Jefferson County joined the Coleman Professional Services family in 2015. Named after President Thomas Jefferson, the county is 411 square miles on the eastern edge of Ohio and is home to over 65,000 residents.
Today’s blog post will highlight the services CPS offers there and the general challenges it faces, as well as, the ones brought on by COVID-19.
Jefferson County Services
Coleman offers nine unique services at its two Steubenville locations: 3200 Johnson Road (pictured above) and 740 N. 6th Avenue.
Counseling for Adults, Adolescents, and Children:
Outpatient counseling services for individuals and group settings.
Case Management for Adults and Children:
For those clients that experience severe and persistent mental illness.
Court Navigation and Re-entry:
The Court Navigator is in place to assist individuals involved in the judicial system with referral to Behavioral Health services as ordered by the Judge. The Re-Entry Navigator is to help those individuals being released from jail/prison in engaging in Behavioral Health services. Both services are intended to aid in the minimization of recidivism and to assist with gaining access to needed services.
Psychiatry for Adults and Children:
Assessments of individuals with psychiatric and emotional difficulties. Psychiatrists prescribe medications as needed, monitor their effectiveness and any side effects.
Guardianship and Payeeship:
Advocates for adults and seniors who are unable to make the necessary decisions to protect themselves and their assets.
24/7 Crisis Access:
Immediate help for those experiencing a mental health crisis. Coleman behavioral health professionals identify appropriate services, provide support, and make referrals to other programs.
Employment Services:
Finding jobs for people with disabilities. The mission of Coleman Employment Services is to help youth and adults find meaningful employment.
Residential Services:
Stable housing is an essential part of the recovery process. Coleman helps individuals find temporary and permanent housing to foster independence and build critical skills.
Visitation and Exchange Center:
Through education and monitoring, the Visitation and Exchange Center strives to prevent future generations from repeating the cycle of displacement and move towards healthier communication. The Center helps foster productive relationships with families while providing monitored visits, exchanges between guardians and coordinating services for the mental health needs for children and their families. This is also used to monitor parental exchanges for home visitation when the exchange has been problematic in the past.
Plans for the Second Half of 2020
According to Kristy Good, the Chief Officer of Coleman’s Jefferson County operation, they are moving forward with plans to implement a Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU) on the eighth floor of Trinity Health System in Steubenville. However, there have been many delays in the project due to COVID-19.
Currently, there are ten open CPS positions in Jefferson County. Recruiting for these positions is somewhat difficult due to the rural environment of the county and the fact Steubenville is only 30 minutes from Pittsburgh.
Coronavirus Challenges and Opportunities
As with other healthcare operations, many CPS patients were resistant to coming into the office after Governor DeWine issued his stay-at-home order, which left their workforce with little to do. However, due to the swift implementation of telehealth services, the Jefferson County workforce was able to provide continued assistance to their clients.
Also, by marketing this new form of service delivery, they can reach a new population of clients that were not able to utilize Coleman’s services before COVID-19 due to transportation, childcare limitations, or work schedules.
Coleman has received a lot of positive feedback from clients and staff about the telehealth option. Clients are particularly grateful that Coleman is open during this difficult time.
Coleman Professional Services Recommendations
If you or a loved one needs one of the services listed above, please do one of the following:
For a crisis, call the 24/7 Crisis Line at 740-996-7127.
For all other inquiries, please contact CPS at 740-996-7100, during regular business hours, Monday-Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.
Please visit the Careers page. If you or someone you know is looking for a job and is a qualified candidate, please fill out the online application or forward the post to a friend.