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A Tradition of Innovation
In
1972 Dr. Bernard Yudowitz completed his training as a psychiatrist
and developed a vision for an innovative way to treat mental illness.
His model for treatment was based on two guiding principles. First,
he believed that people suffering from mental illness would improve
more rapidly in the most normalized environment possible and that
the goal of treatment should be to bring individuals to their highest
level of functioning. Second, his experience revealed that people
did better in a facility that more closely resembled a home than an
institution and that symptoms decreased more rapidly when treatment
teams stayed intact as the client proceeded through the various stages
of therapy in a "Continuum of Care."
Continuum of Care
One of the difficulties with traditional mental health care services
is that there are usually different clinicians and facilities providing
services at each level of treatment. Clients often enter the mental
health system needing structured care and progress to a more independent
program as their functioning improves. In a traditional system, the
client moves from facility to facility, and is treated by different
clinicians at each location. Many times the only bridge between the
different levels of care is a trail of paper work. This can lead to
lapses in treatment continuity, and can exacerbate difficulties the
client may experience during transition. In an age of decreased services
provided under managed care, precious days of treatment can be lost
under these conditions while the clinicians get up to speed on the
client's history, and the clients readjust to their new therapists
and surroundings.
Wild Acre Inns has developed a "Continuum of Care," a comprehensive
system of services in which all phases of mental health treatment
are administered by a single treatment team. With facilities
in the Greater Boston Area providing residential, day treatment,
and independent living, the client is held in a compassionate and
continuous therapeutic environment as they progress through the system
toward their highest possible level of functioning. The client's therapist
from outside the Wild Acre system is encouraged to take part in the
client's progress, further enhancing treatment continuity. Wild Acre
Inns' Continuum of Care ultimately provides a closer, more responsive
relationship between client and clinicians, reduces inefficiencies
in program transition and administration, and accelerates the recovery
process.
A Unique Clinical Environment
From its inception,
Wild Acre Inns has been set apart by its attention to the clinical
setting. A departure from the institutional or hospital environment,
For residential facilities, Wild Acre Inns utilizes large suburban
homes and well-appointed apartments located in prime urban locations.
The agency's commitment to providing the latest in mental health therapies
in the least restrictive environment is evident in the open architecture
of the buildings as well as the design of the clinical programs. The
result is a normalizing effect for the client, which improves quality
of life, facilitates healing, and speeds transition to the client's
highest level of functioning.
Dr. Yudowitz opened Wild Acre Inns' first community residence in a
restored historic inn in Lexington, Massachusetts. Named for its location
on an acre of wooded land, this Inn became the foundation of all our
programs dedicated to serving individuals with mental illness. Today,
the name Wild Acre Inns represents an extensive and growing complement
of high-quality, community-based mental health residences. All of
our treatment programs promote emotional healing in a structured environment
of therapy, understanding, cooperation and support. Wild Acre Inns'
expert leadership continually develops innovative programs to meet
the mental health needs of individuals. |
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