With Older Adults, The Work Continues

Working with older adults who struggle with substance abuse is extremely complex. Each individual has a different story to tell. Many older adults, who have used substances over the course of their life spans, often have a tremendous amount of shame, remorse, and sadness. Many of these individuals...

Towards Seamless Integration: Advocating for Reform

Many people with serious mental illnesses have difficulty accessing primary care or do not feel comfortable in primary care settings, for a host of reasons. Often, they have experienced trauma, resulting in trust issues that impact their ability to form relationships with new providers. As a...

Partners in Integration: Addressing Need by Supporting NYC Workers

In today’s evolving healthcare system, there is a growing need for an integrated healthcare workforce to better address the needs of patients with complex and interrelated medical and behavioral health conditions. However, workforce development supporting skills enhancement around integrated...

Behavioral Health Medical Homes: An Approach to Integrated Care

At first I was scared. I started skipping my appointments with my therapist and also Dr. Levy. I did not want to deal with it. But then my therapist and the doctor called me at home. They told me I was not alone, and they wanted to help me. That made all the difference. I came in. The doctor took...

The State of Children’s Mental Health and Associated Costs of a Fragmented System

Past public policy has focused mostly on children’s mental health issues—and with good reason. While 1 out of 10 children has a serious emotional disturbance, only 20% ever receive treatment. Children with mental health issues have the highest school dropout rate among all disability groups,...

Implementing Best Practices – Seven Core Processes

Implementing best practice care for persons struggling with mental illness and substance use in real world settings can be challenging. At the Institute for Community Living (ICL), where we provide behavioral and physical health care for a widely diverse population and place strong emphasis on...

It’s About Time

Back in the height of what was called the “Humane Care” period, state hospital institutions took care, to the limits of their abilities, of the full spectrum of people’s needs. While one can certainly look back and question the quality of the care and the enormous personal consequences of...

Healthy Living: A Self-Management Toolkit Promoting Full Recovery

If you have ever tried to quit smoking or lose weight, you might recall the difficulty you had sticking to your goal. Add the challenge of managing a serious mental illness (SMI) and these health goals can become daunting. However, the pursuit of these goals has become central to addressing the...

The Role of Intimacy on the Road to Recovery

The crucial role of romantic relationships is often overlooked or avoided when working with people who are on the road to recovery. Understanding that factors such as hope, connection and social support significantly minimize isolation and prevent relapse, the Institute for Community Living (ICL)...

A Clinic’s Initial Experiences Conducting Multiple Family Groups

Jose is an 11-year-old boy who has, for years, been threatening his family to run away and never return when he is upset with them. His family has tried to cope with these behaviors the best they could, but things reached the point that they felt they needed further assistance. His grandmother made...