Due to self-harm, Eve, 16, contacted the Family & Children’s Services COPES (Community Outreach Psychiatric Emergency Services) team and received treatment at an inpatient hospital. To continue her recovery, she will need care and support both at home and at school.
After her hospital stay, Eve is referred to the F&CS Children’s Bridge team for therapy and wraparound services including a behavioral health aide, a family support provider and youth care coordinator. She obtains essential support at school and home.
Currently, Eve is living with her aunt and family, as she works toward reunification with her biological mother. Eve and her mother obtain family therapy services.
Eve meets with her behavioral health aide at school to help her practice coping skills and reinforce skills that were on her safety plan. A family support provider works with Eve’s family as she navigates through therapy. Eve later reunites with her mother and reports that she is doing better. Eve also has gone two months without any self-harm behaviors.
She is one of several F&CS clients who receive help through the Children’s Bridge Program. This is a grant-based program in the Tulsa Public School District that provides additional support for children who have recently been discharged from an inpatient hospital or have had COPES crisis contact.
“Once a crisis is stabilized and families are working to restore normalcy, it can be difficult to figure out what needs to be put in place to ensure long-term stability,” said Amanda Bradley, COPES associate chief program officer. “Through the addition of the Bridge team, it allows dedicated team members to partner with families to help during this transition and ensure linkage to ongoing services.”
Since the program’s inception in January, 168 children have been referred due to discharge from an inpatient hospital, and 307 children have been referred due to a contact with COPES in the Tulsa Public School District.
“This program has been a great resource not only for my child, but for me navigating the mental health system and being able to help my kid through this rough time in life,” said one parent. “My kid has felt like they made a devoted friend and confidante in the specialist that has met with them weekly throughout this program. I would be lost in this process without them.”
