WISe a New YES Program
Thanks to the support of YES donors, community partnerships, and youth mental health advocates, YES can expand and introduce a new program starting this fall.
Wraparound with Intensive Services, or WISe, is designed to provide intensive support and services to assist youth and families in achieving wellness and safety and strengthening communities. WISe uses a team-based approach to providing services and is available to youth under age 21 who are eligible for Medicaid. The goal of WISe is for eligible youth to live and thrive in their homes and communities and to avoid or reduce costly and disruptive out-of-home placements.
Clients participate in the WISe program for an average of about 14 months. When they leave, families are more resilient and confident in advocating for their needs. They are also more confident using their gifts, talent, and interests as stepping stones toward well-being.
Providing a team approach
Each enrolled family is assigned a team of YES staff to give them the best chance at success. This team includes a care coordinator who organizes and manages the collaboration between the team and family and provides community-based resources; a family support partner who is a parent with lived experience that can offer the parent/caregiver guidance; a youth partner who supports the youth’s engagement and advocates for their voice, a Master’s Level Therapist who provides treatment that builds on the youth’s and family’s strengths and culture; and also if needed, a YES psychiatrist who provides help with medication management.
“A client I previously worked with showed interest in swimming,” said YES WISe Therapist Melissa Konrat. “So the whole care team worked together to get them into a local program. They not only learned important skills athletically but also gave them the confidence to succeed in their treatment.”
“A client I previously worked with showed interest in swimming,” said YES WISe Therapist Melissa Konrat. “So the whole care team worked together to get them into a local program. They not only learned important skills athletically but also gave them the confidence to succeed in their treatment.”Helping youth in multiple systems
Many of these young clients have experienced hospitalizations for suicide attempts, residential treatment programs, juvenile justice system, special education programs, CPS, and foster care systems and are at high risk of dropping out of school or being incarcerated. It not only helps youth through the standard therapeutic process but also helps provide the opportunities they need to thrive.
Helping families recover
This “wraparound” support of serving the entire family, versus just the youth in need, is the basis of the program.
The program helps families in a way standard one-to-one therapy may be unable to do. The WISe program provides families with resources for their basic needs, homelessness prevention, transportation issues, and help to get their child into community programs or clubs. It helps the whole family channel their energies toward helpful, healthy, and restorative behaviors.
Providing hope for the future
“Donor support helps provide this early intervention program that gives youth a chance at successful adult life. They provide youth a place of understanding and a place where their voice is heard,” said Jackie Bui, Director of Community Based Services.
Adding new evidence-based programs like WISe is made possible through the generosity of supporters like you. Please consider making a gift today to provide children, youth, and families with programs that support their mental health and recovery.
Thanks to donations like yours, no family is turned away because they can’t afford to pay for services.
