Requirements Part I
Admissions & Eligibility for Mental Health Sponsored Residential
Mental Health Sponsored Residential Home Services are intended to serve individuals with mental health, behavioral health, emotional, and functional support needs who would benefit from a structured, supportive, family-style residential environment. The program may serve children, adolescents, and/or adults consistent with the provider’s approved DBHDS license and service description.
Individuals served may have a diagnosed mental health condition, significant emotional or behavioral health needs, or other clinically documented needs requiring residential support and therapeutic intervention.
II. Admission Eligibility Criteria
An individual shall be considered eligible for Mental Health Sponsored Residential Home Services when the individual can meet any of the following criteria:
A. Behavioral Health Need
The individual demonstrates a documented mental health diagnosis or clinically significant mental health or behavioral health needs requiring ongoing support, supervision, treatment, skill development, or therapeutic intervention. Eligibility shall be based on the individual’s overall clinical and functional needs and shall not be determined solely by the presence of a mental health diagnosis.
B. Functional Impairment or Support Need
The individual demonstrates difficulties in one or more areas of functioning that interfere with the individual’s ability to successfully maintain stability in their current living environment.
Areas of impairment may include:
- Emotional regulation;
- Behavioral regulation;
- Interpersonal relationships;
- Family functioning;
- Daily living skills;
- Personal care;
- Medication adherence;
- Treatment participation;
- School or educational functioning;
- Employment or vocational functioning;
- Community functioning;
- Decision-making;
- Problem-solving;
- Independent living skills;
- Maintaining stable housing; or
- Maintaining personal safety.
C. Need for a Structured Residential Environment
The individual requires a structured and supportive residential environment to address identified behavioral health, social, emotional, developmental, or functional needs.
The individual may demonstrate a need for additional structure due to:
- Instability in the current living environment;
- Family or interpersonal conflict;
- Difficulty maintaining appropriate behavior or emotional stability;
- Difficulty independently managing daily responsibilities;
- Difficulty consistently participating in recommended treatment;
- Housing instability;
- Need for increased supervision or support;
- Difficulty accessing necessary community services; or
- A need for a stable environment to support progress toward treatment goals.
D. Appropriateness for the Level of Care
The individual must be clinically appropriate for placement in a sponsored residential home.
The individual shall:
- Be sufficiently stable to reside safely within the structure and supervision available through the sponsored residential home;
- Not require inpatient psychiatric hospitalization at the time of admission;
- Not require continuous skilled nursing or medical care beyond the capabilities of the sponsored residential home and available community resources;
- Have needs that can reasonably be addressed through the services, supervision, treatment, and supports available through the program; and
- Be appropriate for a community-based residential setting.