Behavioral Health
Overview
What We Do
Where We Work
- All 31 California adult state prisons through the ISUDT program
- Residential campuses in California and Arizona: Circle Tree Ranch, Amistad de Los Angeles, La Entrada de Los Angeles, Vista Ranch, Beacon, Dragonfly
- Community-based programs across Los Angeles County
Who We Serve
- Justice-involved adults with substance use disorders;
- Individuals in recovery at residential campuses;
- People transitioning from incarceration who need continuing behavioral health support;
- Incarcerated individuals within CDCR facilities
Core Services
- Cognitive Behavioral Interventions (CBI)
- Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) support
- Supportive Housing within CDCR facilities
- Enhanced Pre-Release planning beginning up to 210 days before release
- Campus-based behavioral health programming
Our Approach
At Amity Foundation, we believe recovery begins by meeting people where are – whether they’re behind prison walls or living in the community.
Amity’s approach to behavioral health is rooted in more than five decades of direct experience leading therapeutic communities, residential treatment programs, and in-prison services. We understand that substance use disorder is inseparable from trauma, instability, and the conditions & experiences that drive people into contact with the justice system in the first place. Treatment that addresses only the symptom – the substance use – without addressing the underlying experience is not lasting. Our model takes the whole person, bruises and all, into account.
Inside correctional settings, we work to create environments that encourage healing and restoration. On our residential campuses, students engage in deep therapeutic community work – examining their personal histories, rebuilding family relationships, and developing the internal resources they need to sustain recovery.
Integrated Substance Use Disorder Treatment (ISUDT)
In Partnership with CDCR & California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS)
In partnership with CDCR and CCHCS, Amity Foundation operates ISUDT programming across all 31 California adult state prisons. Launched in January 2020, ISUDT provides Cognitive Behavioral Interventions (CBI) at three intensity levels, supports access to Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT), and helps establish Supportive Housing environments within facilities. An Enhanced Pre-Release process connects students to discharge plans and community-based care up to 210 days before release — closing the dangerous gap in services that puts people at highest risk for fatal overdose. Amity’s role in this statewide program reflects its unique combination of clinical expertise and deep familiarity with the California correctional system.
Campus Behavioral Health Services
If you’ve never heard of Occupational Therapy before, the word ‘occupation’ refers to how one occupies their time, rather than exclusively relating to employment.
As an overview, occupational therapy services provide evidence-based individualized assessments, evaluation, and intervention to address each student’s personal, environmental, and occupational factors that contribute to their successful engagement in meaningful tasks. This can include setting concrete goals, assessing functional capacity, identification of barriers, identifying skill development needs to promote participation, and improving individual performance. OTs are also skilled in identifying health and wellness needs, including mental health and illness impact, cognitive assessments, and sensory assessments.
With the specific population that we serve, justice involved individuals, these services are all contributing to the larger goal of reducing recidivism, creating healthy and sustainable routines to support long-term engagement in meaningful roles such as work, education, independent living, family participation, and others. OT also integrates trauma-informed principles into practice to promote psychological safety for our students.
Current programming includes individual and group sessions at La Entrada Women’s Campus, Beacon House, and through Employment Services.
Group topics include Emotional Regulation, Employment Preparation and Vocational Skills, Life Skills, Holistic Wellness, and more.
Initiatives: trauma informed care training, expanded literacy opportunities such as library trips or book clubs, occupational enrichment groups to increase engagement in meaningful tasks and routines.
Reach out to our Senior Occupational Therapist to learn more about our Occupational Therapy Department.
Morgan Troiano, OTD, OTR/L
MTroiano@Amityfdn.org