Princeton House Offers Specialized Programming for Men
Feb 9, 2011
PRINCETON, N.J. - Princeton House Behavioral Health has launched its first program
exclusively for men, offering Partial Hospital and Intensive Outpatient
services to men who have experienced traumatic events that are currently
affecting their sense of well-being and overall functioning.
The need for the program became apparent as Princeton House
continued to treat men who exhibited symptoms of post-traumatic stress
disorder, said Kameron Cassella, LCSW, a Clinical Coordinator at Princeton
House Behavioral Health's Outpatient Office on Mount Lucas Road in Princeton.
Those patients included men who experienced childhood abuse
or other trauma, victims of serious motor vehicle accidents, 9/11 survivors,
war veterans, and EMTs and others in dangerous, high-stress professions.
"We had seen so many men in our programs over the years who
had experienced trauma," Cassella said. "But when we researched it, we found
there were very few available resources to treat this population."
Cassella said the program design was based, in part, on the
programs that Princeton House runs specifically for women. A pilot of the new
program ran last year, before the current Men's Program debuted in January. Men
in that program reported feeling safer and more comfortable discussing their
past trauma, its impact on their relationships, self-esteem, and ability to
manage stress, Cassella said.
"One patient told me, ‘I've never been able to talk about it
like this,'" she said.
Everyone entering the program undergoes a comprehensive psychiatric
evaluation that will be used to develop an individualized recovery plan.
Each man in the program receives group and individual
therapy, coping and life skills training, and education on maintaining his
physical and emotional health. Family sessions are offered as well, Cassella
said. Program hours range from three hours a day, three days a week, to six
hours Monday through Friday.
Princeton House accepts referrals to the program from other
professionals and from patients themselves. For more information, or to
schedule an appointment, call (609) 497-3343.
About Princeton House Behavioral Health
Princeton House Behavioral Health (PHBH), a unit of
Princeton HealthCare System, is a leading provider of highly skilled and
compassionate behavioral healthcare at the inpatient, partial hospital and
intensive outpatient levels of care. We offer relief at times when life becomes
challenged by mental illness, emotional difficulties or addiction. A
multidisciplinary team of board certified psychiatrists and highly qualified
professionals provide a high level of treatment and care for people with acute
psychiatric illnesses, substance abuse problems, and co-occurring disorders. We
provide specialized services for children, adolescents, adults, older adults,
women and men. In addition to our main inpatient campus in Princeton, PHBH also
has outpatient sites in Princeton, North Brunswick, Hamilton and Cherry Hill.
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