WHO WE ARE
Goals & Values
The mission of the Philadelphia System of Care is for every youth and family in the city of Philadelphia to be able to easily access a collaborative network of behavioral health services and supports that partner with youth and families to meet their needs. To this end, Philadelphia System of Care works to achieve the following goals:
- Behavioral health and related services that are easy to access, available as long as needed, and coordinated to meet the unique needs of each individual youth and family
- Strong partnerships between youth with or at risk of serious behavioral health challenges, their families, and child-serving systems and agencies
- Access to quality, culturally- and linguistically- competent, and individualized services and supports for youth and their families
- Youth and family leadership is strengthened and sustained at the service, program, and system level in the Philadelphia System of Care
- Capacity for meaningful and supportive family relationships or relationships with a caring adult for all youth, including those in child welfare
Youth and young adults with complex mental health needs, and their families are encouraged to become a part of Philadelphia’s System of Care and to join us in the effort to make things better for others in our community. Please see the Contact Us page to learn more about how you can become involved in transforming our community’s mental health system.
Goals & Objectives
Many youth with serious behavioral conditions have extended stays in out-of-home, residential treatment facilities that require them to be separated from their families and communities in order to access treatment. The ultimate goal of our work is to create and sustain a family- and youth-driven system of care that serves Philadelphia’s youth with serious behavioral health needs, many with child welfare or juvenile justice involvement, and their families such that youth can be served in their homes and communities.
Philadelphia’s System of Care is working to reduce the use and the duration of out-of-home residential treatment through key, targeted strategies that have been proven effective at supporting children and youth transitioning and remaining in the community. These strategies include:
- High Fidelity Wraparound as a family-focused, team-based planning process
- Development of Children’s Mobile Crisis Response and Stabilization and new crisis resource centers
- Consultation with the national Building Bridges Initiative
As part of the continued transformation of all of the services within our continuum that children and youth receive, Philadelphia System of Care works in partnership with families and youth with lived experience to empower family and youth voice throughout our system. Key strategies to support these goals include:
- Creating an independent Family Legacy Organization
- Developing the Family Peer Support workforce
- Enhancing the Youth M.O.V.E. Philadelphia chapter
Our Values
Philadelphia System of Care (PSOC) has a core set of values and principles that guide all levels of decision-making and system improvement:
Youth & Family-Driven: We believe young people have the right to be empowered, educated and given a decision-making role regarding their own care.We believe families have a primary decision-making role in the care of their children as well as the policies and procedures governing the care of their children.
Culturally & Linguistically Competent: We believe youth and families should receive what they need in their preferred language and with sensitivity and respect to their beliefs and values.
Community-based: We believe youth and families deserve high quality behavioral health services and supports to remain in their home communities while receiving treatment.
