VCP Blog

Although Vermont’s most vulnerable students are not attending school in person due to COVID-19, an increase in anxiety, isolation, and stress means that they and their families need social, emotional, and behavioral supports more than ever. The Success Beyond Six programs provided by the designated agencies in the Vermont Care Partners network are reaching students and their families throughout this time in creative, individualized, and trauma-informed ways. We are helping them stay safe, cope with the unique challenges of this time, and access their learning so that they can thrive as students in the future.

In the midst of a public health emergency, Vermont’s Designated and Specialized Service Agencies (DA/SSAs) inspire us now more than ever. While navigating new state and federal policies, providers are still offering resources to local communities, providing  treatment with clients using new technologies, collaborating with partners, and going above and beyond every day to get Vermonters the supports they need to stay well during the Covid-19 emergency. Join us in recognizing our valuable Vermont health care providers and how they are reshaping the ways Vermonters stay well.

Public health initiatives have long been used to encourage healthy behaviors, raise awareness of the causes and effects of illnesses, and prompt people to recognize symptoms and seek treatment. Most of the well-known public health initiatives of recent decades have...

Stressed? Overwhelmed? Hopeless? You are not alone. Life has changed dramatically in the past few weeks, but Vermont’s designated and specialized service agencies are still here to help.  Our agencies are now meeting the mental health, substance use disorder and...

In Mid-March, schools across America began to close in an effort to slow the spread of the rapidly evolving novel coronavirus. In a matter of days, nearly every student in America lost face-to-face access to the daily enrichment, socialization, mental health support,...

Uncertainty. It’s the watchword of today. Yet, in looking around there is hope. There is support. There is a commitment to the wellbeing of others. Acts of kindness and compassion are everywhere, lifting one another up. And there is no doubt that these challenging times will pass.

The Vermont Care Partners FY19 Outcomes and Data Report highlights the positive impact of its designated and specialized service agency programs on population health. Vermont Care Partners’ (VCP) is a statewide network of sixteen non-profit, community-based agencies provide mental health, substance use, and intellectual and developmental disability services and supports.

Keeping healthcare accessible right now is important for us all.
When many people hear the term “essential services”, mental health may not be the first thing that comes to mind. Continuing access to mental health support is not only important for everyone’s stress, it is vital for people who are healing after past psychological trauma. NFI VT (Northeastern Family Institute) is a community mental health agency serving Vermont youth, families, and adults and specializes in helping children who struggle with significant emotional and behavioral challenges, often as a result of trauma. NFI prides itself on responding nimbly to challenges, and the current Covid-19 crisis is no exception.

My struggle with anger problems, communication skills, and trust has been a lifelong struggle for me. I was always kicked out of class or suspended from school more than I was there. One of the biggest problems I faced was how to take responsibility for my actions…It took me about four and a half years, a bunch of conflicts, tears, and mostly hard work and dedication for Kindle Farm staff members to get through to me and help me be the person I have become. So, I just wanted to say thanks for not giving up on me and pushing me to my full potential.” – Kindle Farm Graduate

I feel like I am finally coming awake from a deep, heavy slumber. I can stretch a few inches taller and shake the cold out of my limbs. I can feel the warmth of the sun glinting down on me, returning energy to my body. I can see the beauty and the color of life again, hear the sounds of the season all around me. After being lost in the polarities of my worlds not once, not twice, but three times now, I find it necessary to look back and marvel at the journey that has brought me here.