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Texas has the highest population of youth with untreated mental health and substance abuse disorders, with 73% of teens reporting they could not access necessary behavioral health services. And in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, there is only one mental health provider for every 527 patients, increasing barriers to care [1].
Clearfork Academy, a network of behavioral healthcare centers for youth across Texas, is aiming to tackle this problem. Clearfork offers comprehensive, evidence-based treatment for teens 13 to 17 recovering from substance abuse and mental health disorders. We offer several levels of care, including Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP), that provide daily structure and intense treatment for moderate to severe behavioral health issues.
PHP is an ideal choice for teens who need intensive treatment and daily structure, but don’t require 24-hour care at a live-in residential facility. Read on to learn more about the benefits of PHP for teens and how it supports youth.
What Is A Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) for Teens?
PHPs are daily, intensive treatment programs that act as a bridge between inpatient and outpatient care. They are a structured substance abuse or mental health treatment option for teens who require more support than traditional outpatient care, but don’t quite require 24-hour inpatient care.
Unlike inpatient care, teens in PHP do not reside in the facility and return home in the evening. They have more freedom and chances to practice coping skills in real-world settings. However, unlike outpatient care, which tends to only meet once or twice a week for a couple of hours at a time, PHP offers more structure to teens who aren’t quite ready for that level of independence.
PHP allows teens to maintain a sense of routine and family commitments. PHPs offer similar services as inpatient care, such as individual therapies, group therapy, medication management, and skill-building workshops.
Typical Structure and Services Offered In A PHP
PHPs typically meet 5 to 6 days a week, for 6 to 8 hours a day. They offer several of the same services that teens can access in higher levels of care. These include:
- Individual therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), or trauma-informed Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) help teens reframe negative thinking patterns, build positive coping skills, and set goals for long-term recovery.
- Family therapy and family involvement in the recovery process can improve treatment and prevent relapse in youth. Family therapy focuses on improving family dynamics in the home by developing skills such as problem-solving, active listening, effective communication, and decision-making as a family.
- Group therapy is a core part of PHP to help teens build positive supports, a sense of connection, and reduce feelings of isolation.
- Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) or medication management under the supervision of a licensed psychiatrist is offered in PHP. Teens might participate in MAT to alleviate cravings and withdrawal pain during the recovery process from substance abuse, or to attend mental health medication appointments.
Benefits of PHPs for Adolescents
PHPs offer several benefits for teens to help them in their recovery journey. They provide intensive, multidisciplinary treatment administered by a clinical team of mental health professionals. Most importantly, they allow teens to do so while maintaining daily life and family involvement while still providing structure and routine.
Structured Care Without Full-Time Hospitalization
PHP’s unique model of care provides teens with intense daily structure to increase successful treatment outcomes, while supporting them with skill set development and implementation as they transition back home. Partial programs can also remove the feeling of “hospitalization”, focusing on building support systems and long-term recovery strategies, rather than detox or acute stabilization.
Continued Academic Support and Family Involvement
Teen PHPs often work with the school to provide teens with reading materials, individualized education plans (IEPs), and other resources to ensure they don’t fall behind academically. PHP also encourages family involvement and increases engagement with flexible family therapy scheduling. Many PHPs also now offer the opportunity for parents or adults to join treatment sessions virtually through remote platforms, removing barriers such as travel or schedule conflicts.
How PHPs Can Prevent The Need for Inpatient Care
Although PHP is often described as a step down from residential treatment or inpatient care, it can also act as a method to keep teens in the home and prevent them from having to go into a residential inpatient program. Studies have found that diverting patients to PHPs can reduce teen inpatient admissions by 23% [2].
Why Choose Clearfork Academy for Teen PHPs
Clearfork Academy is more than just a treatment center; it is a leader in Texas for teen behavioral healthcare. It makes treatment services more accessible to support teens’ health, safety, and social welfare and offers specialized treatment plans designed to meet their unique developmental and cultural needs.
Tailored Programs for Boys and Girls 13 to 17
Clearfork team members and mental health professionals specialize in teen mental health and adolescent development. Therapeutic interventions are tailored to the needs of growing teens, understanding they are in a unique stage of life influenced by hormones, transitions, and identity formation.
Continuum of Care and Varying Levels of Care
Clearfork offers several levels of care other than PHP, designed to meet teens and their families, no matter where they are in recovery. Some of the levels of care that Clearfork provides include:
- Detox helps teens rid the body of drugs or alcohol, provides acute medical stabilization, and supervision to ensure safe withdrawal.
- Residential treatment is a form of inpatient care in which teens live 24/7 at the treatment facility and participate daily in a combination of intensive individual, group, and family therapies.
- Intensive Outpatient (IOP) is considered a step down from PHP, meeting less days a week for less hours at a time and providing more flexibility.
- Outpatient therapy is considered the lowest level of care, meeting one or two times a week for hours at a time. Ideal for teens in long-term recovery or who need extra support with mild to moderate mental health challenges.
Faith-Based Approach Integrated with Evidence-Based Therapies
Clearfork Academy offers specialized tracks and a Christian faith-based approach, incorporating spiritual practices such as meditation, prayer, and scripture with evidence-based mental health therapies.
Faith-based interventions help teens focus on forgiveness, hope, and gratitude. Evidence-based mental health therapies help teens reframe negative beliefs or perspectives, develop healthy coping strategies, strengthen relationships, set goals, and problem-solve.
Getting Started with PHP At Clearfork Academy
Clearfork Academy is committed to helping teens and their families across Texas access essential substance abuse and co-occurring mental health care treatment. We understand the effects that unresolved mental health challenges can have on the lives of youth, their health, and communities.
We offer evidence-based treatments and strive to educate parents about youth behavioral health. Contact our admissions team today to see how we can support your family.
Sources
[1] Williams, A. et al. 2020. TEXAS SCHOOL SURVEY OF Drug and Alcohol Use. Texas School State Report.
[2] Sudhakar Madakasira. 2022. Psychiatric partial hospitalization programs: What you need to know. Current Psychiatry. Vol. 21, No. 2 (28-32).
Founder & CEO
Originally from the Saginaw, Eagle Mountain area, Austin Davis earned a Bachelor of Science in Pastoral Ministry from Lee University in Cleveland, TN and a Master of Arts in Counseling from The Church of God Theological Seminary. He then went on to become a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor in the State of Texas.
Austin’s professional history includes both local church ministry and clinical counseling. At a young age, he began serving youth at the local church in various capacities which led to clinical training and education. Austin gained a vast knowledge of mental health disorders while working in state and public mental health hospitals. This is where he was exposed to almost every type of diagnosis and carries this experience into the daily treatment.
Austin’s longtime passion is Clearfork Academy, a christ-centered residential facility focused on mental health and substance abuse. He finds joy and fulfillment working with “difficult” clients that challenge his heart and clinical skill set. It is his hope and desire that each resident that passes through Clearfork Academy will be one step closer to their created design.
Austin’s greatest pleasures in life are being a husband to his wife, and a father to his growing children. He serves at his local church by playing guitar, speaking and helping with tech arts. Austin also enjoys being physically active, reading, woodworking, and music.
