Glossary of Terms
The behavioral health field uses a wide variety of acronyms and technical terms to describe the services we deliver and the people who deliver them. This can be very confusing for families and consumers, who may not have ever encountered some of these terms before. Below is a list of commonly used acronyms, program names and technical terms you may encounter while at CPC.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
Accredited/Accreditation – An accredited agency (which CPC is) is one that has had their programs and practices reviewed by a neutral, expert third party to ensure that they meet specific standards of quality. For more information, see the Accreditation page, or the CARF entry below.
Activities of Daily Living – These are activities that most people do on a daily basis, i.e. bathing, dressing appropriately, cooking, cleaning, laundry, shopping for groceries, managing their money, etc. Frequently, individuals with severe mental illness struggle with these activities or have never developed normalizing habits in these areas.
Advocacy – A service provided by our case management and treatment staff to assist our clients in getting their needs met by community providers other than CPC. CPC staff will advocate for the client’s needs with other agencies.
Alcohol and Drug Information School (ADIS) – An educational program that is sometimes mandated by the courts for individuals charged with alcohol or drug related crimes.
ARNP – Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner, also called a psychiatric nurse practitioner when employed by CPC. These are nurses with special advanced training who are able to prescribe and monitor medications.
Assessment – An assessment is a meeting between a qualified Mental Health or Chemical Dependency Professional and a prospective client to determine if the client is suffering from a diagnosable mental illness or chemical dependency issue that can be treated by services at CPC. An assessment typically covers symptoms, thoughts, environment, past history, medical issues, and other topics that might help us determine how best to assist someone.
Axis I Disorder - Refers to a clinical syndrome found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (see DSM IV-TR below). A clinical disorder is what most people think of as a "diagnosis," such as depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc. There are also Axis II disorders, which refer to developmental or personality disorders, as well as Axis III, IV and V conditions, which describe physical conditions, severity of psychosocial stressors, and level of functioning and their impact on the Axis I or II illness.
B
Behavioral Healthcare – A term that is used to include both mental health and chemical dependency programs.
Behavioral Health Disorder – Either a mental illness or chemical dependency/abuse issue, or a co-occurring disorder of both.
Best practices – A practice (i.e. therapy or program) that has been reviewed and researched by independent sources, and has been determined to be effective in producing the desired results.
Bipolar Disorder – A mood disorder marked by alternating episodes of depression and mania.
C
CARF – The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities. This is the national accrediting body that surveys CPC’s programs and business practices every three years to ensure that we are providing efficient, effective, high quality services backed by sound organizational management.
Case Manager/Case Management – Case Management is a service provided by CPC. A Case Manager works with a client to coordinate the various services that he or she is receiving. Generally, each client is assigned a Case Manager who serves as their primary clinician and point of contact at CPC. The Case Manager assists the client to develop a recovery plan, monitors the client’s progress, assists the client in acquiring and maintaining public benefits such as Social Security, helps the client to access community resources such as food banks and housing, helps the client to develop normalizing activities such as finding a job, setting a budget or going to school, and generally provides the support necessary to promote the client’s recovery and reintegration into the community.
CDMHP – County Designated Mental Health Professional. This is the only person legally mandated to file for an official involuntary treatment order in Washington State. Every county is required to have one available 24/7.
Chemical Dependency – A behavioral health disorder. When an individual persists in use of alcohol or other drugs despite problems related to their use, chemical (or substance) dependency may be diagnosed. Compulsive and repetitive use may result in tolerance to the effect of the drug and withdrawal symptoms when use is reduced or stopped.
Clubhouse – A psychosocial rehabilitation program designed to provide a welcoming community for mental health consumers interested in participating in meaningful work. For more information, visit the CPC clubhouse’s web site at www.wallingfordhouse.org.
Community Housing – A service provided by CPC where three to five individuals with mental illness live semi-independently in a single-family home in a residential neighborhood, with services and support provided by a case manager. Also called “cluster housing.”
Community Integration – The behavioral healthcare industry term for the services provided at CPC’s structured day programs. Community Integration (also called Community-Based Rehabilitation) services are designed for adults with long-term mental illness who want or need more support with their recovery than is generally provided by standard case management. The Community Integration program is a modified clubhouse style program that provides a daily place where clients can go to socialize, get a free or reduced-cost meal, and if they choose, participate in the tasks associated with running the program.
Community Support Services – CPC’s Case Management program (see “Case Manager/case Management” definition above). Community Support Services are offered at the Belltown, Northgate and Wallingford Locations.
Co-Occurring Disorder – Any two (or more) behavioral health disorders experienced by the same person at the same time. At CPC, this is most commonly used to refer to co-occurring mental illness and chemical dependency.
Counseling – Treatment of a mental or emotional disorder using communication between a therapist/counselor and client. Techniques are designed to encourage communication and insight into problems and conflicts, with the eventual goal of behavior modification.
D
DBT – Dialectical Behavior Therapy. A type of counseling (see "counseling" definition above).
Deferred prosecution – Someone who has been charged with a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor that is the result of or caused by alcohol or drug dependency or mental illness can be sent to a court-ordered treatment program rather than jail.
Depression – Mental illness characterized by inability to concentrate and feelings of extreme sadness or hopelessness.
Developmental disability – A term used to describe life-long, disabilities attributable to mental and/or physical impairments, or combination thereof, manifested prior to age 18. Frequently, people with mental retardation, cerebral palsy, autism, various genetic and chromosomal disorders such as Down syndrome, and Fetal Alcohol disorders are described as having developmental disabilities.
Developmentally-appropriate – Services provided to children/youth or individuals with developmental disabilities, which are designed to take into account the developmental status of the recipient and are tailored to fit their level of understanding and situation.
DSM IV-TR - Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition, Text Revision. This is the manual, published by the American Psychiatric Association, which categorizes all mental health disorders for both children and adults. It lists known causes of these disorders, statistics in terms of gender, age at onset, and prognosis as well as some research concerning treatment approaches. Mental Health Professionals use this manual when working with patients in order to better understand their illness and potential treatment and to help 3rd party payers (e.g., insurance) understand the needs of the patient.
E
Evidence-Based Practice – Treatments for which systematic empirical research has provided evidence of statistically significant effectiveness as treatment for specific problems.
I
Indigent – A term referring to a situation in which a person is unable to meet their basic necessities of life (housing, food, clothing) due to poverty.
Intake – An initial appointment where new clients meet with an MHP (see definition below) to provide basic information about themselves and their concerns.
L
Long-Term Rehabilitation – Highest level of care available in CPC's residential treatment facilities, for individuals who require intensive supervision and assistance completing activities of daily living.
LPN – Licensed Practical Nurse. CPC uses LPNs to provide nursing care at our residential facilities. These individuals have nursing training and are able to dispense medications.
M
Medicaid – A jointly funded, Federal-State health insurance program for low-income and needy people. It covers children, the aged, blind, and/or disabled and other people who are eligible to receive federally assisted income maintenance payments. Washington State provides Medicaid eligibility to people eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. The SSI application is also the Medicaid application, and Medicaid eligibility starts the same month as SSI eligibility.
Mental Health Professional (MHP) – Many of the clinicians at CPC are MHPs, including all clinicians who provide assessments. An MHP is a psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric nurse or social worker; or an individual with a master’s degree in behavioral science, nursing science, or a related field from an accredited college or university, and two years experience directly treating individuals with mental illness under the supervision of a mental health professional.
O
Outpatient – Someone who receives services from a hospital or clinic without requiring an overnight stay. All of CPC’s regular mental health and chemical dependency services are delivered this way.
P
Peer Support – A service provided in most CPC programs. Peer support specialists are people who self-identify as consumers of mental health services, who are well-grounded in their own recovery and have completed a peer support training curriculum, and who provide emotional support and advice to other individuals with mental illness.
Private Insurance – Insurance like that which is typically available to individuals or through an employer, as opposed to public insurance options such as Medicaid or Medicare.
Private Pay – Someone who pays all fees associated with his or her care without submitting a claim to an insurance company.
R
Recovery - Recovery is an individualized process for changing one’s attitudes, goals and abilities to create a way of living a satisfying and hopeful life. It’s a process that supports the client's ability to live, work and contribute to their community despite their mental illness. Recovery may be the reduction of or a complete remission of symptoms.
Recovery Plan – Each client in any program at CPC is required to complete a recovery plan as part of their treatment program. This plan details the steps needed to assist the client in recovering from the symptoms and challenges of their mental illness, and sets specific goals and objectives to assist the client in moving towards recovery. The plan is developed by the client and case manager, and any other individual the client feels is appropriate to include (family, close friends, partners, pastors, etc).
Representative Payee - An individual or organization that receives Social Security and/or SSI payments for someone who cannot manage or direct someone else to manage his or her money. CPC can act as a representative payee for clients enrolled in mental health, chemical dependency or housing services.
Residential Treatment – Where a client lives in CPC housing with 24-hour on-site staff and mental health treatment, medication monitoring and all meals provided. CPC has two residential treatment facilities (El Rey and Cascade Hall), and provides modified residential services at Keystone, Harbor House, The Willows and Cedar House. All of these facilities offer 24/7 staffing, but do not necessarily provide the full spectrum of residential treatment services available at El Rey and Cascade Hall.
Resiliency – The ultimate goal of the mental health recovery process. Resiliency is where a person is able to successfully “bounce back” from stressful, depressing or disappointing life situations and experiences without experiencing a relapse in their mental health or chemical dependency problems.
S
Schizophrenia – Any of a group of psychotic disorders usually characterized by withdrawal from reality, illogical thought patterns, delusions and hallucinations, and accompanied by other emotional, behavioral or intellectual disturbances.
Sliding-fee scale – Where a provider, in this case CPC, sets the fees for their services based on the recipient’s income.
Supervised Living – A slightly lower level of service than Long-Term Rehabilitation, provided in CPC’s residential treatment facilities.
T
Title XIX – Title XIX (or Title 19) refers to the part of the United States Social Security Laws governing state medical assistance programs (i.e. Medicaid).
Transitional Housing – A housing program that has limits on how long a person can stay. Usually 2 years for CPC programs.