Levels of Care: Explained

Levels of Care: Explained

Bradley Hospital Levels of Care

When a Child Needs the Right Care, Right Away

When a child is struggling with their mental health, it can be overwhelming for everyone to know where to turn or what type of help they need. For families and loved ones, balancing the search for the right care while also protecting the well-being and safety of their child is a challenge.

Our team is here to guide you, connect you with the right resources, and provide the support your family needs every step of the way.

At Bradley Hospital, we offer a full range of services to support children, teens, and their families — from outpatient therapy to crisis care.

Which Level of Care Is the Right Care?

Everyone, especially young children and adolescents, need different kinds of support at different times. That’s why Bradley Hospital offers a full spectrum of services — known as levels of care — ranging from outpatient therapy to inpatient therapy. 

Different Conditions Require Different Approaches

A professional evaluation will determine the appropriate level of care a child needs. In behavioral health, different levels of care are designed to provide the most effective treatment for an individual while maintaining the least interruption to daily living.

Choosing the right care includes allowing a child to maintain their place in their world as much as possible, while balancing their current mental health treatment needs. Bradley Hospital’s team of professionals believes that the most important part of choosing the right care is to keep this in mind and to determine the “least restrictive” setting to support the child and family. We seek to balance a child’s treatment with what matters most to them. 

Each level of care permits a different balance of healthcare and everyday living. Outpatient services, the least intensive type of care, requires a few hours a week of meeting with a healthcare provider compared to an inpatient hospitalization, the most intensive, which requires 24-hours of attention. Some of our programs, like Bradley REACH, are available to patients virtually, dependent on the type of care required.

A Primer in Behavioral Health Levels of Care

To guide you through the levels of care at Bradley Hospital, we’ve listed the most common ones, each with a brief explanation to help you differentiate between them. They are listed by least intensive care to most intensive care. 

Outpatient Treatment

Outpatient treatment programs are like any visit to a doctor’s offer. Patients in these programs go about their daily lives while attending school regularly and living at home.

  • They typically attend one to two appointments per week with a combination of psychotherapy (individual, family, group), psychiatric evaluations and treatment, and sometimes occupational therapy and/or speech and language treatment.
  • They may also require evaluations such as neuropsychological, psychological, autism, or forensic evaluations.

Outpatient treatment is considered the least intensive level of care. It typically involves meeting with a therapist and psychiatrist for individual therapy and/or medication management weekly for 45 to 50 minutes in an office, clinic, or hospital. It is essential to understand that while traditional outpatient therapy is the level of care most people are familiar with, a higher level of care is sometimes needed based on the individual's needs and level of functionality.

What It Is

Outpatient treatment offers weekly or biweekly therapy sessions to support children and teens with mild to moderate symptoms. Sessions may be held individually, with family members, and/or in groups. Individualized medication management may be included in a patient’s treatment plan. Outpatient treatment at Bradley Hospital is offered in-person or virtually.

Who It’s For

Outpatient treatment is for youth who are struggling with symptoms that impact their ability to function at home, school, and/or socially but who, at the same time, are mostly able to maintain important aspects of their life.

Outpatient services are also important for families seeking follow-up care after more intensive services (such as inpatient or partial care) or those seeking to prevent further decline in their child’s functioning. 

What’s Offered

Services offered at outpatient treatment include:

  • Individual therapy
  • Family therapy
  • Group therapy
  • Medication evaluations and follow-ups
  • Evaluations
  • Occupational/speech and language therapy

How to Access

A doctor’s referral is not required for outpatient services. To schedule an intake session, call us directly at 401-432-1119.

Learn more about outpatient services

Intensive Outpatient Therapy (IOP)

An intensive outpatient program allows a child to continue living at home and typically attend school. 

  • Intensive outpatient care is more intensive than outpatient services, with a minimum of nine hours a week of care.
  • Intensive outpatient care is usually a combination of individual, family, and group therapy along with possible medication evaluation and treatment, as needed.

An Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) is a structured, partial-day program that provides more support than traditional outpatient therapy. It is designed for children and adolescents who are struggling with mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, trauma, substance use disorders, and other emotional or behavioral challenges. 

What It Is

Our Intensive Outpatient Program provides several hours of therapeutic support each week, while children and teens continue living at home, attending school and participating in other daily activities. The IOP is offered in-person or virtually.

Who It’s For

The Bradley Hospital Intensive Outpatient Program is for:

  • Children who need more than outpatient treatment to improve their functioning
  • Youth stepping down from partial hospitalization program or inpatient level of care
  • Children who need more than weekly therapy to develop skills to manage their symptoms

What to Expect

The following can be expected during the intensive outpatient program:

  • At least nine hours per week of treatment per week
  • A mix of individual, group, and family therapy
  • Typically after school
  • Medication support as needed

Programs Offered

Bradley’s team of experts work with patients and their families to find the intensive outpatient program that best meets their individual needs.

How to Access

Call the free, confidential Kids’ Link phone line at 1-855-543-5465.

An intake evaluation and insurance review are required.

Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP)

A partial hospital health program is a structured outpatient behavioral health option that:

  • Offers intensive psychiatric services during the weekdays and allows patients to return to their homes at night.
  • Provides s a safe environment for children and adolescents where they focus on their well-being and have a comprehensive and personalized care plan.
  • Are most beneficial for those requiring more support than outpatient therapy but are not in need of inpatient hospitalization.

The Partial Hospital Program offerings at Bradley Hospital, are less intensive than an inpatient or residential program and do not require an overnight stay in the hospital.

What It Is

Our Partial Hospital Programs offer structured therapeutic care during the day and allow children to return home at night. This type of program is more intensive than outpatient therapy with up to six hours of care daily that include individual, family, and group therapy and activities that support skills development. The Partial Hospital Program at Bradley hospital is offered in-person and virtually.

Who It’s For

The partial programs are designed for:

  • Children and teens struggling with emotional, behavioral, or psychiatric issues
  • Those who need more support than outpatient therapy can offer
  • Families who are struggling to support their child’s functioning and mental health
  • Children who are unable to function at school

Partial hospital programs can prevent children from needing an inpatient hospitalization and can support transition after an inpatient hospitalization back to the community.

What to Expect

At the partial hospital program, expect:

  • Full-day programming, five days a week
  • Individual, group, and family therapy
  • Medication management
  • Educational coordination with schools
  • Family-centered treatment and care planning

Programs Offered

Bradley’s team of experts work with patients and their families to find the partial program that best meets their individual needs:

How to Access

Families should contact Kids’ Link. Intake and evaluation are required amd insurance authorization is often needed.

Inpatient Psychiatric Hospitalization

Inpatient care is for patients experiencing severe psychiatric symptoms that pose a safety risk to themselves or others and/or an inability to function at home, school, and in their social lives.

  • Patients are monitored 24 hours per day in a secure environment
  • A typical inpatient stay is one week, although some stays can be extended for significantly longer based on psychiatric and safety needs.

Inpatient care at Bradley Hospital provides around-the-clock psychiatric care, in-person, for children and teens experiencing a mental health crisis.

What Is Inpatient Care?

It’s the most intensive level of care, designed to ensure safety, stabilize symptoms, and begin treatment.

Who Needs Inpatient Care?

  • Children and adolescents in immediate danger to themselves or others
  • Children and adolescents unable to care for themselves or unable to function in their lives
  • Youth experiencing severe psychiatric symptoms (e.g., suicidality, aggression, psychosis)

What to Expect

During inpatient psychiatric hospitalization, expect:

  • Constant (24 hours a day, seven days a week) supervision by clinical and mental health staff
  • Individual, family and group therapy
  • Medication evaluation and management as indicated
  • Safe, structured environment with daily therapeutic and educational programming intended to build skills to manage their psychiatric symptoms
  • Family treatment and engagement with discharge planning
  • One week stay on average, though some stays may be extended based on psychiatric and safety needs

How to Access

Admission to inpatient psychiatric hospitalization is through a psychiatric evaluation, preferably through Kids’ Link or alternatively an emergency department. Insurance authorization is typically required.

Residential Programs

A residential program provides patients with long-term, intensive, 24-hour support in a structured, home-like environment:

  • The program aims to help individuals, and their families, develop and sustain emotional, social and cognitive abilities, and confidence to lead productive lives before returning home.
  • This level of care offers individuals who are not currently in crisis more support than outpatient services.
  • This level of care is typically accessed through state support and at times through insurance.

Our expert clinicians and staff help youth build emotion regulation and coping skills through therapy, family therapy and support, education and engaging community activities.

Residential programs offer a structured and supportive treatment setting in the community. They’re usually longer-term (often six months or more) and focus on helping individuals build skills and confidence before returning home. Patients take part in individual, family, and group therapy, may receive psychiatric care, and live in a home-like environment where they work on personal goals and learn how to relate to others in healthy ways. The children each have an educational plan that includes attending school in a setting appropriate for their educational needs.

What Residential Programs Are Available?

Bradley Hospital provides a range of in-person, residential treatment services for children and adolescents across Rhode Island, offering intensive, family-centered care tailored to unique developmental and emotional needs with a goal of improved personal skillfulness and family functioning. 

Some of our Residential Programs include:

  • The CRAFT Program, which supports children ages 5 to 12 with serious emotional and behavioral challenges with a focus on family reunification
  • The Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities (CADD) Program, serving youth ages 8 to 21 with both developmental disabilities, psychiatric diagnoses and challenging behaviors.
  • The Compass Program, a short-term, community-based program for girls ages 13 to 18 experiencing severe mood and/or behavioral dysregulation. The program integrates the dialectical behavior therapy approach to promote emotional regulation, safety, and long-term stability.
  • The Bradley Center, a 16-bed residence providing short-term intensive treatment and stabilization for adolescents ages 12–17 with serious emotional, behavioral, or co-occurring disorders.

What to Expect?

Bradley Hospital offers a range of programs tailored to meet each child’s unique needs. Our team works closely with the patient and family to ensure placement in the program that’s the best fit.

How to Access?

Placement into a residential program involves collaboration with the treatment team, the family and local state agencies such as the Department of Children, Youth and Families (aside from The Bradley Center). 

How to Proceed Toward the Right Care

Bradley’s team of clinicians and staff strives to help patients build a sense of purpose and meaning so they can be equipped to lead productive and quality lives.

Determining a level of care is personalized to the particular needs of the child and family at a particular moment in time, to support your child and family’s health. 

We’ll assess, with children and family members, which program would be most effective, and provide individualized treatment to support their mental health.

Bradley Hospital