INDIVIDUALIZED SERVICE ALL THE WAY
We treat you like an individual from orientation all the way through the process, because long-term success depends on getting it right at each stage. One of the things that Ampersand Families is most proud of is the innovative array of supports we provide families once the youth has moved in.
As long as you want and need support following adoption, Ampersand Families is there.
- Helping you develop and use a safety plan, including reliable steps to take in case a crisis arises.
- Helping you navigate frustrating systems to access educational, mental health and other supports.
- Initiating check-in contacts with you at least monthly for at least the first year. (How often and what we do depends on what you want and need from us.)
- Matching you with a “Buddy Family” so you are sure to have routine respite and informal support from another family committed just to you.
- Staying in touch with you about ways that you and your family can take leadership in helping make the system better for youth and families who are still waiting. (We recognize that your experience is invaluable.)
Family Retreats
We recognize that families don’t happen overnight. We stay involved post-placement, and host full weekend family check-in retreats. Teens make new friends, while parents share experience and strategies, and have direct access to the specialized expertise of skilled community professionals.
“We would absolutely recommend this retreat to other families… the speakers, but particularly the consultation was a conversation with a professional I probably wouldn’t have had otherwise.” -Ampersand Parent
Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT)
In 2015 we received funding from Mt. Sinai Community Foundation to certify one of our staff in the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT). By Summer of 2017 we will be equipped to complete NMT assessments on youth in our families. Developed by Bruce Perry, the NMT has a fancy name, but it’s pretty basic and pretty brilliant. This evidence-based assessment looks at a youth’s particular combination of functioning and developmental trauma to create a “picture” of the impact that abuse, neglect and trauma has had on the youth’s brain. From the assessment we will be able to identify an array of mind-body strategies to help restore neglected neural pathways – healing through yoga, dance, drumming, jumping, moving, singing. The evidence is in that these strategies make a difference and Ampersand Families will help our families access them.
Buddy Families
Community families trained to provide planned respite and a sounding board to adoptive families as they navigate the challenges of building a healthy home. This peer program is being built to support the day-by-day resources needed to sustain a healthy family.
