LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Home of the Innocents is launching new combination of therapy services to help keep troubled families together and children out of foster care.
Starting in January 2020, Home of the Innocents will become the state's first organization to offer the new Multisystemic Therapy for Family & Community Preservation Program (MST).
According to a news release, the program is designed to help young people from 12 to 17 with chronic, serious anti-social behavior by providing therapy that includes educating families on the effects of trauma to help them heal from past trauma. The hope is to prevent the trauma from becoming a psychiatric disorder that could lead to a child's removal from the home or arrest.
"What these programs are about is, really, about prevention, trying to make sure that kids with families who want to stay together get a lot of support," said Eric Friedlander, acting secretary for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.
"We are proud to have a strong and lasting partnership with Home of the Innocents, and this new effort continues that," Friedlander said. "This collaboration provides intensive services to children and parents in their homes to address specific risk factors and prevent further trauma."
Multisystemic therapy focuses on several factors, including those at the family, school and community levels. It's part of the Family First Prevention Services Act.
Kentucky is one of the first states to implement it.
The Home's new MST program is made possible through partnerships with the Kentucky Department of Community Based Services and the Department of Medicaid Services. Funding for program startup has been provided by the James Graham Brown Foundation, the Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence, and Molina Healthcare.
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