{"id":115856,"date":"2023-02-02T23:17:06","date_gmt":"2023-02-03T04:17:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=115856"},"modified":"2023-02-02T23:17:06","modified_gmt":"2023-02-03T04:17:06","slug":"kidspeace-lehigh-county-partner-on-free-walk-in-mental-health-assessments-program-for-county-residents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=115856","title":{"rendered":"KidsPeace, Lehigh County Partner on Free Walk-In Mental Health Assessments Program for County Residents"},"content":{"rendered":"

SCHNECKSVILLE, PA (February 2, 2023)<\/strong>\u00a0– KidsPeace and Lehigh County have announced a new partnership to expand and enhance a key tool for families facing a mental health challenge or crisis.<\/p>\n

The partnership will support KidsPeace\u2019s offering of free walk-in mental health assessments at its Lehigh County clinics on Green Street in Allentown and the Broadway Campus in Fountain Hill.\u00a0 Under the program families can have a child or adult assessed by a clinical professional free of charge and without an appointment, and receive a safety screening, risk assessment and a safety plan, as well as recommendations on further care.<\/p>\n

KidsPeace Executive Director of PA Community Programs Chris Ferry noted that the free assessments have been provided by the non-profit organization as a community service, without regard to the individual\u2019s ability to pay or insurance status.<\/p>\n

Now, under the partnership with Lehigh County, the cost of assessments provided to its residents will be reimbursed by the county.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe walk-in assessment program costs upwards of $40,000 a year for the two clinics \u2013 a cost KidsPeace has borne from its own reserves since we started the assessments ten years ago,\u201d Ferry noted. \u201cThis agreement ensures we will be able to continue to provide individuals in our community the care they need, at the moment they need it the most.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition, the county will fund a new case manager position for the assessments program, who will help families get recommended services after their assessment is completed.\u00a0 And Lehigh County will provide funding for telehealth services for those county residents assessed under the program who are on extended waitlists for specific follow-up care.<\/p>\n

Joshua Bridges, Lehigh County Administrator for Mental Health, Intellectual Disabilities, Early Intervention Services, and Drug & Alcohol, said the enhanced walk-in assessment program from KidsPeace is a vital part of the community\u2019s response to the mental and behavioral health needs of its citizens \u2013 in part, because finding one\u2019s way through the various available program options is difficult for many parents.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic has been an increase in the number of cases of depression, anxiety and other mental health issues among our children.\u00a0 We receive calls from parents who are frustrated as they try to navigate the system on their own to get help for their children.\u00a0 We are committed to eliminating barriers to care for our residents where we can, and that\u2019s why we\u2019re pleased to work with a partner like KidsPeace to address this need,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Since its inception in 2013, KidsPeace\u2019s walk-in assessment program has helped nearly 6,000 families, children and adults find appropriate care for individuals who are suffering a mental health crisis, while at the same time diverting those cases from traditional hospital emergency departments.<\/p>\n

If you or your family are facing a mental health challenge or crisis, free walk-in assessments are available during business hours at the following KidsPeace locations:<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Green Street Clinic
\n<\/em><\/strong>801 E. Green St.
\n<\/em>Allentown, Pa 18109
\n<\/em>610\/799-8910<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Family Center at Broadway Campus
\n<\/em><\/strong>1620 Broadway
\n<\/em>Bethlehem, PA 18015
\n<\/em>610\/799-8600<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Since 1882, KidsPeace has been building on its expertise to give hope, help and healing to children, adults and those who love them. Through its comprehensive range of residential treatment programs; accredited educational services; unique psychiatric hospital and foster care and community-based programs, KidsPeace is dedicated to helping people connect, transform and overcome their challenges to ensure a stable future, transition to adulthood and gain independence. Since its doors opened, nearly 300,000 children have participated in one of the multitude of programs KidsPeace offers.<\/em><\/p>\n

For additional resources or more information on how to get involved, become a foster parent or make a donation, please visit\u00a0www.kidspeace.org<\/a>. Follow us at\u00a0www.facebook.com\/kidspeace.org<\/a>\u00a0or on Twitter @KidsPeace.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Information Provided By:
\nRobert Martin
\nDirector of Communications<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCHNECKSVILLE, PA (February 2, 2023)\u00a0– KidsPeace and Lehigh County have announced a new partnership to expand and enhance a key tool for families facing a mental health challenge or crisis. … Continue reading KidsPeace, Lehigh County Partner on Free Walk-In Mental Health Assessments Program for County Residents<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":105500,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[69,482],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115856","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-valley","category-press-release-2"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/kidspeace.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115856"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=115856"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115856\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/105500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=115856"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=115856"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=115856"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}