Child, Adolescent, & Young Adult Services (CAYA)
Archway believes mental and physical health are essential factors in people’s lives. We also believe family, friends, education, and employment are important factors as well.
Recovery involves growth and setbacks and periods of rapid change, and very little change. Understanding this process helps people to remain optimistic about recovery.
Using a holistic approach and incorporating resiliency ideals – using skills and strengths to cope and recover from problems and challenges – CAYA helps youth and young adults develop the skills needed to be successful and satisfied in their home, school/work, and social environments, with the least amount of professional support required.
CAYA services are skill-based and designed to complement, support, and strengthen the mental health (therapy and psychiatry) services the person is already receiving.
CAYA offers person-centered, mobile, flexible supports provided in the chosen environment, home, and community. The young person can choose to have individual one-on-one supports or both individual and group supports.
All families receive free access to the local bus system. Additionally, CAYA staff provides transportation for all contacts. There are no out-of-pocket costs for families receiving CAYA services.
How We Can Help
Each person receiving CAYA services works with their assigned human service worker to create an individualized, person-centered plan with goals and objectives tailored to their specific needs. Individual one-on-one sessions provide the opportunity to work on specific skills. Group sessions provide education and the opportunity to practice skills.
Individual Supports
Some common focus areas of individual support include learning:
- Anger management skills
- How to safely express emotions/feelings
- Safe and effective coping skills
- Social and recreational skills
- Problem-solving skills
- Independent living skills
- Conflict management skills
CAYA’s Young Adults Services also helps young adults transition into adulthood by focusing on areas such as:
- Independent living skills
- Career exploration
- Employment skills
- Volunteer opportunities
- Finances
- Decisions on where the person wants to live
Community Activities and Group Supports
CAYA’s groups help young people develop the skills needed for working in group and community settings and developing peer relationships. They are also used to provide skills teaching and education around specific topics such as:
- Personal awareness and boundaries
- Hygiene
- Informal peer support
- Relationship building
- Social skills training
- Communication and interpersonal skills development
- Positive problem-solving skills training
- Coping skills training
- Managing emotions and feelings safely and effectively
- Positive, age-appropriate leisure/recreational activities
- Independent living skills
- Bullying
- Substance abuse
- Gangs
- Peer pressure
- Sharing resource information
- Practicing the skills developed during individual sessions
Community integration is an important focus of the work the CAYA team does with each young person. By having community activities, the team can provide education to young people about the safe social and recreational resources our community has to offer. Community group activities also allow young people to practice the skills they have learned during individual sessions.
CAYA strives to help young people become involved in the community at all levels and to become comfortable enough to do activities without staff support.
Community group activities may include such things as:
- Trips to the YMCA
- Fishing
- Visiting the local zoo
- Trips to local stage plays
- Trips to local parks
- Participating in local martial arts events
- Trips to the local airport for breakfast and plane rides
- Team sports such as bowling and basketball
The CAYA program has access to a large variety of age-appropriate games; video equipment such as the Oculus Quest 2 VR system, X-Box, and Wii system; craft supplies; and sports equipment for all ages.
CAYA staff can also help families with accessing resources and by acting as a liaison with other services. Some of the things staff can do to help include:
- Organizing and attending meetings with families to discuss the person’s progress
- Helping to ensure service coordination
- Linking the person and family to available resources for financial assistance, housing, food, school supplies, etc.
- Connecting the person and family to community health resources such as counseling, support groups, medical and dental care
- Helping the person and family understand and negotiate the health care system, legal system, education system, and other community service systems
- Ensuring the person and family are aware of all resources they may be eligible for, such as SSI, food stamps, school resources, transportation, etc.
CAYA Service Goals
Help children, adolescents, and young adults:
- Remain in their established home situation
- Remain in the regular school or job setting
- Perform within the norms of the community and school
- Use community-based resources to address areas of mental health
CAYA’s Target Population:
The CAYA program provides services to youth ages 3 – 17; and young adults ages 18 and over who live with and have support from family/caregivers.
To be eligible for CAYA Services you must:
- Be referred by a licensed mental health treatment provider
- Remain active in mental health treatment
- Have a qualifying diagnosis
- Reside in Allegany County
- Currently have active Maryland State Medicaid
Contact us if you would like more information about our services or about how to be referred.