Our Philosophy

Program Philosophy/Mission Statement

We believe the best practice in working with youth and families emanates from a set of shared values and commitments which are found in a “Culture Compass” that is fully integrated throughout our organization.  Because we want to be deliberate about our corporate culture, we issue an annual calendar that highlights one value/belief/expectation each week and we ask staff to spend a few minutes at the beginning of every staff meeting discussing and reflecting upon the “value of the week.” This organizational intervention reminds us daily that we are a part of a larger community dedicated to helping vulnerable children and their families.  Along with our mission and purpose our core values lead us to corporate practices that strive for excellence in all that we do.

Clinical Approach

Our clinical approach emphasizes the importance of developing a strong relationship while honoring the fact that neuro-diverse brains need a wide-range of activities to regulate the body and engage the mind.  Consequently, our programming is based on the therapeutic importance of rhythm to facilitate increased regulation of strong emotions that can lead to problematic behaviors.  Activities and the flow and routines of the day are aimed to support an optimal learning environment.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)

DBT is an evidenced-based practice that is designed to treat youth with emotional dysregulation, impulsivity, and difficult behavioral patterns.  DBT focuses on empowering the client and is an ideal form of treatment for Camino a Casa youth who often struggle with self-esteem, managing emotions, and social skills.  Goals of DBT include understanding and validating primary emotions, targeting ineffective behaviors and replacing them with more skillful responses, and developing a life worth living.  The Camino a Casa program provides DBT at the individual, family, and group levels.

PersonBrain Model ™

Casa Pacifica’s Camino a Casa Program also utilizes the PersonBrain ™ Model, a framework grounded in evidence-based neuroscience practices originating from positive psychology, applied behavioral analysis, and relational theory.  The PersonBrain ™ Model values an understanding of the development and functioning of the brain, the impact of trauma, and the importance of human connectedness in supporting youth and young people facing traumatic stress.  The goal is to restore a sense of safety, security, relatedness, and efficacy.  The framework attends to the developmental, physiological, behavioral, and relational needs of youth who may have experienced different types of trauma.  Trauma interferes with normal development, so treatment must “reimburse” youth for critical developmental experiences they have missed.  Trauma also impedes a person’s sense of hope – an essential clinical ingredient that must be restored through a loving, committed, life long relationship with a family or caring adult.

Neuro-Relational

In the neuro-relational framework, program staff assess and plan across six developmentally critical domains – Relational, Experiential, Eco-Cultural, Biological, Regulatory, and Academic.  The development assessment across these six domains provides information on genetic and historical factors impacting current functioning, levels of cognitive reasoning skills, quality of emotional coping skills, and a mental health diagnosis.

Reimbursements:  The neuro-relational model targets specific experiences that impact the youth’s behavior in an observable way.  Staff can readily access the impact of these “reimbursement” experiences in each domain and adjust treatment plans and interventions accordingly.

• Relational: conflict with peers and staff, agitation, verbal or physical aggression, poor boundaries, sexual acting out,
• Experiential: refusing to participate in activities, disrupting programming, withdrawn behavior
• Eco-cultural: bullying behavior, refusing to engage with family or natural supports, provocative behavior with those who are different than youth
• Regulatory: poor impulse control, emotional dysregulation, temper tantrums, extreme anger/sadness, runaway behavior, substance use, self-injurious behavior, property destruction
• Biological: poor hygiene and room cleanliness, hoarding tendencies, hypervigilance or inability to relax, eating disorders
• Academic: school refusal, poor attendance, lack of participation in school, not completing assignments, disrupting class