CMHA-CEI’s Autism Support Team was established in 2009 to meet the growing need of children and adults with autism spectrum disorders in the tri-county area. The mission of this project is “To provide a supportive environment for children and adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families by helping to facilitate a range of services to meet ongoing needs throughout the life span.”
Early Intervention Services (EIS) provides in-home mental health services and supports for families with infants, toddlers or preschoolers experiencing significant distress. Early Intervention Services has two home-based programs serving families in Clinton, Eaton, and Ingham Counties.
The Parent-Infant Program (PIP) serves families who have a child under four years old where either the parent or infant or toddler is experiencing emotional or psychiatric distress; and/or, the family has difficulty effectively managing their child’s unique social, emotional or developmental needs.
We are pleased to announce that PIP has completed the requirements for the Early Attachments: IMH Home VisitingTM certification. It is the first program in the state and in the country to achieve this recognition by the Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.
The Parent-Young Child Program (PYCP) serves families with children ages three through six who are struggling with significant social, emotional and/or behavioral concerns. The child may also be at risk for, or has had, an expulsion from preschool or day care due to behavior problems.
Both PIP and PYCP therapists are master’s level mental health professionals with specialized training and experience working with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. The process will start with an in-office Assessment of needs. We offer treatment services in the family home as well as at preschool, day care, or the non-custodial parent’s home. Our therapists use a strength-based approach and develop a plan of service in partnership with the family. Most often we meet at least 4 hours per month with the family and services typically last a little over a year.
Parents and guardians report that at the end of treatment they see an increased ability in their children to:
Parents/guardians also report an increase in positive-parent child interactions and their confidence in their ability to parent their child.
Children's Outpatient Services offers mental health therapy for children ages 3 to 17 and their families at our offices in Lansing, St. Johns and Charlotte. Children and adolescents seen in outpatient services typically have problems with adjusting to loss and change, may be dealing with feelings such as depression or anxiety, or they may struggle with challenging behaviors at home, school, or in the community.
Children's Outpatient Services has therapists who are skilled at working with children, adolescents and families. Our therapists help families find solutions to their problems that are effective, build on their strengths, and fit for their family.
Services are confidential, although contact with schools, doctors, or other involved agencies can be made, with a parent's permission, in order to coordinate services. This is done as a way to make the services more effective and to be sure that everyone involved is working in the same direction.
Children and families often meet together with the therapist in family sessions. Families know their children well, are in the best position to help them, and are very important in developing solutions to the problems that their children are experiencing. Talking and working together can make a big difference in how everyone in the family feels.
To qualify for outpatient services:
Educating, Collaborating, & Empowering our community partners
What does prevention mean to our community? It means shifting our focus from responding to crisis to preventing crisis. It means building skills and applying them in a variety of settings. It means providing education to our community members; collaborating with them in building a network of resources and supports; and empowering them to use and share those resources with the wider world.
Children are struggling with anxiety, depression, and feeling stressed. CMHA-CEI Prevention is here to help. We offer online training to provide information and resources to help support youth and their families.
Online training options include:
The TriCounty LifeSavers youth suicide prevention coalition is a group of community members and organizations interested in combining our resources and creativity in order to help our youth stay safe and encourage them to access the resources they need to do so. We strive to make the best use of media and communication, local, state, and national resources, our combined expertise, and relevant data to meet these goals.
Is your child or family in need of ongoing therapy services? Families can contact Access at (517) 346-8318 to:
If a child or family needs to speak to a therapist immediately due to concerns of harm to self or others, contact Children's Crisis Services at (517) 346-8008 to: