Family-driven care within the Wyoming SAGE System of Care means that families have a primary decision-making role in their own care, as well as planning, implementing, and evaluating the project. Family members will be involved in every level of the system including: governance; planning, program development and implementation; training; choosing supports, services, and providers; service delivery; and monitoring outcomes. Wyoming’s Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health, UPLIFT, will assist family members through parental support and advocacy, community outreach, and orientation and mentoring for family member representatives on various governance bodies. Family representatives will be on decision-making bodies and will assist with evaluation. Advocacy organizations will also assist in providing training to professionals regarding how to create partnerships that foster families’ participation in the planning, management, and evaluation of care. Family advocacy groups or organizations are extremely valuable in facilitating collaboration, providing input and feedback, as well as training and support when developing a system of care that is family-driven and youth-guided. Wyoming is fortunate to have an active statewide chapter of the Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health. This organization is UPLIFT. UPLIFT began as a parent support group in 1990 with money from a small grant from Peak Wellness Center in Cheyenne and quickly incorporated as a non-profit complete with a volunteer board of directors. UPLIFT's mission is to promote the emotional health and well-being of Wyoming children and families. Their purpose is to encourage stability and success for children with or at risk of emotional, behavioral, or learning disorders at home, school, and in the community. UPLIFT serves families of children from birth to 25 years of age. They currently maintain four offices across the state located in Cheyenne, Casper, Riverton and Laramie, but staff members assist families regardless of their location, traveling to meet with them when necessary. Throughout their history, UPLIFT has always maintained a board membership comprised of a majority who are family members. In addition, the majority of UPLIFT staff members are family members of children with emotional and behavioral disorders.
UPLIFT family representatives have actively participated in State led efforts to develop a system of care for children and their families. Supporting UPLIFT's work with families in this frontier state is an important component in the Wyoming SAGE System of Care. UPLIFT staff members also fulfill key roles on the SAGE Administrative Team.
A Parent's Perspective by Peggy Nickel
Raising a child with emotional disorders is a challenge many Wyoming parents face on a daily basis. Those same parents often feel isolated, alone and hopeless regarding their child’s needs. Many parents refuse to discuss their child’s needs due to the stigma of having an emotional disorder or mental illness, denial of the child’s needs, shame and self-blame for the child’s disorder, or frustration brought on by failed attempts to access good services.
After parenting a child with a variety of emotional needs for 24 years, I have experienced all these feelings. Through the years we have struggled to find adequately trained childcare providers, local schools willing to provide modifications sufficient to enable success for our son, teachers, doctors and counselors willing to believe the severity of our son’s problem, and service providers who were trained to work with children.
I have known the heartache of repeated inpatient psychiatric hospital stays for our son beginning at age three, the devastation of signing the first school papers qualifying our son for special education, the grief of placing our son in residential care for 18 months at age nine, the persistent feelings of self-blame fostered by service providers, recurrent fears of doubt that I could parent my son, the secret hope that we would find the magic cure, the intense shame when our son would act out in public settings, and the helpless feeling as I stand on the sidelines and watch my now young adult son struggle to maintain employment and relationships.
I also know, first hand, the importance of finding good mental health services for your child, starting early with good evaluations, modifications, interventions, and medications if necessary, strong family and community supports, and consistency in parenting. Wyoming is partnering with a number of stakeholders to build a good system of mental health care for our children and adolescents through the Wyoming SAGE System of Care. Call UPLIFT and talk to another family member about how you and your family can get connected. It will be worth it for your child!
1. A Family Guide to Achieving the Promise PDF ( 8 pages)
2. Working Definition of Family-Driven Care PDF (2 pages)
3. Family Guide PDF (30 pages)
4. Trends Child Research Brief PDF (8 pages)
5. Research and Program Brief PDF (6 pages)
6. The Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health PDF (5 pages)
7. FFCMH Principles for Family Involvement PDF ( 1 page)
