program aims to restore families one at a time
Daily Memphian reporter Don Wade goes on a “ride-along” with the Youth Villages Intercept program, which recently received a “well-supported” rating from the Title IV-E Clearinghouse.
Youth Villages Intercept earns highest rating, allowing us to help more children and families
The Youth Villages Intercept program model recently achieved an important milestone earning the “well-supported” rating from the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse.
Intercept Brings the Holmes Family Back Home
Mia must have thought the world was crumbling around her. “It was hard, stressful,” said Mia, who was 16 years old at the time. “I was the oldest (child), so I had to keep pushing for everyone. I kept praying.”
Healing Through the Written Word
Sometimes, the closest people to us—family and friends—don’t understand. They may think they know the situation better than anyone, even the person who is suffering. Instead of helping that person, it may lead to further issues.
Intercept, with a little bit of hope, brings Cohen home to mom and dad
When Cohen was born in an East Tennessee hospital in 2019, he didn’t get to go home with his mom and dad. Substance use had already broken his family, and the baby joined his five brothers and sisters in foster care.
Youth Villages Intercept Program Model Receives Well-Supported Designation from Family First Clearinghouse
The Youth Villages Intercept program model has been rated as well-supported by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse.
A Gamechanger for Mental Health
In 2019, 16-year-old Cassidy was in an in-patient mental health center. She struggled for years with depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation. In just one year, Cassidy was hospitalized for her mental health nine times…
