The SBHS Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) allows children and adolescents who do not need a full day program to attend school while continuing to receive intensive treatment Monday through Thursday from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. during the school year and from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. during summer break. IOP is group based and is designed to strengthen and reinforce communication skills, conflict resolution skills, anger management skills, emotional regulation skills, and general coping skills learned in therapy, PHP, or in the hospital. Treatment incorporates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Expressive (Art) Therapy, and psychoeducation. Healthy leisure groups foster positive interaction among peers and build or improve social skills needed to function well and to succeed at home and at school.

THE SBHS Intensive Outpatient Program serves as a transitional step between intensive programming and return to school, as it allows children and teens to return to their home and school environments during the day, while continuing to receive intensive treatment that supports successful transition and return to important aspects of each participant’s daily life. This is particularly important for participants who struggle at school and at home, as attending IOP after school affords opportunity to apply new skills to daily interaction in the participant’s natural environments (school or home), then to attend IOP to discuss their experiences of using new skills, to evaluate their effectiveness, to process the related experiences, and to role play to practice and refine skills. This allows participants to build confidence in their abilities to incorporate skills learned in treatment to their actual daily interactions and experiences.

Programming includes a specialized Intensive Outpatient Program for adolescents who demonstrate significant drug or alcohol use. This program runs Monday through, Thursday from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m.