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Parent Empowerment Program (PEP)

Audience

Family peer advocates: parents or caregivers of children with mental health challenges who work with other parents experiencing similar challenges. The Parent Empowerment Program (PEP) is typically scheduled and promoted by healthcare or school systems whose professionals want to improve caregivers’ ability to advocate for their children.

Description

The Parent Empowerment Program enables family peer advocates to help themselves and other families get adequate care for their child.

Caregivers learn about the latest advances in diagnosis, treatment, and services for children with mental health conditions. They discover how to advocate for their children and to support other families who are grappling with the complexities of the mental health system and with related systems, such as schools.

The Parent Empowerment Program consists of two components:

• A five-day interactive seminar
• 12 follow-up consultation calls held twice a week for six months

Participants come away with a high-quality family empowerment manual and materials.

Specialized programs in the areas of child welfare and juvenile justice are available to help parents and staff to work together to address the mental health needs of children in these systems.

The Parent Empowerment Program covers the following critical topic areas:

• Problem-identification and priority-setting skills
• Engagement, listening, and boundary-setting skills
• Group management skills
• Mental health evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment
• The mental healthcare system
• School systems and special education options

Schedule a Training

REACH offers customized Parent Empowerment Program training to groups of 10 or more. Visit our Group Training page to learn more.