Referrals for outpatient therapy come from mental health professionals, school personnel, pediatricians, and families themselves. Bellefaire's Intake Department assesses each case and makes initial therapist assignments.

Outpatient Treatment therapists also provide individual, group, and family counseling to clients involved with other departments at Bellefaire JCB. Included are children and adolescents in Bellefaire's Residential Treatment Program or our many foster homes. The therapist is integral to treatment planning and to the ongoing assessment of each client’s strengths and clinical needs. He or she works closely with other members of the treatment team to maximize healthy outcomes for clients and families.

The Outpatient Treatment Department is committed to ongoing clinician training and to researching and participating in “best practice” models of care. For several years, we have engaged the services of a nationally recognized consultant in the field of Strategic Family Therapy. This consultant has helped Bellefaire JCB broaden and strengthen its family interventions. In 2003, a consultant and expert in the area of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) worked actively with the Outpatient Treatment Department to set up new programming for treating self-injurious and suicidal adolescents in our residential programs and in the outpatient setting. The department continues to identify trends in the field of mental health and to train our staff members to integrate new, evidence-driven models of practice into their work with children and families.