CMH

Family Guidance Service (FGS) provides in-home therapy to families who have school-aged children with serious mental, behavioral, or emotional challenges. Typically, the children have difficulty functioning in their everyday life and are at risk for needing psychiatric hospitalization or other mental health placements. Our goal at FGS is to help parents safely maintain their children in their homes and communities, providing children the best opportunities to achieve healthy and productive lives.

Our therapists use a strength-based, family-guided approach to treatment. Outcome studies and other research have shown that Family Guidance therapists are exceptionally effective in helping children with serious mental health problems. In our model, therapists partner with families to design and implement service plans which build on family strengths. Services are provided in children’s homes, schools, and other community settings. When appropriate, therapists work as a team with other service providers and community agencies to assist families in meeting their goals for their children. Services may be provided several times per week and generally last nine to twelve months.

Several other evidence-based practices are also used by specially-trained FGS therapists to address specific emotional and behavioral needs of children.

• Parent Management Training – Oregon Model: a structured in-home intervention to help parents manage their children’s behavior
• Parenting Through Change: a skills-based group for parents that teaches techniques to deal with children’s behavior problems and to improve the parent-child relationship
• Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: an in-home treatment for children who are having significant difficulties related to traumatic experiences
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy: individual, family, and group treatment for teens and parents who want to learn coping skills to address distressing emotions and self-destructive behaviors
• The Seven Challenges: an intervention for teens who have both mental health and substance use problems
• Aggression Interruption Training: a skill-based program which helps youths develop pro-social behaviors

Because all families are unique, a variety of additional services and supports may be utilized during treatment, depending on families’ needs and choices. They include:

• psychiatric medication management
• in-home behavior management consultation
• parent-to-parent mentoring and support
• social-recreational services
• overnight respite
• community living supports for children
• Love and Logic Parent Training which helps parents raise responsible children and is taught by parents with specialized training
• Trauma Informed Parenting, a psycho-educational group for parents of children who have experienced trauma

---

1 2 3 Michael 20-12-2012 Hits:17514 Kids Testimonials Jason Moon My child has progressed so much since we started therapy through CMH – Families Forward.  Thank you so much for your help! Read more Satisfied Client 20-12-2012 Hits:18362 Kids Testimonials Jason Moon We love our therapist.  She has become a support to our whole family.  I feel I can trust her and share my hardest moments.  Our child feels safe talking with her and she understand when he is too anxious.  My husband and other two children also open up to her.  I am truly grateful for her support. Read more Satisfied Client 20-12-2012 Hits:17582 Kids Testimonials Jason Moon Our therapist is a wonderful woman who has helped my child make immense progress in only the short time we have been working with her.  I really enjoy seeing my child make progress while interacting with her therapist.  Your program is amazingly helpful, and I am so thankful I found help with CMH – Families Forward.  Thank you for all you do. Read more

Families Forward has been providing services to children and their families for over 30 years. We offer a wide array of treatment options designed to meet the needs of families with children who struggle with emotional disturbance and behavioral concerns.