COSIG CONFERENCE BROCHURE.pdf - Drexel University College ...

hospital. The CRRS and LTSR’s were developed to be short term (1-3 years) treatment and
housing, in which staff worked with individuals placed there to assist in the recovery process,
help with community integration and prepare residents to move in a timely fashion from the
staffed setting into more independent and permanent housing.
-Problems with the current CRRS and LTSR services – Consumer perspective
• Moving, changing residences is very difficult for people, as is the lack of a feel of
permanency when frequent moves are required. Persons with serious mental
illness are subject to great stress as a direct result of the upheaval associated with
a change of residence, which can occur as treatment needs change, and persons
must be transferred to a new location. Some of the persons living in CRR’s form
attachments with their housemates, and want to be able to call home the actual
CRR site where they have been placed. Nevertheless they may be required to
move to a new site and develop relationships with new housemates as their need
for treatment intensity changes.
• The current linear CRRS, LTSR model fails to provide housing choices for
individuals with serious mental illness. If a person needs the services and
supports that accompany or are interwoven into the residence, the person must
live where the County MH/MR Program and it’s provider agencies have located
the residences, in the CRR which provides the level of service most needed for
that person. Some consumers really don’t want to live with other persons with
mental illness, but would prefer to choose their own roommates or housemates;
and some don’t want to live with anyone, but are happier and more productive
when living alone.
-Problems with the current CRRS and LTSR services – Administrative concerns
• The current model only works when individuals can continue to move to the least
restrictive housing alternative, from state hospital through the levels of CRRS (or
LTSR’s), into supported or totally independent living (linear progression). Many
consumers who are ready to move from residential treatment facilities to their
own private housing frequently must remain in CRRS with minimum to moderate
levels of staffing, not because they still require the level of service/support
offered in the CRRS, but because there is no available affordable safe decent
sanitary housing available in the community into which the resident can move. Or
if housing is available, the necessary supports which make community housing a
viable alternative, such as crisis residential services, mobile psych rehab and
dedicated housing support caseworkers are not readily available within the
County's service array. In effect, some residents continue to receive a level of
staff support which is not needed, but must be provided due to the treatment
model of the CRRS, in order to continue to be housed.
• In other instances persons are placed in residential settings including CRRS and
LTSR’s because some level of staff supervision is guaranteed. Such placements
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