Premier Inpatient Adolescent Behavioral Health Center in Fort Smith, Arkansas

Learn More About Inpatient Adolescent Behavioral Health

Located near Fort Smith, Arkansas, Valley Behavioral Health System provides comprehensive care for children and adolescents ages 4-17 who are struggling with behavioral health concerns, including:

• Depression
• Anxiety disorders
• Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD)

Our inpatient youth behavioral health program provides the most intensive level of support for young people and is designed for those who need immediate intervention or crisis stabilization. By receiving inpatient psychiatric care, adolescents and children can improve their functioning and learn healthy coping skills in a safe and supportive environment.

To guide each young person on their therapeutic journey, our professionals provide round-the-clock care and deliver a variety of programming options to meet individual needs. The average length of stay in our inpatient youth behavioral health program is about seven to 10 days. However, the amount of time a young person spends with us depends on their individual needs and progress.

At our hospital, we deliver inpatient psychiatric care for adolescents and children through a qualified team of professionals. Our staff includes registered nurses, advanced practice nurses, licensed social workers and counselors, board-certified psychiatrists, mental health technicians, a music therapist, and other professionals.

Each member of our inpatient adolescent behavioral health team is well-versed in helping young people who may be in crisis. We know that children and teens who are struggling with behavioral health crises typically need structured and personalized care, as well as the support and involvement of their families. Our experts take a collaborative and person-centered approach to providing inpatient mental health treatment for youth, including offering family therapy sessions as needed.

Admitting Into a Youth Inpatient Mental Health Program

Deciding to seek inpatient psychiatric care for your adolescent or child can bring up a lot of emotions and questions. At Valley Behavioral Health, we strive to be the best adolescent inpatient psychiatric hospital in the Fort Smith area. A large part of that involves helping families get the information and support they need to make an optimal decision for their loved ones.

Inpatient adolescent behavioral health treatment is usually most appropriate for young people who are struggling with severe challenges that are impacting their ability to function. It can also be ideal for those who need focused support and supervision to remain safe and regain emotional wellness.

If you think that the inpatient youth behavioral health program at our hospital may be right for your child, we encourage you to contact our admissions team. Our admissions coordinators are available 24/7, and they can help your family access a no-cost assessment at any time.

By participating in a comprehensive assessment at our hospital, you can receive a recommendation from our team for the right level of services for your child. We may recommend that your child or adolescent participate in inpatient behavioral health treatment at our hospital, or we may make a referral to another trusted service or program. If your child needs a high level of support but does not require acute inpatient care, we may recommend our subacute inpatient program.

Once we determine that our inpatient youth behavioral health services are right for your child, we’ll provide the chance to review admissions paperwork, including the consent for treatment. After your child is ready to begin care, a nurse will help them make a smooth transition to the unit.

If your loved one may need acute care for a behavioral health disorder, we encourage you to contact our hospital in Barling, Arkansas, today. Our admissions team will work with you to answer any questions you have about our programming, the items your child may bring to treatment, our insurance and payment options, and any other relevant concerns.

Our Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatric Hospital

At our hospital, we understand that children and adolescents who enter our inpatient adolescent behavioral health program need a safe place to begin their healing journeys. So we strive to provide a structured and supportive environment for each young person in our care.

To promote lasting wellness, our inpatient mental health treatment for youth takes place in a peaceful, nurturing environment. Our facility, which is surrounded by 65 acres of land, overlooks the Arkansas River and incorporates the natural beauty of the setting to help our patients heal. Our amenities include a gym, a cafeteria, and walking trails for patients.

As one of the best adolescent inpatient psychiatric hospitals in the Fort Smith area, we have a mission to provide exceptional care that supports the unique needs and goals of each patient. At all times in our inpatient adolescent behavioral health program, we strive to be a source of hope, safety, and compassion for our young patients and their families.

If you’re looking for child and adolescent behavioral health inpatient services near Fort Smith, Arkansas, we encourage you to contact our facility to learn more about what we offer.

Our Acute Pediatric Inpatient Behavioral Therapy

At Valley Behavioral Health, we want to help each young person in our care meet and exceed their therapeutic goals, as well as build a strong foundation for long-term healing. When you seek inpatient psychiatric care for your adolescent or child, we want you to feel confident that they’ll receive quality services that are tailored to their needs.

We offer a variety of therapies and services in our inpatient adolescent behavioral health program, which can help each child or teen achieve their short- and long-term goals. These services include medication management and a wide array of treatment modalities.

For many young patients, our acute pediatric inpatient behavioral therapy services are a focus of their treatment plans. Behavioral therapy can include any treatment modality that focuses on helping patients address problems and adopt healthy coping strategies and behaviors. The general goal of behavioral therapy is to reduce unhelpful behavior patterns, thereby helping to increase someone’s quality of life and functioning.

At our adolescent behavioral health inpatient hospital near Fort Smith, we offer a variety of therapies for young people. To help each person heal, we may incorporate elements of behavioral therapy into modalities like:

• Individual therapy
• Family therapy
• Group therapy

In our inpatient adolescent behavioral health program, we offer group therapy sessions every day, individual sessions about twice a week, and family sessions about once a week. During group sessions, children and teens may discuss topics like assertiveness, healthy coping, optimism, and new versus old ways of thinking. Individual and family sessions can also provide opportunities for education and growth.

Additionally, we may incorporate trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) into the therapy sessions we offer. This modality draws on a variety of approaches to help young people heal from trauma and to provide focused support for their families. In particular, it can empower young people to change unhelpful thoughts and behaviors to better cope with challenges.

To complement our acute pediatric inpatient behavioral therapies, we may also include experiential therapies in your child’s care plan. These can include music therapy and sand therapy. Additionally, we may offer a modality called eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) to help young people heal from the impacts of trauma.

Co-Occurring Child & Adolescent Behavioral Health

It’s common for children and adolescents who come to our hospital to have more than one behavioral health condition. When a secondary condition occurs alongside a primary diagnosis, it is referred to as a co-occurring disorder. As part of our youth inpatient mental health treatment services, we provide quality care for children and adolescents who have co-occurring behavioral health disorders.

Co-occurring disorders can have a significant impact on a young person’s well-being, and it’s often crucial to address primary diagnoses and co-occurring concerns at the same time to promote the best outcomes for patients. When your child or adolescent receives inpatient psychiatric care at our hospital, we will conduct a thorough assessment to determine the full scope of their needs. Upon admission and throughout your child’s stay, we’ll strive to provide holistic and well-rounded care for them.

Continued Care After Adolescent Inpatient Programming

Participating in inpatient youth behavioral health treatment can yield powerful benefits for a young person. But it is typically just one step on the path to long-term healing for your child. To ensure that each patient can maintain and build on the progress they make in our inpatient program, we make sure that everyone leaves our hospital with a thorough discharge plan.

Aftercare planning in our youth inpatient mental health treatment program begins on the day of admission to our hospital. A collaborative process, it typically involves the treatment team, the patient, and their family members as appropriate.

When a child or adolescent completes inpatient psychiatric care at our hospital, their continuing care plan may include various referrals and resources. Common recommendations for continuing care include referrals for outpatient therapy, primary care, and medication management.

Whether a young person is transitioning to our subacute inpatient program, moving to outpatient treatment, or continuing their healing journey along another path, our goal is to provide a detailed plan that can promote their ongoing success.

If you are looking for inpatient behavioral health services for adolescents near Fort Smith, Arkansas, we hope that you’ll contact our team today. We’re ready to support you and your child as you take these next steps toward better health and lasting healing.

This content was written on behalf of and reviewed by the clinical staff at Valley Behavioral Health System.