Our Clinical Team Expands Services

By Elizabeth Bianchi

The Clinical team has kicked off this year with great momentum. Mary Misavage, Josh DiGiovanna, and Clinical Director Elizabeth Bianchi are actively working to open more students within HCRS, ensuring the delivery of much-needed clinical services at Kindle Farm. Our Clinical Team provides a wide range of offerings, including Individual Therapy, Thematic Group Therapy, Supervision of our Behavioral Intervention Program (Success Beyond Six Model), Family Support Systems and Social Work, Crisis Evaluation and Intervention, and Professional Development for staff.

At present, the Clinical Team is supporting 33 students from Vermont and five students from New Hampshire. The students' positive engagement is particularly noteworthy, as the Clinical Team already shares connections with most of them. There is always clinical support available within the school day, and this can escalate into more intensive community-based services based on clinical needs.

This quarter, the Clinical Team has been fostering connections with students through themed group work led by Mary. She has been co-leading a Health class and a behaviorally oriented group known as the "Dog Days of Summer." This innovative group focuses on developing co-regulation skills by exploring dog behavior and various training methods. Looking ahead, Josh will be spearheading a Pickle Ball activity, while Ebiz leads a Running activity with the goal of students participating in a 5K as a culminating event.

This quarter, our clinical team is also starting a new training program for staff that we’re calling Clinical Perspectives. This will be an opportunity to provide professional development on important clinical topics as well as adding to the tools and skills of our staff. This month, we are pleased to have Melissa Langill from the Children’s division join our Outback team to dive into issues around substance use and how to support students. Melissa will also educate staff on having difficult conversations regarding substance use and harm reduction. Next month, we will be looking into providing DBT skills training for staff. Clinical Perspectives will also provide an increased understanding of the clinical team’s work and role at Kindle Farm.

As Winter approaches, our team is noticing a growing demand for stable housing, food, and heat assistance. In response, we are gearing up to provide increased outreach and support during the winter months, including delivering holiday meals to families and furnishing much-needed resources.