Residential treatment programs provide intensive help for children and adolescents with serious emotional and behavioral issues including Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Depression, Bipolar Disorder, ADHD and educational issues. While in residential treatment, children and adolescents temporarily live outside of their homes and in facilities like Bridges Treatment Center where trained staff provide treatment and around-the-clock supervision.

Residential treatment programs are helpful for youth who have not responded to outpatient treatments, who have education needs that cannot be met in a less restrictive setting or who are in need of further intensive treatment following inpatient acute psychiatric care. For youth who have exhausted the less restrictive options in their community, Bridges is there to help.

Effective residential treatment programs like Bridges provide:

• Comprehensive evaluations assessing residents'' emotional, behavioral, medical, education, social and leisure needs, and supporting these needs safely and productively.
• Individualized Treatment Plans that meet the particular needs of each resident.
• Individual, family and group therapy.
• Psychiatry care provided by a board certified child and adolescent psychiatrist.
• Ways for families and communities to be involved, like opportunities for family therapy, on-site visits, home passes and telephone calls.

At Bridges, we conduct treatment within a therapeutic milieu designed to provide a maximum of peer involvement. Daily activities promote cooperative interaction, healthy confrontation and recognition.

• Individual, group and family therapy
• Licensed educational services, including special education services
• Occupational therapy
• Speech and hearing services
• Social skills training
• Nutrition, fitness and health programming
• Psychological testing
• Assessments
• Treatment planning with recommendations for therapy, education and medication management once discharged
• Counseling for co-occurring substance abuse disorders
• Cognitive behavioral therapy

The on-campus education program serves males and females, ages 6 to 17 and is based on the Rivermont School program. Students with emotional disturbance, behavioral disorder, and/or mental illness attend a structured special education and treatment program. General education students are also eligible for enrollment.

The philosophy of the founding director William Gorman still stands today: "Children First." Teachers at Bridges feel that all children have the capacity to succeed. From the initial referral of a student to the tour and interview process that follows, Bridges seeks to identify the strengths that each student possesses in order to build positive student-teacher relationships.

Once enrolled, students are issued school uniforms and attend classes housed in one of two buildings. Physical education classes can utilize either an indoor gymnasium with basketball courts and a climbing wall or an outside sports field with soccer goals and a volleyball court. Five-and-one-half hours of daily instruction are provided in the areas of English, mathematics, social studies/history and science.

High school students will be enrolled in a Vocational Applications class with opportunities to participate in on-campus work experiences which include culinary arts and environmental services. High school students may also have the option of enrolling in Apex online courses for credit. This allows selected students the opportunity to recover credits and/or to expand credits toward graduation.

The curriculum at Bridges is aligned with the Virginia Standards of Learning and takes into consideration individual student goals and interests. Instruction is provided and report cards are issued on a six-week basis during the traditional school year (August through June). Traditional credits are offered, allowing students opportunities to work toward standard, modified standard and special education diplomas. Students then participate in a Summer Education Program that relies heavily on enrichment, hands-on activities and various field trips to attractions in the area. Students catch uup on academic credits and reinforce basic skills while having fun experiences during the summer.

Our students also receive support in the school through individual, family and group therapy opportunities. The school's behavior support program and levels emphasize positive reinforcement by offering students the chance to earn Bridges Bucks that can be spent in the Bridges Store, based on successfully meeting educational expectations.

Leadership

	Dee Rainey, M.Ed., LPC Director of Residential Services
	John L. Hendrickson, MD Medical Director
	Jitendra R. Annapareddy, MD Medical Director, Autism Services
	Jerry Padgett Milieu Supervisor
	Amy Stephens Milieu Supervisor
	Margaret Williams Lead Therapist, LHMP

Our treatment team includes two board certified child psychiatrists, licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, special education teachers, and registered nurses with expertise and training in Trauma Focused CBT, motivational interviewing, play therapy, sexually reactive behaviors and co-occurring disorders.

• Business Hours: 1.434.200.5700.
• Weekends or evenings: 1.434.200.4444 - our intake center can provide general information and facilitate contact with the admissions staff the next following business day.

Click here for an online referral packet/application

All referrals or inquiries for treatment are confidential. Admissions are made with parent/guardian permission.

Referrals for residential treatment are typically made by the special education department of the applicant's school to the local FAPT (Family Assessment and Planning Team) or Community Planning and Management Team (CPMT), local interagency teams established by the Comprehensive Services Act (CSA). CSA was designed to help troubled youths and their families.

Treatment at Bridges Residential Center is funded through Medicaid, CSA and other sources. Please contact your local Comprehensive Services Act (CSA) coordinator for details. To find your local CSA coordinator, visit the CSA website here.

Bridges Residential Treatment Center is licensed by the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) and the Virginia Department of Education (VOE). Accreditation by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) attents to our compliance with the highest national standards for safety and quality of care and our commitment to continually improving patient care. Centra, which owns Bridges, is Magnet-certified, an award given by the American Nurses Credentialing Center to select hospitals that satisfy a rigorous set of criteria designed to measure the strength and quality of nursing. Bridges Residential Treatment Center is a member of Virginia Association of Independent Specialized Education Facilities (VAISEF).

To view or print the license issued by Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS), click here.

To view or print the license issued by Virginia Department of Education (DOE), click here.