WFHB Bloomington Community Radio
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WFHB Correspondents, Brayden Lents, and Katrine Bruner have partnered up to write about the unknown world of how Residential Treatment Facilities in the state of Indiana are handling the pandemic with 12 to 25 patients living in one roof and going to school in or out of these facilities. They also bring in CEO of Midwest Center for Youth and Families, Rob Hittemeier to discuss how the local center is handling recent changes.
The United States has over 50,000 children in 1,591 Residential Treatment Facilities for mental health. A residential treatment facility is a place that cares for and houses people with severe mental illnesses. These facilities provide therapy, counseling, and other help for residents.
Indiana currently has a count of 25,473 COVID-19 cases and 1,482 deaths. Indianapolis and Lake County have the highest number of outbreaks .
With such large numbers, this brings concern for places that house many people like residential treatment centers.
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The Midwest Center for Youth and Families in Kouts, Indiana is a residential treatment center for both children and adolescents with mental illnesses. Illnesses that the center treats include, bipolar disorder, borderline features, depression, severe ADHD, suicidal and self-harming behaviors and long term effects of low self-esteem. The center is available for males 12-18 and females 10-18.
CEO for Midwest Center for Youth and Families, Rob Hittmeier has been working with the center for 8 months now. Hittmeier discusses how the center has been staying up and running throughout the pandemic.
“Caused fear and concern, been more thoughtful. Made basic restrictions, implemented daily screenings.
Therapy activities like animal therapy and aquatics have been restricted to the residents. Hittmeier says with some restrictions lifted the staff needs to take extra precautions.
“Some restrictions on therapies (animal therapies), following local guidelines to keep residents safe.”
Hittmeier says Dialectical Behavior Therapy or DB is helpful for the clients to process their negative thinking through a struggling time, but the routine has stayed the same.
“Pretty much have stayed the same, no in-person family sessions, family sessions over zoom now.”
The Midwest Center is licensed by the State of Indiana Child Care Institution, the State run facility has been given daily updates from the other facilities that partner with Midwest in Indiana.
“Daily updates come from other facilities within organization, guidelines for all facilities to do.”
Before the coronavirus there had been a huge surge in suicide and depression rates in teenagers and young adults between 13 and 21. Now with a global pandemic, Hittimer fears another mental health surge will be on the rise.
“Surge of mental health patients from quarantine time, not getting medicine, treatment needed.”
Indiana residential treatment facilities have been hit hard mentally and financially with a reported rise in mental health cases and the need for therapy. The Northwest Indiana Times reported Campagna Academy in Schererville had a few suspected cases of coronavirus in the facility on April 30th. We asked Bloomington Meadows Hospital for comment on their safety measures during the coronavirus pandemic. Meadows did not reach back for comment.
For WFHB this was Katrine Bruner and Braydyn Lents, stay safe.
