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The mission of Child and
Family Services is to
support, strengthen, and
promote healthy growth and
development in children,
youth, families and
communities throughout the
New River Valley.
Early Intervention and
Case Management: The
Infant & Toddler Connection
of the New River Valley
(ITC-NRV) serves children
ages birth to three who have
a developmental delay,
atypical development, or
have a diagnosed condition
which is associated with
developmental delays. The
system manager for ITC-NRV,
serves as the central point
of entry at the lead agency,
Radford University.
Referrals for services are
made to the system manager
for ITC-NRV, who then makes
an initial home visit,
assembles the evaluation
team, and facilitates the
development of the initial
Individualized Family
Service Plan (IFSP). A
Service Coordinator from
NRVCS is assigned to work
with the family while they
are receiving Early
Intervention services.
Services offered are:
Service coordination,
special instruction,
physical therapy, speech
therapy, occupational
therapy, audiology, vision
services, and assistive
technology. NRVCS staff
provides service
coordination and special
instructions. Services are
provided in a natural
environment with the focus
on giving families and
caregivers the support they
need to achieve the desired
goals.
There is no charge for
Evaluation and Service
Coordination. Fees for
Special Instruction and
Therapy Services are based
upon the state-wide Ability
to Pay mechanism mandated
for Early Intervention. A
primary provider model is
used whenever possible with
other team members serving
as consultants.
Case Management: Case
Managers assist children and
their families in finding
medical, psychiatric,
social, educational, and
other services which are
needed for the child to
thrive in the community.
This would include help with
referrals to other services,
transportation to
appointments, and assistance
in working with school
staff, physicians, and other
agencies.
Case managers work with
children with serious
emotional disturbances. They
help families access
Outpatient Treatment,
Intensive In-Home Treatment,
and ongoing psychiatric
treatment and medication.
Case managers also assist
children with mental
retardation to gain access
to the Mental Retardation
Waiver, which can provide
Personal Assistance,
Respite, Assistive
Technology and other
services. Case Managers also
work with a child’s IEP team
in the schools.
Children ages birth to 21
and sometimes beyond can
receive Case Management
Services. Case managers work
with families from Floyd,
Giles, Montgomery, and
Pulaski counties, as well as
the City of Radford.
Case Management Services for
children with mental
retardation are funded by
Medicaid. Services for
children with serious
emotional disturbance are
funded by Medicaid and FAMIS.
Families can also pay for
services using a sliding
scale fee. The local Family
Assessment and Planning Team
may also sometimes assist
families in paying for
services. Referrals can be
made directly to NRVCS.
In-Home Services: The
goal of In-Home Services is
to keep a child in his or
her home. In-Home is an
intense service with a
minimum of three hours of
service provided weekly. It
is commonly the last choice
before removing a child from
the home.
In-Home Services are
appropriate for a child who
has a mental illness or an
emotional disturbance. The
child must be at risk of
removal from the home, but
must be able to benefit from
treatment in an In-Home
setting. A parent or
guardian must be willing to
participate in the treatment
services. In-Home clinicians
do individual and family
therapy, crisis
intervention, case
management, and experiential
therapy. They also make
internal and external
referrals and provide
education.
Anyone can refer a child for
in-home services by
contacting NRVCS directly. A
staffing can be arranged to
determine if in-home
services are appropriate for
a child. Services are funded
by Medicaid, FAMIS, and
local Family Assessment and
Planning Teams.
Mental Health Supports:
Mental health supports
are also offered through
In-Home Services. This type
of support is geared towards
older children who have
documented chronic mental
illness and need
stabilization in the
community and assistance
with daily living skills.
Mental health supports are
funded by Medicaid but are
not time-limited.
School Based Therapy/Day
Treatment: The goal of
School Based Therapy is to
improve the ability of a
referred student to learn in
the classroom by providing
an intense, therapeutic,
systems-oriented plan for
relief from unhealthy or
dysfunctional behaviors in
the school setting.
Therapeutic and case
management interventions are
designed to alleviate the
problems in a short term
(four to six months)
service. Some issues require
longer term treatment.
After getting permission
from a parent or guardian, a
student is referred to a
therapist by the guidance
counselor, the school child
study committee, the IEP
committee, principal, or the
child’s parent. Services
are available for students
who aren’t in treatment with
another source. Therapy
sessions are provided weekly
to even daily if needed.
Referrals are made for any
of the following:
• Behavior problems (where
an emotional problem is
suspected) are interfering
with a child functioning
appropriately in the
classroom.
• A child has been
identified as needing
special education services,
or has had a child study
meeting as well as an
untreated emotional problem.
• A suspected emotional
problem is interfering with
a child’s attendance.
• Supportive counseling is
needed for a child
transitioning from an
alternative school back to
regular school.
• A need for therapy has
been identified, but parents
are unable or unwilling to
follow through.
The school team working with
a child is comprised of the
therapist, principal,
guidance counselor, and the
classroom teacher. The
school psychologist will
provide information relating
to the child’s educational
ability.
An initial home visit will
be made in order to conduct
an initial assessment.
Follow-up home visits are
also made to provide family
counseling. A psychiatric
medical evaluation may also
be done to determine if
medication is needed.
Weekly sessions begin after
a treatment plan is
established. The therapist
will also monitor medication
and behavior plans, and will
consult with the school
staff about the child’s
progress.
Services are funded by
Medicaid, Promoting Safe and
Stable Families funding, and
local Family Assessment and
Planning Teams. Families
can also pay for services
using a sliding scale fee.
Day Treatment: The
goal of the Therapeutic Day
Treatment program is to
provide an optimal
environment for children
with significant
disturbances to learn
practical living skills that
will enhance their academic
and behavioral performance.
Eligible children have
documented mental,
behavioral, or emotional
illnesses which result in
significant functional
impairments in major life
activities. Assessment for
services may include
observations and information
from parents, guardians,
probation officers, or other
significant people in the
child’s life.
Services offered include
social, recreational,
psycho-educational, and
family counseling. Children
are involved in activities
that are geared toward skill
building and receive
immediate feedback as to the
appropriateness of their
behavior. The program takes
place mainly on days when
regular educational
programming isn’t taking
place, (for example, in the
summer).
Children are placed in
groups based on age and
therapeutic goals. A
psychiatric evaluation may
also be provided if needed.
Day Treatment is funded by
Medicaid. All school based
and outpatient clinicians
provide day treatment
services.
Child and Family Outpatient
Services provides:
• Individual, family, and
group therapy.
• Psychological Testing and
reports to the court
• Crisis Debriefing after
school or industrial
accidents/tragedies
• Mental Health Consultation
for Head Start programs
• Representatives to
participate on all five
Family Assessment and
Planning Teams (FAPT)
• Provides Case Management
Services
Child and Family Outpatient
Services are offered in the
Montgomery Center, Pulaski
Center, in the Floyd and
Giles clinics, and the
Radford Human Services Annex
(next to the Department of
Social Services). They are
also offered in various
schools in Montgomery
County, in Floyd and Pulaski
County High Schools, in all
Head Start Classrooms in the
New River Valley, and at the
New River Valley Detention
Center in Christiansburg.
Parents/grandparents,
school, court, Juvenile
Probation, or another
relatives may initiate
contact with NRVCS. The
referring professional or
family member calls ACCESS,
a brief phone screening is
completed and an appointment
is made with a clinician. A
Case Manager or In-Home
Services Clinician who is
already involved may speak
directly to a clinician
about initiating Outpatient
Services. Services are
funded by Medicaid, FAMIS,
the local Family Assessment
and Planning Teams,
self-payment, and private
insurance. Access can be
reached 24 hours a day by
calling 961-8400.
Prevention:
Prevention programs strive
to reduce individual,
family, and environmental
risk factors, increase
resiliency, enhance
protective factors, and
achieve individual and
comprehensive community
wellness through a team or a
collaborative approach.
These programs are
proactive, evidence-based,
and outcomes are
measurable.
Prevention programs utilize
strategies designed to
educate people about
alcohol, tobacco, or other
drug use, mental disorders,
physical illness, or
violence and abuse; to
inform the general public of
problems associated with
these issues, thereby
raising awareness; or to
intervene with at-risk or
identified individuals to
reduce identified concerns.
NRVCS Prevention programs
cover all four counties in
the New River Valley and
Radford City. They serve
children ages three to
eighteen and their
families. Prevention
programs are delivered
either to all members of a
general population or
targeted populations with
specific risk factors.
These programs intervene at
the individual, school,
family, and community
levels.
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