
Full Answer
How do I choose a residential treatment center?
A residential treatment center (RTC), sometimes called a rehab, is a live-in health care facility providing therapy for substance abuse, mental illness, or other behavioral problems. ADAA has compiled a Q&A flyer based on typical questions from the public that we receive via email or phone regarding the selection of in-patient residential treatment centers.
What to expect from residential treatment centers?
The Residential Treatment Center Project is a partnership between the Department of Family and Protective Services and the Health and Human Services Commission to provide children with intensive mental health care in an RTC setting while their …
How to choose the right residential treatment center?
What to expect in residential treatment?

Why do people go to residential?
Generally speaking, patients enter residential treatment in acute or subacute crisis situations during which their needs are too intense to be managed with outpatient treatment but which do not rise to the level of severity requiring inpatient treatment.
What does residential mean in rehab?
Residential or inpatient rehab is a form of addiction treatment that provides clients with 24-hour care under the supervision of professionals.Mar 3, 2022
What is PHP medical term?
PHP is an abbreviation for partial hospitalization program. This type of addiction treatment program is more intensive than IOP (intensive outpatient) but less so than full inpatient or residental rehab. Compared to IOP, partial hospitalization requires more visits and sessions per week.
Whats the difference between residential treatment and inpatient treatment?
Key Differences Inpatient treatment consists of 24/7 monitoring, while residential treatment consists of monitoring, but not quite on a 24/7 intensity. In terms of environment, residential is a more comfortable, home-like setting, where inpatient consists of a secure part of a hospital.
What are the levels of treatment?
Levels of CareLevel 0.5: Early Intervention.Level I: Outpatient Services.Level II: Intensive Outpatient/Partial Hospitalization Services.Level III: Residential/Inpatient Services.Level IV: Medically Managed Intensive Inpatient Services.
How long does PHP last?
PHP can last anywhere from 3-12 hours per day, up to 7 days a week, depending on the person's needs. In PHP a person typically will stay for a majority of the day, receive all meals and snacks, as well as attend all group therapy, individual therapy, nutrition and psychiatry sessions.Oct 11, 2017
What is PHP and why it is used?
PHP is a server side scripting language that is embedded in HTML. It is used to manage dynamic content, databases, session tracking, even build entire e-commerce sites. It is integrated with a number of popular databases, including MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, Sybase, Informix, and Microsoft SQL Server.
What do I expect from PHP?
What to Expect from Partial Hospitalization. A typical day consists of individual and group therapy, psychoeducation, skill-building practice, and periodic evaluations. A licensed mental health professional conducts all of these. If medication is needed, you will meet with a staff psychiatrist for medication management ...May 8, 2019
What is residential treatment?
Residential treatment allows individuals to experience 24-hour care while pursuing therapy to confront the challenges of conditions related to substance abuse , addiction, and eating disorders. At residential treatment centers, individuals are able to access a higher level of care than can be provided by individual, family, or group therapy alone.
What to consider when choosing a treatment center?
There are many factors to consider when choosing a treatment center. Depending on the issue being treated and the location of the person seeking treatment, some degree of travel may be required to attend the program best suited to one's individual needs.
How long does a residential rehab stay?
Residential treatment centers are available for both youth and adults, and stays can range in length from 28 days to six months and beyond . To learn more about different types of rehab programs, what life is like in rehab, or the medical or financial aspects of rehab, see Frequently Asked Questions About Rehab.
What is retreat therapy?
What Is Retreat-Based Therapy? Retreat-based therapy is designed to offer respite from the chaos, stress, and often overwhelming demands of everyday life. Retreat centers, often referred to as wellness centers, offer a safe space for an individual, couple, or family to slow down, reflect, heal, and restore.
When was the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equality Act passed?
To address this issue, among other concerns, the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equality Act was officially declared as law in November of 2013. Health insurance companies are now expected to provide increased coverage for those seeking inpatient treatment for substance abuse and mental health-related issues.
What is residential treatment center?
A residential treatment center ( RTC ), sometimes called a rehab, is a live-in health care facility providing therapy for substance use disorders, mental illness, or other behavioral problems. Residential treatment may be considered the "last-ditch" approach to treating abnormal psychology or psychopathology .
How effective is residential treatment?
Studies of different treatment approaches have found that residential treatment is effective for individuals with a long history of addictive behavior or criminal activity . RTCs offer a variety of structured programs designed to address the specific need of the inmates. Despite the controversy surrounding the efficacy of (RTCs), recent research has revealed that community-based residential treatment programs have positive long-term effects for children and youth with behavioral problems. Participants in a pilot program employing family-driven care and positive peer modeling displayed no incidence of elopement, self-injurious behaviors, or physical aggression, and just one case of property destruction when compared to a control group (Holstead, Dalton, Horne, & Lamond, 2010). The success of treatment for children in RTCs depends heavily on their background i.e., their state, situation, circumstances and behavioral status before commencement of treatment. Children who displayed lower rates of internalizing and externalizing behavior problems at intake and had a lower level of exposure to negative environmental factors (e.g., domestic violence, parental substance use, high crime rates), showed better results than children whose symptoms were more severe (den Dunnen, St. Pierre, Stewart, Johnson, Cook, & Leschied, 2012).
How do RTCs work?
Different RTCs work with different types of problems, and the structure and methods of RTCs vary. Some RTCs are lock-down facilities; that is, the residents are locked inside the premises. In a locked residential treatment facility, clients' movements are restricted.
What happened in the 1990s?
In the 1990s, the number of children entering RTCs increased dramatically, leading to a policy shift from institution- based services to a family-centered community system of care. This also reflected the lack of appropriate treatment resources.
What is a teen rehab center?
RTCs for adolescents , sometimes referred to as teen rehab centers, provide treatment for issues and disorders such as oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, depression, bipolar disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), educational issues, some personality disorders, and phase-of-life issues, as well as substance use disorders. Most use a behavior modification paradigm. Others are relationally oriented. Some utilize a community or positive peer-culture model. Generalist programs are usually large (80-plus clients and as many as 250) and level-focused in their treatment approach. That is, in order to manage clients' behavior, they frequently put systems of rewards and punishments in place. Specialist programs are usually smaller (less than 100 clients and as few as 10 or 12). Specialist programs typically are not as focused on behavior modification as generalist programs are.
What is the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law?
Disability rights organizations, such as the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, oppose placement in RTC programs, calling into question the appropriateness and efficacy of such placements, noting the failure of such programs to address problems in the child's home and community environment, and calling attention to the limited mental-health services offered and substandard educational programs. Concerns specifically related to a specific type of residential treatment center called therapeutic boarding schools include:
When was attachment theory developed?
Beginning in the 1980s, cognitive behavioral therapy was more commonly used in child psychiatry, as a source of intervention for troubled youth, and was applied in RTCs to produce better long-term results. Attachment theory also developed in response to the rise of children admitted to RTCs who were abused or neglected.

What Is Residential Treatment?
- The intensive therapeutic services offered by residential treatment centers require individuals seeking treatment to leave their homes and reside in a treatment facility for the duration of therapy. These centers are in place to provide safe, effective, evidence-basedcare for adolescents and adults who have experienced profound negative consequence...
What Is Retreat-Based Therapy?
- Retreat-based therapy is designed to offer respite from the chaos, stress, and often overwhelming demands of everyday life. Retreat centers, often referred to as wellness centers, offer a safe space for an individual, couple, or family to slow down, reflect, heal, and restore. At a retreat center, people may find the space and time they need to process personal, psychological, emoti…
Concerns and Limitations
- One of the primary issues associated with residential treatment and retreat centers is the expense. Residential treatment centers and retreat-based therapy can be quite expensive. Consequently, there is a significant socioeconomic divide with regard to healing and recovery, and the options available to those who are seeking treatment but cannot afford high costs may be li…
Overview
A residential treatment center (RTC), sometimes called a rehab, is a live-in health care facility providing therapy for substance use disorders, mental illness, or other behavioral problems. Residential treatment may be considered the "last-ditch" approach to treating abnormal psychology or psychopathology.
A residential treatment program encompasses any residential program which …
Children and teens
RTCs for adolescents, sometimes referred to as teen rehab centers, provide treatment for issues and disorders such as oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, depression, bipolar disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), educational issues, some personality disorders, and phase-of-life issues, as well as substance use disorders. Most use a behavior modificationparadigm. Others are relationally oriented. Some utilize a community or positive peer-culture mo…
Historical background in the United States
In the 1600s, Great Britain established the Poor Law that allowed poor children to become trained in apprenticeships by removing them from their families and forcing them to live in group homes. In the 1800s, the United States copied this system, but often mentally illchildren were placed in jail with adults because society did not know what to do with them. There were no RTCs in place to pro…
Behavioral interventions
Behavioral interventions have been very helpful in reducing problem behaviors in residential treatment centers. The type of clients receiving services in a facility (children with emotional or behavioral disorders versus mental retardation versus psychiatric disorders) is a factor in the effectiveness of behavior modification. Behavioral intervention has been found to be successful even w…
Controversy
Disability rights organizations, such as the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, oppose placement in RTC programs, calling into question the appropriateness and efficacy of such placements, noting the failure of such programs to address problems in the child's home and community environment, and calling attention to the limited mental-health services offered and substandard educational programs. Concerns specifically related to a specific type of residentia…
Research on effectiveness
Studies of different treatment approaches have found that residential treatment is effective for individuals with a long history of addictive behavior or criminal activity. RTCs offer a variety of structured programs designed to address the specific need of the inmates. Despite the controversy surrounding the efficacy of (RTCs), recent research has revealed that community-based residential treatment programs have positive long-term effects for children and youth wit…
See also
• Anti-psychiatry
• Behavior modification facility
• Child abandonment
• Child abuse
• Child and family services
Further reading
• Kenneth R. Rosen (2021). Troubled: The Failed Promise of America's Behavioral Treatment Programs. Little A. ISBN 978-1542007887.