Parents Guide

Parents Guide to Cammack Children’s Center

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This guide was put together to help you has the Parent or Guardian in understanding the program at Cammack Children Center

Phase System Privileges
Visitation
Restricted Items List for Residents

Address is: 64 West Sixth Avenue Huntington WV 25701

Telephone number is: 304 523 3497

Executive Director: Kelly Sergent					extension: 11
Coordinator of Direct Care: Hazel Jacob					extension: 13
Coordinator of Social Work & Clinical Services: Kim Brown					extension: 15

Social Worker: Maddy Chappelle					extension: 36
Social Worker: Paige Childers					extension: 37
Social Worker: Kandice Fuller					extension: 28

Therapist:
Krista Miller (full time)					extension: 38
Gara (part time)					extension: 23
Kristy (part time)					extension: 40

Nurses:
Tina- Leslie					extension: 14

Dorms:
Up Girl:					extension: 22
Down Girl or West Boy:					extension: 20

Up Boy:					extension: 21
Down Boy:					extension: 19

Directions: We are located just west of downtown Huntington at 1st Street and 6th Avenue

From I-64 West: Take the 5th street exit (#8) off of I-64 – Stay right off of the exit and proceed on 5th street to 8th Avenue – Turn left on 8th Avenue and go 4 blocks to 1st street – turn right at the light and go under the viaduct and go 2 blocks to 6th avenue – turn left onto 6th avenue and go 100 yards to Cammacks entrance on the right.

Phase System Privileges:

Entry Phase (first 30 days of placement):

Two 5 minutes of phone call time per week on designated weeknight phone day
$3 per week allowance
One 2 hour on-site visit per week
No electronics
On-Site visit

Phase 1:

One weekend home visit per month
One day visit per month
15 minutes of phone call time per week on designated weeknight phone call days
$6 per week allowance
Allowed a radio, stereo, CD player

Phase 2

One weekend home visit per month
Two day visits per month
$9 per week allowance
15 minutes of phone call time on designated weeknight phone days
Allowed a radio, stereo, CD player
May participate in Work Program (cannot have received restriction 3 days prior to)

Phase 3:

One weekend home visit per month
Three day visits per month
$12 allowance
15 minutes of phone call time on designated weeknight phone day
Allowed a radio, stereo, CD player
May participate in Work Program (cannot have received restriction 3 days prior to)
Resident will receive an extra $50 clothing purchase order
Extended bedtimes on weekends until 10:30 pm

Phase 4:

Two weekend home visits per month
Two day visits per month
$15 allowance
15 minutes of phone call time on designated weeknight phone days
Allowed a radio, stereo, CD player
May participate in Work Program (cannot have received restriction 3 days prior to)
Resident will receive a $50 purchase order – not restricted to clothing
Extended bedtimes on weekends until 10:30 pm

D-Phase:
This is the Disciplinary Phase and is received after unacceptable behaviors occur. The consequences are as follow:

3 days room restriction
Completion of specific d-phase tasks
Phone calls – 5 minutes
No allowance for the week
Bedtime is 30 minutes earlier tan E-phase
No extracurricular activities
Need to meet with Dorm Supervisor to process event
After D-Phase completion you have one week of ground restriction
No sleeping during the day or evening
Loss of radio
Phase dropped one step

If discipline is warranted, restrictions can be given or a loss of privileges associated with their current phase may occur. Since phases are based on completion of treatment goals and objectives, dropping a phase is an option when a d-level offense has occurred. Review of phases, probationary phases and loss of phases are conducted by the treatment team at weekly staffing. Any staff person may request a review of this group for consideration for a probationary phase and a phase drop.

Phone Privileges:

Each resident is permitted to Receive or Make telephone calls on their dorm’s phone call night. They may receive or make calls only from people on their approved contact list provided by their DHHR Social Worker. To add a person to the phone list, the Parent/Guardian or the client can speak with the Cammack Social Worker who will call DHHR to get approval

The Amount of time is reflective of the phase:
E-Phase: 5 minutes phone time
D Phase: 5 Minutes
Phase 1, 2, 3 and 4: 15 minutes phone time

Telephone hours are from 6 o’clock until 9 o’clock in the evening

Daily Telephone Schedule

Monday: Up Boys and Up Girls
Tuesday: Down Boys and Down Girls
Wednesday: Up Boys and Up Girls
Thursday: Down Boys and Down Girls

Telephone calls are not monitored unless requested by your Judge or DHHR worker. Your Cammack Social Worker or Therapist would be the person to monitor the call if needed. A situation may occur where a telephone call must be briefly monitored to determine the validity of the call.

Mail Contact

Your child/resident may receive and send mail to only those on their approved mail contact list. This is a means that extended family, church friends, etc. may be approved to maintain contact with your child/resident as long as it is appropriate contact. The DHHR SW and/or probation officer must approve these contacts. Although all mail is opened in the presence of a staff member and checked to ensure it from an approved contact, incoming/outgoing mail is not read unless this is specifically stipulated by DHHR/JPO/Courts. If this is required, you child/resident will know this ahead of time, have to agree prior to this contact being approved, and be asked to make sure the person they are writing/receiving mail with are aware of this as well. If your child/resident receives mail from someone not on their approved contact list for mail then this mail will be held until DHHR can be contacted to determine if they can have the mail. Please note sender name and return address when sending mail. If it is not known who the mail is from then the mail will be opened so this can be determined prior to your child/resident receiving it. Cammack will provide postage for a letter each week to parent, DHHR, JPO, and Attorney. Your Child/resident will need to provide their own postage for multiple letters and/or mail to others on their approved contact list.

Visitation

Visitation with family members is a very important component to your child/residents treatment program at Cammack Children’s Center. Cammack desires for this family contact to occur on a weekly basis if at all possible. To visit with your child/resident you will need to maintain contact with their assigned social worker at Cammack and schedule these visits each week. All visits must be scheduled through them by 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday prior to the weekend you want to visit. Attempts made after 4:00 pm on Wednesday will result in having to wait until the following weekend due to the fact that visits are not supposed to be scheduled after this Wednesday deadline. We would recommend you contact your child’s Cammack social worker on Monday or Tuesday rather than taking a chance of them not being available on Wednesday resulting in not being able to schedule your visit. If your child’s social worker is out when you call, please leave a message with a phone number so that they are aware that you are trying to reach them and can easily call you back. If you have been unable to reach them by Wednesday morning, you can request to speak with another representative that may be able to assist you in your visitation request. This is done so that a complete visitation list can be put together and any medication needed for visits can be prepared.

During your child/resident’s placement, visits can occur on-site at Cammack Children’s Center for the initial 30 days of placement one time per week with those on their approved contact list. Upon the completion of your child/resident’s initial 30 days of placement they will move to phase 1 of their treatment program and with DHHR and Courts approval, off site visits will begin. Visitation during placement can include: Reminder that visits are 1 time per week – meaning Saturday or Sunday – not both days – so you will need to plan accordingly when scheduling your child’s on-site, off site or day visit.

Phase 1 —-1 weekend visit and up to 1 day visit
Phase 2—-1 weekend visit and up to 2 day visits
Phase 3—-1 weekend visit and up to 3 day visits
Phase 4—-2 weekend visits and up to 2 day visits

When arriving for a Visit or to pick up your child, Please check in with the main office during normal business hours or with the Supervisor on duty during the Weekend. Please Do Not leave with your child for ANY visit without speaking with a Cammack Staff Member who will call for your child, check your ID and visitation list, provide you with your child’s medication for the visit if needed, etc.

You will only be permitted to see your child during scheduled times. If your child requests something from home, please bring it during scheduled visits.

If you arrive late for a visit you are still expected to have the resident back at the pre-arranged time

On-Site/Off –Site visits: Can be scheduled on weekends that your child/resident is not on a day or weekend visit. They can utilize one type of visit each week whether it is their one weekend visit, or up to 2 hour on-site/off-site visit depending what they are eligible for and their behavioral choices during the week do not interfere and prevent the visit from occurring. See specific information about each type of visit below.

Weekend Visitation: A weekend visit consist of usually of Friday at 4pm to Sunday at 7pm – During Holiday Visits such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break the weekend visit is scheduled to include your child/resident home on these special days and often a 4th and/or 5th day at home can be an option added by the facility.

Cammack will assist with transportation for the weekend visits on a designated weekend each month if the family desires and needs this assistance. There would be a designated location in the area your family resides that Cammack would transport your child/resident to and you could meet Cammack staff and your child/resident at this location. We can only release your child/resident to designated person(s) approved by DHHR representative. If the family chooses to transport their child to and from the weekend visits they can choose which weekend they desire to visit but the resident would need to be off any restriction for that particular weekend. Should your child/resident be restricted for some reason, the visit could possibly be rescheduled for a different weekend during that particular month. It will be important that you call prior to leaving your home to pick up your child to make sure they are still able to visit as scheduled. If the weekend visit is delayed until the last weekend of the month, the visit would occur regardless of whether your child is restricted unless you, DHHR, and/or probation department/Courts restrict the visit due to your child’s choices and behaviors.

Day Visitation: Day visits are scheduled as per phase and listed above. Day visits can be scheduled for pick up/return between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. These times should be adhered to unless special arrangements were made ahead of time through the Social Worker due to specific need. Arriving early and returning late can affect future visits. Cammack does not transport for day visitation and your child/resident would need to be off any restriction such as room, dorm, work restriction or grounds to be eligible for this visit. It is possible that a day visit would need to be rescheduled should your child/resident earn themselves a restriction due to a poor behavioral choice. It is hoped that your child/resident demonstrates behaviors that will allow him to utilize these day visits. Day visits are not carried over to the next month should behaviors not allow your child to utilize them during each individual month. Day visits cannot be combined to make an overnight visit or additional weekend visit if used together.

Two Hour off-site visitation: On weekends that your child/resident does not have a planned day or weekend visit you can visit with them on one weekend day either Saturday or Sunday for up to two hours. These visits can occur off-site within the Huntington Area if you desire and transportation allows. Your child/resident would not be able to be restricted due to behaviors on the day the 2 hour off-site visit was to occur. Again we ask that you adhere to arrival and return times that are set up for the visits as exceeding and abusing this 2 hour time frame could affect being able to take your child/resident off-site for future visitation. All residents need to be returned to Cammack by 7pm regardless of pick up time.

On-Site visitation: As stated above, all visits during the initial 30 days of placement must occur on-site at Cammack Children’s Center. On-site visits usually occur on either Saturday or Sunday and can last up to two hours and they will need to be scheduled between 11am to 5pm. All Visitors will be asked to leave by 5pm – Regardless of the time your Visit Started. If separated/divorced parents choose and/or need to come at different times the two hour on-site visit can be divided into two one hour visits but we would discourage this if at all possible although realize this may need to occur with some families. Due to limited visitation area, lack of public restroom, etc. we ask that the number of person’s visiting on-site be restricted to immediate family such as parents and siblings and not extended relatives. If younger children and/or baby’s are in the home you may want to consider their attention span and needs when scheduling and coming for the visit. Once your child is able to have off-site visits this will give them opportunity to visit with aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc. Please do not bring people for on-site visits if they have not been approved ahead of time. If the person visiting is not on the visitation list provided by your child/residents social worker they will not be able to visit. All On-Site Visits occur inside our building in the main Hallway area. Please remember Not to bring your Cell phone or any electronic devices in to the building during visits.

Exceptions and/or other considerations: If family members are at our facility for another scheduled reason during the week such as a meeting, family therapy, etc. your one visit for the week can be scheduled to follow this meeting/therapy. We understand that travel distance and available transportation can be issues for some and this will make visitation more convenient for all. If you choose to utilize the weekly visit after a family therapy session or meeting, you would not be able to return on the weekend for a 2nd weekly visit. Please make sure if you desire to have a visit after a meeting or therapy session that you set this up with your child/resident’s social worker ahead of time.

Cammack adheres to the above visitation policy although we also realize that all residents and their circumstances are different. Some residents may not be approved for overnight visits so day or on/off campus visits may be set up differently. Some resident’s visits may need to be supervised and this may affect how visit are set up. Parental work schedules, transportation availability, a special occasion, holidays, etc. become factors at times. Exceptions to these policies occasionally are needed and occur. Your child/resident may question how or why other resident’s visits may be different than theirs at times. As we cannot discuss other resident’s circumstance with them or you as their parents we ask that you trust that Cammack will set up and arrange visitation for all residents individually and as equally/fairly to everyone as possible.

Reminder:

There is NO Smoking on our Property – this includes both parking areas
Cell phones and any other electronic devices are Not permitted in the building during visits
Animals or pets are not permitted on site
Because of confidentiality visitors are never permitted on dorms
You may bring food to eat during your visit (lunch) – the resident is to take all trash to the dorm for disposal
There is NO access to a Public Restroom during visitation

VIOLATIONS OF ANY OF THESE GUIDELINES WILL RESULT IN TERMINATION OF THE VISIT

This is a list of things that the Residents are NOT permitted to have while in Placement

It should also be noted that ANY personal item your child/resident brings into the facility is brought at their-own risk. Although efforts to ensure they are not lost, broken, misplaced, stolen, etc. will be made. Cammack does not replace personal items your child/resident brings into the facility.

Money:
Each resident receives an allowance based on their behavior and phase. They are not permitted to have more than $15 on them at any given time. Cammack provides activity and outing money for each dorm and we are trying to encourage them to earn rewards through positive behaviors so please do not give/send your child/resident large amounts of money.

Electronics:
Following their 30 day evaluation phase all residents are permitted to have a radio, small stereo or portable CD player. We do not permit possession of other types of electronics, including game systems, hand help game systems, televisions, DVD players, personal video players, MP3 players, laptop, Ipod, Ipad, etc. Any recorder music or movie must be original factory-recorded meaning NO burned DVD or CD.

Cell phones:
Your child/resident is not permitted to have possession or use of a cell phone while they are a resident. If they are found in possession of one/or have used one they will be placed on the programs disciplinary phase and the phone will be confiscated and kept until the residents discharge. Please keep in mind that while visiting at the facility that they cannot use a cell phone for calls, games, looking at pictures or any reason. We ask that during visits on site that you leave your phone and any electronic devices in the car as to prevent any issues or concerns.

Snack Food – Candy – Soda:
A resident may only have the following items on dorm: 1 candy bar, 1 snack, and or 1 beverage (not a 2 liter). Whether this is brought during an on-site visit, home visit or purchased with the residents own money – they are still only allowed 1 each of the 3 items. Residents are not permitted to have packages of candy or snacks or cartons of soda and NO type of Chewing Gum

Residents are not permitted to purchase or Drink “energy drinks” We ask that families adhere to this during times of visitation as well. They have been known to cause a false positive on some drug screen – this is not an acceptable excuse for your child/resident to use should a drug screen return positive.

Clothing Dress:

Proper fit – no sagging, not to tight or to loose and or revealing
Type “A” undershirts are NOT permitted
No strapless or spaghetti string shirts
No inappropriate Logo’s –pictures – writing on clothing
No holes above the knee in pants – No holes in Shirts

When residents are wearing baseball type hats/caps they are to be worn with the bill completely forward or completely backward as varying angles to one or another side may indicate gang “affiliations” and we do not permit this

Camera’s and pictures:
It is our policy that residents can not possess and keep cameras on dorms. They are not permitted to take or exchange pictures with the other residents due to confidentiality.

Tobacco Possession and Use:
The State Of West Virginia has ruled it illegal for anyone to use tobacco products in state-funded agencies. Any person under the age of 18 is not allowed to purchase or use any tobacco product. Any tobacco products, lighter, and matches found in the possession of residents will be confiscated and will not be returned. The resident will then be placed on the disciplinary phase.