Paper Example on Ted Noffs PALM Foundation

Introduction

Ted Noffs PALM Foundation is a residential treatment program for young people who are between the age of 13-17 years to help them address various alcohol and drug-related problems. This work of the agency has negative as well as positive impact on the young people.

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Strengths

The program helps the young people to desist themselves from harmful behaviors since all issues are usually addressed on .The program helps the youth to become diversified in their skills and ideas since PALM tirelessly strives to incorporate practices that are geared towards community development and all-around services to the youths. To achieve this PALM works closely with the young people on a diverse range of issues to ensure that the integration of their needs into the individual program.

The program helps in transferring of knowledge to the young individuals by involving them in solving their problems and also managing their behaviors through the program makes the recipients of the service own up to the intervention. Another advantage of the program on the youth is that they feel connected to the community. This is possible since when in the organization the young people are involved in a diverse range of occupational, recreational and cognitive therapy connections which tend to help all aspects of the young person's issues.

In addition, the agency has established connections with the other institutions associated with juvenile corrections targeted towards the challenges faced by the adolescent individuals. When their lives are under the danger of being destroyed as a result of alcohol and drug-related difficulties or on a harmful trajectory to themselves, there is a need for immediate or court-ordered action. Agency interaction has given the PALM the opportunity to serve a good number of youths and has been able to remain within their mission and vision. As funding derives from mostly federal 18% and state 56% sources it is in the interest of the state to defer the adolescent away from more punitive measures and into a rehabilitative center where treatment can be attained with the hope of reducing future criminal actions (Arcuri & Howard, 2006). Davis (2002) found that correcting behaviors is more effective in adolescents desisting in the harmful behaviors than single treatments plans. The agency has also demonstrated its ability to assist the youths to withdraw from the drug abuse and the ability to change harmful behaviors. The qualified workers have ensured this by making it a requirement that one abstains while under the program and must use all available services. The management has ensured their association with the external agencies has always ensured that they have guaranteed sources of clients. This has given the agency opportunity to serve a good number of youths and has been able to remain within their mission and vision. The agency has also demonstrated its ability to assist the youths to withdraw from the drug abuse. These initiatives ensure that PALM continues to receive government funding since some of their clients are from the criminal justice system as an alternative to other forms of punishment.

Limitations

Besides the strengths, it is also associated with some weaknesses which affect its effectiveness to work with the youths. One of such conditions is contributed to the short three month period during which the individual is treated. The period may not be sufficient to understand an individual fully and apply the various therapeutic measures. It is possible that some of the admitted youths may leave the agency after the prescribed period, recording very minimal changes in them. The failure of follow-up services on the behavior of adolescents, while they have gone out of the service of the program, is also another challenge. The teenagers can easily change back to previous behaviors or housing arrangements and take their previous forms of life when there is no one to advise them against involving in such social evils. Ihara & Summer (2003) found that after two years of integrated services, severe behavioral and emotional symptoms decreased by 42%. Overall, continuous case management has been identified as one of the strongest components of the system of care. Case managers link families with services, ensure good communication among providers, and help families identify resources. Recognition of this problem in partnership with a growing family movement, to create programs to integrate service delivery systems across mental health, education, child welfare, and juvenile justice.

Another weakness which is that despite the organization receiving most of its 74% of funding from government sources it is a challenge to secure the funding and maintain the financial stability of the PALM program. The state and federal government continually reduce and change funding for different needs in society. The sustainability of the program may result in their ability to expand to increase self-funding by developing ways to match governmental funding that may decline due to changes and differing budgets. This results in combining funding resources from the mental health, juvenile justice, and child welfare systems to provide the needed services.

References

Arcuri, A., & Howard, J. (2006). PALM StatsPack 2001-2005. Sydney: Ted Noffs Foundation.

Davis, J. P. (2002). The experience of 'bad'behavior in online social spaces: A survey of online users. Social Computing Group, Microsoft Research.

Ihara, E., Summer, L., & Georgetown University. (2003). Child & adolescent mental health services: Whose responsibility is it to ensure care? Washington, D.C.: Center on an Aging Society.