CHILDREN'S SERVICES

CIS Complicated Grief

Specialized Treatment for Children and Youth with Complicated Grief

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Gateway Healthcare has developed a specialized program to provide Children's Intensive Services (CIS) to children and youth who are experiencing complicated grief after being impacted by a death loss. Children experiencing complicated grief are often "emotionally frozen" and unable to process the typical grief stages.

Children experiencing complicated grief often exhibit serious behavioral and emotional issues, months or years after a death loss. These children amy have extreme anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. If the complicated grief issues are not resolved, children and youth may experience serious mental health and relationship difficulties in the future.

Where does Complicated Grief arise?

A child may experience complicated grief if death loss was sudden, traumatic, and violent such as with homicide, suicide and accidents.
Complicated grief may develop if the child has already had previous multiple losses and/or if the deceased individual was abusive/neglectful to the child.
A child may also experience complicated grief if there is inadequate or inappropriate support through their social network.

Is the Complicated Grief CIS program right for my child?

Our team of specialized clinical and case management professionals work with you to identify your family's needs and determine the most appropriate and effective level of care. Additionally, the CIS team is working collaboratively with the FRIENDS WAY program, which offers peer to peer support groups for bereaved children and their families.

CIS Admission Criteria:

In addition to a child experiencing a death loss, the following conditions must be present:

Ages 2-18 years of age (may receive services until age 21 if active with DCYF)
Exhibiting significant impairment in any of the following areas:
- Autonomous functioning (e.g. diminished capacity for self care, cognitive impairment, decreased energy, rituals or interests that seriously interfere with daily functioning, safety concerns, phobias)
- Community (e.g. isolation, problematic peer relations, poor use of leisure time, involvement with the police)
- Family (e.g. oppositional behavior, role confusion, run-away, aggressiveness with friends and family)
- School (e.g. school phobia, anxiety, truancy, difficulty learning/concentrating)
Or experiencing the following symptoms:
- Psychotic symptoms not due to substance abuse
- Suicide risk by history, ideation or behavior
- Significant risk for violence to self or others
- At risk for out-of-home placement