St. Vincent's Services

Spanning Three Centuries of Care for Children and Families

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Clinic Plus

St. Vincent's Services' community-based Clinic Plus program is focused on providing preventive mental health services to New York City children who are at risk of developing serious mental illnesses. Clinic Plus assists youngsters, some of whom may also be developmentally challenged, to address behavioral and emotional issues before they reach their teen years, when treatment can be more difficult and the long-term consequences of their conditions are far more serious.

Often troubled primary school-age children and their families may be unaware of the seriousness of their condition, which may manifest as "acting out" in a pattern of hostile, aggressive or disruptive behaviors, for example. Others may be withdrawn and anti-social. Data has shown that kids who have behavior problems are at higher risk for school failure-something that we seek to prevent as early as possible.

The program, which is separate from our work with foster youth, is a collaborative effort of the New York State Board of Education and the New York State Office of Mental Health and is open to the community. Frequently families may be unaware that mental health services are available to their children, so we seek to reach out to help New York City children by engaging local schools, religious congregations or other community organizations.