ABOUT US
Next Steps Community Services provides therapeutic residential services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental health conditions, and other behavioral health needs. Our team is compassionate, highly trained, and skilled in delivering person-centered, holistic services. We are adaptable and able to meet people “where they are at,”. We partner with each individual providing them with the support and services they need to meet their goals and live their best lives. To assist our individuals on their journey, we have a continuum of care including Intensive Treatment Service (ITS), Step Down and Long-Term Programs.
Below is a list of the state-of-the-art treatment approaches we use:
Good Lives Model-Informed (GLM)
The GLM is a strengths-based approach to rehabilitation in the wake of harmful behaviors, and is therefore premised on the idea that building capabilities and strengths in people can both reduce risk and contribute to a balanced, self-determined lifestyle in which harming others is unnecessary and undesirable. Our Clinical Director, David Prescott, has authored and co-authored many of the primary texts on this model.
Fire-setting Intervention Program for Mentally Disordered Offenders (FIP-MO)
FIP-MO is the most current and empirically informed treatment approach to the treatment of people with histories of fire-setting. It is designed to dovetail with the GLM, described immediately above. Originally designed by forensic psychologists in the UK, it has gained currency in many locations in Europe and North America.
Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) is provided to virtually all clients
Trauma-informed care is a framework that transcends any model of intervention and can be infused in any type of programming across agency settings and diverse populations. A trauma-informed program, organization, or practitioner recognizes the widespread prevalence of trauma and its deep effects across a person’s lifetime. TIC integrates knowledge about the neurobiological, psychological, and social consequences of trauma into policies, procedures, and practices that guide a safe, compassionate, and respectful therapy environment.
Motivational Interviewing
Motivational Interviewing is a person-centered, collaborative counseling approach for addressing the common problem of ambivalence about change. It focuses on eliciting a client’s intrinsic motivations, with particular attention to language of change.
Staff Facilitated Clinical Skills Development Groups & Individual Homework
Under the direction of our clinical team, these group sessions and individual assignments are guided by individual client needs aimed at providing them instruction and practice related to their skill development which include self-regulation skills, coping skills, relaxation skills, interpersonal skills, independence, self-efficacy, and anger management. These groups and exercises also assist clients in improving their communication skills in order to enjoy healthy and productive relationships with others. Staff use a variety of resources to facilitate these group sessions including but are not limited to, Wild Devine – Bio feedback, DBT workbook exercises (grounding exercises, mindfulness, radical acceptance, distress tolerance), Stop Breath & Think, and other materials in our library including materials provided to us by START.
