Residential Living

What is the Nathan House Program?

Nathan House is a team of multi disciplinary professionals who are committed to working with young men who have been diagnosed with a Pervasive Developmental Disorder to assist both them and their families to improve their quality of life.  This is done with the development and implementation of an interdisciplinary treatment plan which will help to address their clinical needs including communication skills, repetitive behaviors, and improving social skills, while addressing medical complications throughout someone's stay.  Nathan House professionals are committed to developing an individualized treatment plan for each youth referred to this program and working together with the families to implement this plan. 

Anyone accepted into Nathan House will reside on a unit where 8 boys will live together.  There is a 2:1 staffing ratio on Nathan House to ensure that the treatment plans are implemented effectively and that the boys get the kind of care and attention they need.  Additionally, we have 24 hour nursing available to boys on Nathan House.  Nathan House is located on our main campus which is licensed as a residential treatment facility and accredited by the Council of Accreditation (COA).

Each boy who attends Nathan House will also attend school at our Learning Center which is an approved Special Education Facility and Certified by the Connecticut State Department of Education. Nathan House boys work with their Special Education teachers, who are trained to work with kids with Pervasive Developmental Disorder on a wing of the school that is dedicated solely to the needs of kids with developmental delays.  Boys from Nathan will also have the opportunity to work with the Green Street Art Center, vocational programming, or cooking classes if this is deemed appropriate.

Who is eligible for Nathan House?

• Adolescent males ages 12-21 who have been diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder.

• Have an IQ 40 and above.

• Boys should have some ability to communicate verbally.

• Youth may have significant but stable health needs including seizure disorders.

• Moderate to severe functional problems in school and with program supports be able to function safely in this setting.

• Moderate to severe functional problems in living/home life and with program supports be able to function safely in this setting.

• Moderate to severe functional problems in work settings and with program supports be able to function safely in this setting.

• Referred youth are expected to present with challenging behaviors including disruptive behaviors (property destruction, yelling, difficulty cooperating with routines), verbal aggression and physical aggression to others, as well as self-injurious behavior. 

• Referred youth may also have frequently identified co-occurring psychiatric problems among youth with Pervasive Developmental Disorders include anxiety and depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, inattention and hyperactivity, sensory problems, and neurocognitive disabilities.

How is Treatment at Nathan different?

Each person that is referred and accepted to the Nathan House Program has an inter disciplinary treatment plan which is developed and implemented from the first day that they arrive at The Children's Home.  This plan is informed by many different things:

1. Pre-placement Packet

2. Previous assessments or evaluations

3. Positive Behavioral Support Plan

4. Functional Behavioral Assessment

5. Clinical Observations made by team members

6. Those who know each boy best!

The therapeutic environment is a very comprehensive and integrated milieu where each child's clinical needs are assessed and treated on an individual level. 

• Each child will have a Positive Behavioral Support Plan that is a guide for those working with them to understand their strengths, weaknesses, and strategies for growth. 

• Each child will have a Functional Behavioral Assessment is a "problem solving process" used to understand each person's behavior and help develop the behavioral plan to teach them new ways to manage effectively in the community and at home.

• Each child will participate in the completion of a Sensory Profile to help to inform their treatment.

• A multidisciplinary treatment plan is developed to treat the "whole person" and to ensure consistency and increase effectiveness of plan's success.

• Nathan House provides milieu management through the use structured daily routines, consistency, a predictable and safe environment with opportunities for social learning on many levels including staff and peer modeling.

• The environment has integrated occupational therapy opportunities and staff are trained how to utilize sensory integration techniques throughout programming.

Residential Staff are trained how to collect data for each child daily which informs all aspects of their multimodal treatment plan.  This helps us make informed changes when necessary.    

• Residents participate in individual, family and group therapy sessions.

• Adaptive Physical Education is provided on both and individual and group basis.

• Psychiatric services are provided.

Medical services are provided, including some consultation services for neurological assessment.

• Nursing services are provided on Nathan House 24 hours per day.

• Pet therapy services are available.

• Coordination of care with the school at The Children's Home which is called The Learning Center.  The Special Education Teachers and Administration are essential to the successful development and implementation of the treatment plan.

• An integrated discharge plan with 6 months of after care to support a successful next step in each boy's life!  This includes intensive work towards discharge where the team members work hard with the family in the community and their homes to implement a successful discharge plan.

Residential Treatment Facility
  The Children’s Home of Cromwell is licensed as a residential treatment facility providing intensive mental health treatment and special education programs for forty-nine adolescent males and females.  We are accredited by the Council on Accreditation (COA).  Our residents’ ages range from 13 to 19 with one “House” for boys with developmental disabilities licensed to accept males from 12-20.  Our girls (12) live in a new “House”, constructed specifically to support program.  The majority of our residents come from Connecticut and most have experienced serious trauma in their lives.  Many have major clinical diagnoses and have difficulty communicating their feelings appropriately.  Our goal is to provide a safe and therapeutic environment that assures personal growth, social skill building and major problem resolution which allows each youth to make strides in their personal well being toward community reintegration.  We provide gender- and culture-specific treatment for each youth in our care.  Our focus is to assess each child’s strengths as a basis for establishing an effective treatment regimen.  Each child is assigned to a master’s prepared clinician for group, individual and family therapy as well as discharge planning.  Our model of treatment is based on Positive Behavioral Support.  We are identifying and capitalizing on each youth’s strengths.  We also integrate therapeutic recreation services, Ansel-Casey Life Skills instruction (both individual and group), and, when requested, spiritual life services. Staff in all of our programs build positive relationships with each young person and assist them to gain trust, as well as the skills and confidence to accomplish a smooth transition to home, to foster care or to independent living.