ViewPoint Center is one of the most well-known inpatient mental health treatment assessment hospitals helping teenagers in the United States. One of its standout features is the development of a fun, trusted community with other patients in the program. While people come from all over to benefit from everything offered on the campus, there is a sense of community with peers.
Despite short stays, patients have the opportunity to interact with others through academic programming, recreational activities, and the residential setting itself. In many ways, ViewPoint evolves into a small city, which provides the stability of others as well as perfect assessment opportunities for the staff to figure out the next steps for each patient.
A community feel on campus
A major selling point of ViewPoint Center is the residential building located in a very secluded area of Utah. Even though it is just a short ride to Salt Lake City, it can feel like a different world. This more laid-back feel might be different from back home for many patients, but it strengthens the community within. With fewer distractions and fewer people to interact with, it forces a stronger bond within the community.
The community at ViewPoint Center makes families back home much more at ease as well. Nothing replaces a person’s actual family, but creating a family-like atmosphere on campus is the goal with every new patient coming in. It may feel like a daunting task at first, but people ease into situations and become much more comfortable as time goes on.
Long term effects
Community is something that every program helping patients with psychiatric or medical issues strives for when admitting teens. This stop at ViewPoint Center might just be one of many, but a strong sense of community here can make other stops along the way that much easier.
Instilling the importance of being part of a community at ViewPoint Center is something that can translate to back home as well. Many who get their initial taste of being part of a community will report back later that they are now involved locally in new ways. It is a great way to feel needed and involved in the greater good, while also being one more distraction to fight off any relapses.
With all that said, there is a need for isolation from time to time for certain people. There is a full gym, a rock-climbing wall, sports fields, and a library on campus, to name just a few. Some will go with other patients at the facility, while others will look to dive into another passion. A teen never has to always participate in group activities. It is still vital for individual personalities to have their alone time while on the spacious campus.
A perfect setup for assessing and diagnosing
The feel of a community helps patients, but it also helps the staff at ViewPoint Center. This is because it creates a perfect opportunity to see how they operate in numerous situations. For example, a patient could be perfectly fine in more laid-back settings but struggle with academic programs. Instead of making a rushed diagnosis, having eight weeks to come up with a treatment plan ensures that each patient leaves with the best strategy.
Programs that do not stress the community setup are missing out on key evaluation opportunities. The better the evaluation, the higher chance of success. Skipping out on building a community setting with ample opportunities to showcase a teenager’s personality limits the possibility of a program having success.