Newswise — The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) has named the University of Illinois at Chicago's Behavioral Health and Welfare Program -- part of UIC's Department of Psychiatry and Institute for Juvenile Research -- as the 2008 recipient of the Rieger Service Program Award for Excellence.
The award recognizes "innovative programs that address prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of mental illnesses in children and adolescents, and serve as model programs to the community."
In partnership with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, the faculty and staff of the UIC Behavioral Health and Welfare Program have led efforts to reform the Illinois child welfare system.
Dr. Joseph Flaherty, dean of the UIC College of Medicine, said that the AACAP award "clearly recognizes UIC's longstanding commitment as a public university to invest resources in public service."
"The fact that these UIC programs have enhanced DCFS' ability to significantly improve mental health care to Illinois' most vulnerable children and their families is eloquent testimony to that deep commitment," Flaherty said. "We are incredibly proud of our faculty and staff as well as our DCFS colleagues, all of whom prove their dedication to serving these troubled youngsters every day."
Projects of the UIC Behavioral Health and Welfare Program include:
"¢ The Comprehensive Assessment and Response Training System works with DCFS' residential treatment agencies that serve youths with histories of multiple psychiatric hospitalizations and placement disruptions. The University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago operates a nine-bed psychiatric unit exclusively serving DCFS wards, where professional staff conduct extensive clinical consultations and follow-up aimed at improving placement stability and preventing re-hospitalizations. UIC and DCFS are working to replicate this intervention model system-wide.
"¢ The Clinical Services in Psychopharmacology Program, working with the DCFS Office of the Guardian, has developed a nationally recognized model for medical oversight of psychotropic medication for the treatment of youths in state care.
"¢ The Applied Services Research and Evaluation Program provides technical assistance to DCFS on the development of databases to track placements, which has allowed the agency to more effectively manage its resources. Similar collaborative work on hospitalization has helped DCFS improve mental health services to wards with serious emotional and behavioral problems.
"¢ The Mental Health Policy Program has helped DCFS' system-reform efforts to improve care in psychiatric hospitals in Illinois and in other states where Illinois once placed its high-risk youths. As a result, DCFS became the first child welfare agency in the U.S. to eliminate out-of-state placements, returning nearly 800 youths to Illinois and reinvesting the $65 million annual savings within the state.
The Behavioral Health and Welfare Program is working with DCFS to continue the transformation of mental health service delivery within Illinois' child welfare system, including performance-based contracting for residential treatment providers; a protocol to facilitate positive transitions for youths moving from residential settings to community-based care or independent living; and a targeted assessment and treatment planning project to address the problem of youth runaways from residential settings.
"Our UIC partners have brought the highest level of professional expertise to the task of improving the Illinois child welfare system, and we are grateful for all they are doing to help DCFS ensure the health and well-being of children in Illinois," said DCFS director Erwin McEwen.
The Rieger Award will be presented at an honors luncheon during the AACAP annual meeting in Chicago from Oct. 28 through Nov. 2.
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