Facilities

St. Mary’s ADHC facilities accommodate the variety of services we offer. We have a dining room where we serve breakfast, lunch and dinner; an activities room with pool tables, weights and physical therapy equipment; and a day room for socializing and recreational activities. There is a comfortable and quiet meditation room equipped with various religious texts that is available for individual or group prayer and reflection. Clients also have a laundry room on-site that they can utilize when necessary. The ADHC maintains excellent facilities that fulfill the various needs of our clients and foster a warm and inviting environment.

Recreation

A requirement for all ADHC clients (in all adult day programs state-wide) is that they must participate in at least three hours per week of health-related activities and at least one hour of health related activities each day of attendance. We offer a variety of health-related activities to engage and empower our clients including arts and crafts, creative writing and cooking classes, and open discussion groups, such as “40 and Over” and “HIV Support Group”. Active program participation helps reduce depression and stress, increases socialization and gives clients positive peer and staff support.

The Director of Therapeutic Recreation also conducts groups for the ADHC clients while assessing the impact of each activity and how the participants benefit. This evaluation helps the department tailor the activities to the specific needs and interests of the clients. Some of the groups and activities include: a money management group; “Do Good For Health,” Tae-Bo; and the Women’s Affirmation support group. We have monthly bowling trips and movie outings; in addition to special trips to Rye Playland, Yankee Stadium, Great Adventure, Broadway shows and more for our clients who maintain program compliance.

We welcome Drama Therapist, John Rainer of Creative Alternatives, .  His experience includes coordinator of programs at Charles Gay Men’s Shelter for homeless men, St. John’s Place Family Center for homeless families, Encore ’49 Residence for formerly homeless citizens, two programs in New York City schools and workshops for troubled adolescents.  All drama workshops combine elements of theater skills, improvisation and specific exercises based on life review and group writing.  These workshops have empowered the group and united them in many new ways.  The self-revelation has led to a deepening of bonds and this St. Mary’s family has become stronger

Clinical Services

Our compassionate and skilled clinical staff provides a trust-based environment for our clients to obtain maximum utilization of our medical services. The team consists of the Medical Director, who oversees clinical services for both facilities; a Primary Care Physician, who sees all of our ADHC clients, and a Registered Nurse. Clients can also make appointments with an on-site psychiatrist and a physical therapist. All medical services are offered to every client, even if they have external primary care.

We also have a part-time licensed acupuncturist who is also available by appointment. We have a comfortable acupuncture room with soothing music, soft lightning and aromatherapy candles to create a peaceful environment. It can relieve drug and alcohol cravings, reduce stress and anxiety and mitigate pain by placing needles at pressure points that are sympathetic to the area in need.

Clients can receive primary care directly from us, allowing patients to satisfy most of their medical needs in one place. Since clients are required to have monthly physicals done at St. Mary’s, our staff is already aware of each individual’s needs and can better provide quality health care. This makes our clients more comfortable, more motivated to stay healthy and more inclined to visit the doctors for necessary treatments and monitoring. Also by providing primary care on-site, we eliminated the difficulties in receiving medical information from external primary care physicians, expediting the admissions process.

Social Services

The main objective of social services is to ensure that each client’s concrete and emotional needs are met through case management. Our social services department provides lots of ego support and establishes rapport with the clients.

Based on each client’s initial admittance assessments, social services works with the other departments and the client to create a comprehensive care plan (CCP), which lists any personal issues, creates goals for the client to accomplish within 90 days and decides how the ADHC can help them accomplish these goals. A case manager implements the care plan by developing an activities and program attendance schedule and reviewing the specifics of the plan to ensure the client’s understanding of the program requirements. The goals of the care plan are revisited every 90 days with the client and staff to monitor progress and make any necessary changes. In addition, the case manager assesses each client’s social and family support system; family history; substance abuse history and risk; and housing and financial needs. This helps social services focus on each client’s individual issues by understanding their past lifestyle and current situation. Case managers also make sure that clients are keeping up with their mandatory monthly physical.

St. Mary’s ADHC utilizes a “harm reduction” approach. This means that social services works with each client to figure out what they are willing to change in their lifestyle that will reduce the harm they cause themselves. Success is measured on a personal level. Therefore, we do not force clients to attend drug treatment programs, nor do we perform toxicology labs or breathalyzers. St. Mary’s does not condemn clients who abuse illegal drugs or prescribed medications, however, we wholeheartedly support those who work towards sobriety. We encourage drug treatment and refer clients to detoxification and rehabilitation programs, if they are interested in these services.

VidaCare

VidaCare is a special needs plan (SNP) for people with HIV/AIDS founded by St. Mary’s and seven other community-based programs. Its goal is to provide a primary care site where all of a client’s needs are fulfilled. Participants will have a Primary Care Provider (PCP), a Personal Health Care Manager, a Certified Social Worker and a Member Services Representative who truly understand the specific needs and issues of each client. If a client wants to visit a specialist, VidaCare will refer them to one who is experienced in working with the HIV/AIDS population. Our objective is to ensure client’s comfort in our services by giving individualized care from doctors they know and trust. Most HIV positive people who receive or are eligible to receive Medicaid are able to join VidaCare, in addition to children (up to 19 years of age) of HIV positive people, whether or not they are HIV positive, and newborns of VidaCare enrolled women.

VidaCare benefits include access to:

A Primary Care Provider 24 hours a day

Up-to-date drug therapies and clinical trials

Numerous physician specialists and hospitals

Mental health services

Chemical dependency services, including harm reduction/needle exchange

HIV treatment education and support

Peer support

• Other medical and social services

For more information, VIDACARE central