Our Daily Show Interview! Elaine Ward: CCBHC at Centerstone!
ALTON - Centerstone’s Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic offers a holistic approach to mental health and substance use care.
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Elaina Ward explained that the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHC) are “a really different shift in model” that provides wraparound care for clients and additional support for staff. Instead of solely focusing on a client’s mental health symptoms, clinicians within the CCBHC model coordinate with other providers to address physical and mental health needs.
“If someone walks through Centerstone's door, the goal is that whatever your needs are, we’re going to get you linked up with someone to be able to address those needs,” Ward said. “That is the goal of CCBHC: open door, no wrong door, whatever you need, we’re going to try to help you meet those needs, trying to provide that holistic, wraparound safety-net kind of care.”
Ward noted that clinicians start with an assessment, where the client’s needs and goals are streamlined into a treatment plan. Though she recognizes this can be a vulnerable process, she encourages clients to be as open as possible so Centerstone can meet their needs.
“We are here to help you,” she said. “The biggest thing is we just need you to be open and honest with us so we can get you the best services that we can. Not telling us all the information or not sharing all the information with us isn’t going to help in the long run, right? We can’t get your needs met. But also, just acknowledging that it's also scary and it’s hard to share all that information, too.”
Depending on your goals and needs, Centerstone has a variety of services available, from outpatient counseling to psychiatry to medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorders. They also have case management services and collaborate with local schools to provide resources.
If there are needs that Centerstone cannot meet, the CCBHC model promotes coordinated care. They will work with you and other community resources to link you to the appropriate services.
“The collaboration, it really just kind of depends on the individual and their needs,” Ward explained. “If the client needs support on following up and asking more about their medication or something, we have staff where their main job is to do that care coordination, so making sure no one is falling through the gaps and they’re able to meet their needs with some of that additional support.”
Ward emphasized that whatever the circumstances are, Centerstone is in their clients’ corners and will help them get the support they need to manage symptoms and meet their goals. As the CCBHC manager, she sees firsthand how helpful this collaborative approach can be, and she encourages anyone who needs help to reach out so Centerstone can connect you to the appropriate services.
“That person has made that giant step or that giant decision to seek help and to seek care,” she added. “That’s something we always encourage people to do, because it can be life-changing.”
For more information on Centerstone’s Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic in Alton, click here. Visit their official website at Centerstone.org to learn more about their services in Alton and beyond.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
