Leading Inpatient Treatment for Children & Adolescents in Missouri

Located in Springfield, Missouri, our children’s inpatient mental health facility offers a warm, welcoming space where children and adolescents can heal. We understand that finding inpatient psychiatric care for an adolescent can be overwhelming for families. We do our best to help patients and their loved ones feel comfortable and supported when they seek care with us.

Our hospital offers acute pediatric inpatient behavioral therapies for adolescents who are suffering from a variety of behavioral health concerns, including:

 

• Major depression
• Anxiety
• Personality disorders
• Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Severe attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Bipolar disorder
• Impulse control disorders
• Self-harm
• Suicidal ideation and behaviors
• Stress response syndromes

 

Because each young person’s needs are unique, we don’t predetermine how long they stay in our acute inpatient program. Our treatment team evaluates each adolescent patient’s response to treatment on a regular basis to determine their appropriate length of stay.

To provide our young patients with the services they need in the environment that best supports them, we offer inpatient treatment for adolescents in multiple units. We place younger children in a separate unit from older children and teens. The benefits of organizing treatment units by age group can include:

• Age-appropriate skill development
• Improved accountability, independence, and decision-making skills
• Peer support
• Increased engagement
• More relevant and relatable treatment methods

Younger children in our adolescent inpatient programs participate in coed programming, which can offer these benefits:

• Development of appropriate boundaries
• Preparation for community experiences outside of our treatment program
• Learning based on diverse perspectives
• Support from a larger group of peers

Older boys and girls, as well as teens, receive treatment in groups based on gender. Gender-specific programming provides older boys and girls with therapies and services that can:

• Address gender-specific subjects such as gender identity and societal expectations
• Encourage personalized discussions that some boys and girls may find embarrassing around members of the opposite sex
• Prevent gender bias that can unintentionally happen in mixed-gender groups
• Maintain sensitivity to those who have experienced gender-based trauma

At Lakeland Behavioral Health System, we offer multiple programs to address the many needs of our young patients, and we are proud to provide specialized services for military families. Our children’s inpatient psychiatric hospital is certified by TRICARE, the behavioral healthcare program designed specifically to support the military dependent children of active-duty and retired members. Lakeland’s inpatient treatment program for military dependents meets the rigorous licensing and certification requirements of TRICARE and provides developmentally appropriate behavioral health treatment for adolescents.

 

Our children’s inpatient psychiatric hospital has had military family admissions from more than 35 states, and we accept military dependents from all over the world. If you are a military family and your adolescent is in need of acute inpatient services, we can help. We are pleased to contribute to transportation costs for military families that need financial assistance.

 

Our military program enables military dependents to receive our clinically excellent inpatient psychiatric care for adolescents. Children and teens who receive treatment at our psychiatric hospital take part in evidence-based therapies and age-appropriate services that can help them thrive. We specialize in children’s inpatient mental healthcare and strive to support military families by providing young people with the education and services they need to achieve lasting wellness.

At Lakeland Behavioral Health, we believe that young people can benefit most from our therapies and services when they are combined with family support. We provide acute pediatric inpatient behavioral therapy that incorporates weekly family counseling sessions led by licensed professional counselors and licensed clinical social workers. When treatment involves families, it can offer the following benefits:

 

• Background information: Family members can offer insight into a child’s behavior and background.
• Collaboration: Collaboration between behavioral healthcare providers, adolescents, and their family members can lead to more effective treatment plans.
• Education: When family members learn the coping strategies their loved one is learning in therapy sessions, they can help reinforce those new skills at home once treatment is complete.
• Support: Involving a child’s family members in their treatment process can provide them with emotional support.
• Relationship improvements: Family counseling can help families improve their communication skills and repair damage to strained relationships.

 

The benefits of family counseling can be instrumental in a child’s healing process. These benefits can also extend to our patients’ family members, who often build a more supportive home life based on the education provided in family therapy sessions during inpatient treatment.

Every child or teen in our adolescent behavioral health inpatient program takes part in a comprehensive assessment that can help our team better understand their individual needs. With the information we gather from this assessment, we can customize their care to best support them.

Therapies and services that can make up an adolescent’s personalized treatment plan include:

• Individual therapy sessions: Adolescents in our acute inpatient program are assigned an individual therapist at admission. This therapist may be a licensed professional counselor or a licensed clinical social worker. Patients can meet one-on-one with their therapists two times per week.
• Group therapy sessions: Patients typically attend at least three psychotherapy groups each day. These groups are led by our counselors and social workers. Additional nursing groups are offered daily as well. Sessions cover topics like coping skills, problem-solving skills, developing enhanced self-awareness, asking for and receiving support, and recognizing unhealthy behaviors.
• Experiential therapies: Adolescent patients in our inpatient treatment program can participate in recreational, art, music, and pet therapy sessions. These sessions are typically offered two or more times per day.
• Basic medical care: In our acute inpatient program, our medical team does a thorough evaluation of each patient. During treatment at our adolescent inpatient mental health facility, this team can provide care for minor medical concerns. If patients require extensive medical treatment, we work with outside providers who can deliver this service.
• Medication management services: For adolescent patients who take medication as part of their care plans, we offer medication management services. Patients meet with various members of our treatment team three times per week. Our adolescent behavioral health inpatient team includes psychiatrists, physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and nurses.

 

At Lakeland Behavioral Health System, we focus on teaching young people coping strategies that can help them transition back to their daily routines efficiently. We believe that through age-appropriate programming, children and teens can learn skills that can help them reach their full potential.

While children and adolescents can have the same mental health concerns as adults, their developmental needs are specific to their age group. We strive to provide age-appropriate care that addresses these unique needs to help young people heal. Our inpatient treatment modalities for adolescents are trauma-focused and evidence-based. Specifically, we incorporate trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) to help our patients identify and modify negative thought patterns related to past traumatic experiences.

Adolescents who receive treatment at our children’s inpatient psychiatric hospital can benefit from the combined experience of our multidisciplinary staff. Our expert treatment team includes:

• Physicians
• Licensed clinical social workers(LCSWs)
• Registered nurses (RNs)
• Licensed practical nurses(LPNs)
• Psychiatrists
• Psychologists
• Dietitians
• Pharmacists
• Recreational therapists

This well-rounded team specializes in working with young people and strives to support each patient with compassion and expertise.

We require each potential patient to take part in a thorough assessment to help us determine if our services are the right fit for them. Intake evaluations for our adolescent inpatient mental health programs can be completed in person or over the phone anytime, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

If you are a parent or guardian of a child or teen who may benefit from our inpatient treatment for adolescents, please do not hesitate to reach out to one of our admissions counselors today. They can help you schedule an assessment for your child and answer any questions you may have regarding the admissions process.

If we decide that another provider may be a better fit for your child’s needs, we can provide a referral to a trusted facility. We strive to help each young person who is suffering from mental health concerns find the care they need as quickly as possible.

This content was written on behalf of and reviewed by the clinical staff at Lakeland Behavioral Health System.