Pictured: Peggy Hotaling, Javon Blue, Megan McNew, Kristine Basnyat, Patrice Munford, Laurie Vozzella-Bell, Danielle Wheeler, Ginna Wagner, Jessica Beer, Kelsey McClellan, John Wortham*Missing: Andrew Knight, Dr. Ron Means & Dr. Taylor Scott
A team of talented and compassionate Catholic Charities staff comprises the Baltimore Child and Response Systems (BCARS). This team may be small in numbers, but they are mighty in their ability to tackle the emotional, behavioral or psychological crisis that are children and adolscents are facing.
“Our program is to help families stabilize during an immediate crisis that the child is experiencing and transition them into long-term support within the community, said Ginna Wagner, director of BCARS.
The team’s clinical staff provides in-home or school-based therapy support to children and their families. The children enrolled in the program are eligible for psychiatric evaluations and a follow-up appointment with the doctor.
The Child and Response team works with the city’s Department of Social Services to provide crisis and placement stabilization for children who are in the foster care system. It offers these children up to six weeks of services instead of the traditional two-week program. The BCARS team of therapists also work with the Baltimore City Public School system to assess children who may be in crisis while in at school. The staff evaluates the child’s to ensure their immediate safety and determines whether the young student may be eligible for enrollment in the BCARS program. During the school years, the team is able to connect with more children in need.
Our program provides brief and intensive community-based services for children in psychiatric crisis to divert or shorten their in-patient hospitalization and link them to community providers that will serve them for ongoing care, according to Wagner.
| • Biological Parent • School • Pediatrician • Any concerned person |
• Child is under 18 and living with a parent or guardian • Baltimore City Resident • Experiencing a self-described mental health crisis • Has Medicaid Insurance or is Uninsured • Eligible for traditional BCARS |
24 hour Hotline: 410-752-2272 |