If you are considering residential placement for your child, you are probably concerned and anxious. You may wonder about the environment that will surround your child and the process you will go through. Dr. Vera Fahlberg, author of Residential Treatment: A Tapestry of Many Therapies puts it all together for you by explaining everything from the decision to seek residential treatment, to post-placement services.
Dr. Fahlberg says, "residential care is usually reserved for the child who is having problems in all three major areas of his life- family, school and peers-and even then, only when the problems have not been amenable to out-patient treatment."
As a former medical director of Forest Heights Lodge in Evergreen, CO, a non-profit residential treatment center for emotionally disturbed children, Dr. Fahlberg has had extensive experience with children. She still acts as a consultant for the facility. The philosophy at Forest Heights Lodge is that "in order to change, the disturbed child must learn how to take responsibility for what happens in his life and for his behaviors." The founders of Forest Heights developed a treatment model unique to residential treatment and the center has an international reputation.
In Residential Treatment, Dr. Fahlberg discusses a variety of children who did well at Forest Heights Lodge. She includes case studies of children with attachment problems, separation anxiety, developmental difficulties and perceptual problems. The author gives explanations, activities and real-life examples. Dr. Fahlberg also outlines the responsibilities of various professionals, and discusses how the child psychiatrists, psychologists and clinical social workers work with school staff and administrators to interpret the child's psychological needs and convert these needs into day-to-day interactions. A few of the chapter headings are Milieu, Individual and Group Therapy and Working with Families.
Dr. Fahlberg has provided a comprehensive guide for all who care about advocating for children with all kinds of behavior and disorder issues. Residential Treatment: A Tapestry of Many Therapies is a very useful book for parents and professionals seeking out-of-home placements.
About the Author: Dr. Fahlberg is the former medical director of Forest Heights Lodge in Colorado, www.forestheightslodge.org/index.html, and widely recognized as an authority on foster and adoptive placements.
