Child and Adolescent Day Hospital

If your loved one is not getting the support they need from therapy, is struggling at school/work or at home, or has just been feeling overwhelmed – it might be time to try our day hospital program. Our caring and compassionate mental health professionals will work closely with patients and their families to ensure that patients are achieving goals.

The child and adolescent day hospital, also called a ‘partial hospitalization program’, provides age appropriate mental health treatment in a group setting from Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Our patients go home each afternoon. People typically participate in our program for 2 – 3 weeks and achieve improved outcomes. Take a virtual tour of our day hospital facility.

Who the Child and Adolescent Day Hospitals Serve

This program is designed for children and adolescents between the ages 10 and 17  (10 - 17 at our Towson hospital, and 12 - 17 at our Baltimore/Washington Campus). We also have an adult day hospital. 

Diagnoses treated:

• Major depressive disorders
• Anxiety disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Oppositional defiant disorder
• Other mental health conditions

Our Staff

Our treatment teams can include: 

• Psychiatrists or nurse practitioners: psychiatrists and nurse practitioners help patients with medication management 
• Therapists: therapists offer supportive counseling and lead treatment groups 
• Mental health specialists: mental health specialists help offer treatment groups 
• Nurses: nurses assess, plan, and evaluate patient care and provide nursing support 

Treatment at the Day Hospitals 

Patients participate in six and a half hours of therapeutic, age appropriate programming each day; care at the day hospitals is offered in a group therapy model and can include:

• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT): a form of psychotherapy that is effective for people who have trouble managing strong emotions and problem behaviors 
• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): a solutions-focused form of talk therapy that is designed to address specific, usually negative, thought patterns and behaviors 
• Psychoeducation: an evidence-based therapeutic intervention; individuals can better cope with their mental health through having an increased understanding of their diagnosis 
• Supportive counseling
• Medication and symptom management as needed
• Treatment planning
• Aftercare planning and coordination
• Family meetings

Curious about the environment? Take a virtual tour of our day hospital facility.

Sample Schedule

Continuing Care

When your loved one is ready to leave the child and adolescent day hospital, our team will work with you and your family on a discharge plan. This comprehensive aftercare plan will ensure that the appropriate community-based appointments have been arranged. 

How to Enroll

There are two common ways to access our day hospital:

• If your loved one is receiving treatment, ask their clinician to complete a  referral form. 
• If not currently receiving treatment, interested individuals can visit one of our Psychiatric Urgent Care walk-in clinics (with a parent or guardian) for a level of care assessment. 

Note: When a patient is referred to the day hospital, a Day Hospitals Admissions Coordinator will contact the patient (and/or guardian as appropriate) to share orientation information and schedule a start date.

Outcomes 

Our data shows that treatment at the Sheppard Pratt day hospitals is effective. We measure patient progress using Patient Recorded Outcome Measures (PROMS). Through PROMS, patients self-report how they are feeling. 

Between admission and discharge, patients’ depression scores decreased by 4.0 points and anxiety scores decreased by 4.1 points. This is a meaningful improvement in scores, and shows that our patients are leaving the day hospital feeling better than when they admitted.