Chimes Holcomb

Holcomb’s outpatient programs encompass a range of services including short-term and long-term treatments that vary with the diagnosis and severity of illness, as well as the coping skills and support systems available to the consumer.

Mental Health Outpatient Services

Our outpatient mental health services are available for both children and adults and are designed to support individuals on their path to recovery. We use proven, evidence-based approaches that focus on a person’s strengths, potential for growth, and overall well-being.

Services begin with a comprehensive assessment—this may include a psychiatric, psychological, or diagnostic evaluation. These evaluations help us understand each person’s unique needs and form the foundation for a personalized treatment plan that’s guided by the individual’s own goals.

Therapy is a key part of outpatient care and may include individual, group, or family sessions, depending on what’s most helpful for the person’s specific situation. Our approach is flexible and tailored to meet each individual where they are.

In many cases, medication can play an important role in managing symptoms. Our psychiatrists and nurse practitioners provide medication management services and work closely with each person and their therapist to find the right treatment plan.

Our goal is to reduce symptoms, promote recovery, and improve quality of life—while always respecting the person’s voice and choices in the treatment process.

Substance Use Services

We offer substance use services for both children and adults, with options based on the level of support needed. These services are available in two main formats: traditional outpatient and intensive outpatient.

Traditional outpatient services typically include a mix of individual and group counseling sessions, usually held once a week. This option works well for individuals who are stable but still need regular support in their recovery journey.

Intensive outpatient services (IOP) are designed for those who need more frequent support. These services involve about nine hours of group and individual counseling each week, usually spread over three days. IOP offers a more structured environment while still allowing participants to live at home and maintain daily responsibilities.

For individuals facing both substance use and mental health challenges, we offer a specialized co-occurring disorders (COD) group to provide more targeted support. We also offer at least one group in Spanish to ensure services are accessible to members of the Latino community.

Our goal is to meet each person where they are, offering flexible and inclusive care to support lasting recovery.

Intensive Behavioral Health Services

Intensive Behavioral Health Services (IBHS) support children, youth, and young adults with mental, emotional, and behavioral health needs ages 0-21. IBHS offers a wide array of services that meet the needs of these individuals in their homes, schools, and communities. Individual or ABA services may be recommended and services are scheduled with caregivers weekly to model and transfer skills.

Mobile Therapy (MT)

Mobile Therapy involves face-to-face, child-centered individual and family psychotherapy, utilizing a strength-based approach, provided in a setting other than a therapist or provider’s office.  Every child has an individual treatment plan developed by the Interagency Service Planning Team (ISPT).   When other behavioral services are being provided simultaneously, the Mobile Therapist provides primary clinical direction, coordination and management of information and progress towards the treatment plan goals. The Mobile Therapist may also provide specialized therapies.

Behavior Consultant (BC)

Behavior Consultant is a consultation service delivered by a professional with expertise in behavioral management utilizing an Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) approach. The BC directs the members of the treatment team regarding the appropriate clinical approach for a specific child with complex needs.  The BC, in collaboration with other members of the treatment team, designs, directs and coordinates the implementation of a behavior modification intervention plan, which incorporates behavioral goals and intervention techniques specific to the needs of the child and based on non-aversive behavioral change methods. Members of the treatment team and family provide the service directly to the child and/or family in the home, school, day care, or other community program or setting.

Behavioral Health Technician (BHT)

Behavior Health Technician (BHT) is a support staff who, under the supervision of the BC, carries out the behavioral interventions as determined by the child’s individualized treatment plan. The BHT works to teach and transfer skills to the caregivers utilizing activities such as play, role modeling, appropriate communication systems, art and verbal prompting, as examples. BHT services may be provided in a variety of settings, including your child’s home, daycare center, school, adoptive or foster home.

Services are provided in Pennsylvania in the following counties: Chester, Delaware, Berks, Lehigh, Northampton, Montgomery, and Philadelphia. 

Family-Based Mental Health Services (FBMHS) are intensive, mobile, team-delivered services for children and adolescents, ages 5-21, provided in the home and community. These services are designed to integrate mental health treatment, family support services and case management, so that families may continue to care for their child within the most integrated environment and to avoid out-of-home placement and reduce the need for psychiatric hospitalizations.

Crisis intervention services are also offered with availability 24 hours a day and seven days a week. FBMHS emphasize the importance of the interagency team meeting process. The teams and family work to identify and include all people important to the family that can be a source of support throughout the course of treatment. As a result, the Family Based team ensures that services are well coordinated and delivered in an integrated manner.

Student Assistance Program

For students ages 8-18, provides biopsychosocial evaluations, linkages to appropriate resources and treatment, as well as consultation and technical assistance to families and school personnel. Additionally, the SAP will co-facilitate student support groups and conduct classroom presentations and in service training as requested by the school.

Substance Use Forensic Assessment

Provides assessments and recommendations for treatment for adolescents being processed through the juvenile detention system where substance use is either suspected or known through a drug screen. Assessments are conducted with parents that are involved in the Children and Youth system where substance issues are an area of concern. These assessments are typically introduced into court hearings or are utilized in meetings between clients and their attorneys.

Mental Health Court Assessment (MHC)

This program provides assessments and service recommendations for individuals age 18 and older who are involved in the criminal justice system and experiencing significant behavioral health challenges. The goal is to connect individuals with the support they need, reduce time spent in jail, and help ease the burden on the criminal justice system.  Mental Health Court (MHC) assessments are conducted both at Chester County Prison and in the community for individuals who are out on bail.

Psychiatric rehabilitation services are designed to help individuals age 18 and older who experience functional challenges related to behavioral health conditions. These services aim to support greater success and satisfaction in the environments of their choice while promoting functional independence. Our programs are based on the principles of personal choice, recovery, and active involvement in one’s own rehabilitation process.

Holcomb offers three levels of psychiatric rehabilitation:

Clubhouse

The Cornerstone Clubhouse operates Monday through Friday, with one evening session per week and occasional Saturdays. It serves adults age 18 and older who are working toward recovery from behavioral health challenges.

Guided by the International Center for Clubhouse Development Standards, this model has supported adults in their recovery since 1948 by using work as a therapeutic tool. Clubhouse members volunteer their time and gain opportunities to become integral parts of both the program and the local community. This supportive environment helps each person develop skills at their own pace through everyday business activities. Members are encouraged to grow, share their talents, and engage with others. Holcomb partners with local agencies to provide vocational, educational, housing, wellness, and social opportunities, helping members thrive within the community.

Cornerstone Clubhouse encourages members to transform individual challenges into positive collective action.

The program is accredited until July 31st, 2026.

Decision Support Center

The Peer Support Center is open Monday through Friday and offers drop-in activity center services for adults age 18 and older living with serious, persistent behavioral health conditions or a combination of behavioral health and substance use challenges. Facilitated by peer mentors, the center supports participants in recognizing symptoms and highlights the importance of peer support as they navigate recovery. The program emphasizes support, networking, peer education, and social and recreational opportunities, all within a safe and caring environment that fosters self-confidence and improved daily functioning.

Mobile Psychiatric Rehabilitation (MPR)

MPR services are available to adults age 18 and older and provide recovery-focused support directly in the home and community. This mobile approach allows individuals to receive assistance in the places where they face challenges, offering personalized support in real-life settings.

Holcomb maintains several types of residential service options based on the level of support and type of environment needed by an individual.

Community Residential Rehabilitation (CRR)

CRRs are residential programs for adults age 18 and older who have a mental diagnosis. Providing 24 hour a day staffing and support, Activities of Daily Living Skills (ADLs) are taught by staff in a communal, supportive environment. Case management services are also offered to aid in the person’s readiness to live independently in the community. The respective county oversees the admission process to this program, and the length of stay can be up to three years.

Personal Care Home (PCH)

PCH is a residential program for adults age 18 and older and is a higher level of care than most CRRs. The participants in these programs usually have more chronic illnesses and an overlay of medical concerns in addition to their mental health diagnosis. The level of staffing is higher than other residential programs to assist consumers with complex needs. Consumers may have extended lengths of stay.

Group Home

Group Home is a residential program for adults age 18 and older who may be diagnosed with a mental illness, intellectual developmental disability or co-occurring disorder.  The homes are smaller, family-style residences that offer the same level of support as the CRR program, but in a home-like atmosphere. Program participants are referred by the respective county, and may be permitted and encouraged to stay in this program as long as they need and desire.

Respite

Respite services provide temporary, transitional living arrangements for individuals who are age 18 and older who have been diagnosed with a psychiatric disability, are registered in the public mental health system and are temporarily homeless. Participants are assessed as able to benefit from the service and have the ability to function within the structure and support of the program and comply with the program rules.

Holcomb provides a wide range of non-treatment, psychosocial supports that complement formal treatment services or are offered in isolation, based on the person’s needs. These psychosocial support services include:

Case Management (TCM)

Case Management services include a range of Medical Assistance-funded activities for consumers with psychiatric disabilities that have resulted in significant levels of functional impairment. The service assists members and families with service coordination, linkage to resources or other needed services and mental health advocacy.

Supported Living

The Supported Living program works with adults age 18 and older diagnosed with serious behavioral health challenges, who require significant external supports to maintain either independent or semi-independent community living. Target groups include persons transitioning from CRRs, persons in need of stable housing referred by case management and persons living with family members who wish to transition to independent living. Each person is provided with individualized supports that vary in nature and intensity based on the person’s specific needs.

Supported Employment

The Supported Employment Program provides services to Chester County adults age 18 and older, who are diagnosed with a psychiatric disability, are determined eligible by the County and desire competitive employment.

Holcomb provides a comprehensive array of prevention and education services to children, adolescents and adults in an effort to support individuals before mental health or substance abuse problems develop. Additional information can be obtained from the following pages on this website:

Chester County Prevention Services

BABES: The Beginning Awareness Basic Education Studies (BABES) program is a primary prevention program for children, grades K-2nd. BABES provides factual information on alcohol and other drugs, introduces decision making and coping skills, and works to increase each child’s self-awareness. The goal of BABES is to help children enjoy happy, health, drug-free lives. The program incorporates seven fun puppets to introduce factual, non-judgmental information on alcohol and other drugs, decision making and coping skills. BABES is delivered in seven lessons, usually once a week.

Positive Action: Positive Action is a 6-lesson program which encourages students to make positive choices. It works by teaching and reinforcing that you feel good about yourself when you do positive actions, and there’s a positive way to do everything. Positive Action is designed to improve academic achievement, school attendance, and problem behaviors.

Holcomb offers a comprehensive crisis care system that provides minimally intrusive interventions to assist individuals who are experiencing a mental health or psychosocial crisis.

The services support humanistic and recovery-oriented principles through instilling hope, social connection and a belief that all individuals experiencing crisis can readily regain control of their lives with the right supports and/or interventions.

Holcomb’s Valley Creek Crisis Center, located in Exton, PA, offers a crisis program to assist children, adolescents and adults experiencing varying levels of crisis. All of Valley Creek’s services are consumer-driven, recovery-oriented and culturally competent. This is achieved through the utilization of psychiatric rehabilitation principles, the use of peer specialists throughout the crisis system and a strong emphasis on diversionary efforts to help maintain individuals in the community whenever possible. Valley Creek Crisis Center has culturally diverse staff, including individuals fluent in Spanish.

The crisis center offers five distinct services:

Telephone Crisis Counseling and Community-Based Mobile Dispatch (Phone: Local Chester County – 610-280-3270 or the National 988 hotline)

Provides counseling, consultation, education and referral to those experiencing acute problems or to the family, friends, colleagues, school staff and/or agencies calling on behalf of an individual. The goal of the telephone crisis line is to ensure individual safety and promote recovery and wellness.

Consumer-Run Warm Line (Phone: 1-866-846-2722)

Provides peer support and resource information to proactively support individuals before a crisis develops. The warm line is staffed by Certified Peer Specialists who are trained specifically to assist other consumers in furthering their recovery. The warm line is open seven days a week, six hours a day: Monday – Friday, 8:00 am – 10:00 pm and Saturday – Sunday, 10:00 am to 10:00 pm.

Crisis Walk-In Center

The Walk-in crisis service is seen as an important component to the overall crisis system. While many crises may realistically be handled via the Warm Line and Telephone Crisis Counseling, many individuals will seek out personal face-to-face contact as part of their crisis intervention. For those individuals, the face-to-face component may be experienced as essential in effectively communicating their needs and developing a solution-focused action plan. The location for these services is 469 Creamery Way, Exton, PA 19341. Hours of operation – 7:00 am – 11:00 pm Monday – Sunday. 

Adult Crisis Residential Program – Please call 610-280-3270 for referral or admissions information.

Provides short-term residential placement for adults, age 18 and older, in need of behavioral health services that are less restrictive than an inpatient psychiatric hospitalization. The crisis residential program is voluntary and provides consumer-driven, recovery-oriented treatment in a comfortable, home-like environment. The program supports individuals in developing and achieving individual goals in order to resolve the acute crisis and achieve timely community reintegration.

Bridge Medication Program – Please call 610-280-3270 for further information.

For more information please visit: http://chescocrisis.holcomb-bhs.org

Holcomb provides formal educational opportunities, both internships and externships, for graduate level students to obtain required clinical field placement experience. See the following program descriptions:

Predoctoral Psychology Internship

Holcomb’s predoctoral psychology internship program has been an APPIC-member program since 2005. It is designed to provide doctoral students with the clinical opportunities that allow for a comprehensive training experience so that psychology residents can assume the role of a professional psychologist. Each rotation, didactic and other training requirements are designed to expand on the residents’ existing knowledge and experience.

The internship program utilizes multiple sites and services to accomplish this goal. Residents will be provided the exposure to diverse clinical issues, ages and cultural issues and will be expected to work from an integrated theoretical approach. Schedules will be approximately 45 hours each week. It is expected that each resident will achieve increasing levels of responsibility and autonomy as the year progresses. In the end, the internship year is seen as the culmination of the student’s opportunities to practice the art of psychology, based on prior exposure to the science of psychology.

For more information, please see the APPIC site description of Holcomb’s program at:

• Holcomb’s APPIC site
• Holcomb’s most recent Internship Handbook (PDF) is available for review.
• Learn more with the Internship Brochure
• Holcomb’s C-271 Internship Admissions, Support, and Initial Placement Data Information

This internship site agrees to abide by the APPIC policy that no person at this training facility will solicit, accept, or use any ranking-related information from any resident applicant.

For information regarding accreditation contact:

Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
American Psychological Association
750 1st Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

Phone: (202) 336-5979 / E-mail: apaaccred@apa.org

Psychotherapy Externship Placements

Holcomb offers therapy externships for psychology, social work and psychiatric nursing graduate students throughout the organization and its affiliates. The goal of the externship placement is to provide graduate students with the field placement opportunities to develop and/or enhance their treatment skills. Each agency office has varying clinical populations served and can handle a different number of externs placed at any given time. Holcomb strives to find a convenient placement based on both location and clinical opportunities sought.

Holcomb requires a minimum placement of two semesters, including a significant portion of the inter-semester break. The agency frequently receives applications and extends offers as much as a year in advance. Subsequently, applications are processed on a first come, first served basis. Holcomb’s practicum student application can be obtained here:

• Holcomb Externship Application (PDF)

Holcomb offers a comprehensive crisis care system that provides minimally intrusive interventions to assist individuals who are experiencing a mental health or psychosocial crisis.

The services support humanistic and recovery-oriented principles through instilling hope, social connection and a belief that all individuals experiencing crisis can readily regain control of their lives with the right supports and/or interventions.

Holcomb’s Berks County Crisis Center, located in West Reading, PA, offers a crisis program to assist children, adolescents and adults experiencing varying levels of crisis. Services are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and are free to the residents of Berks County. All of Berks County Crisis’ services are consumer-driven, recovery-oriented and culturally competent. This is achieved through the utilization of psychiatric rehabilitation principles, the use of peer specialists throughout the crisis system and a strong emphasis on diversionary efforts to help maintain individuals in the community whenever possible. Berks County Crisis Center has culturally diverse staff, including individuals fluent in Spanish and or access to a language line for interpretation services.

The crisis center offers four distinct services:

Telephone Crisis Counseling

(Phone: 610-379-2007)

Provides counseling, consultation, education and referral to those experiencing acute problems or to the family, friends, colleagues, school staff and/or agencies calling on behalf of an individual. The goal of the telephone crisis line is to ensure individual safety and promote recovery and wellness.

Crisis Walk-In Center

(Monday-Friday 8am-4pm, call ahead preferred)

The Walk-in crisis service is seen as an important component to the overall crisis system. While many crises may realistically be handled via Telephone Crisis Intervention, many individuals will seek out personal face-to-face contact as part of their crisis intervention. For those individuals, the face-to-face component may be experienced as essential in effectively communicating their needs and developing a solution-focused action plan.

Community-Based Mobile Outreach

The Mobile Outreach provides a response team that will go to any location in which a county resident is experiencing a crisis. The goal of all mobile crisis outreach is to provide clinically necessary crisis de-escalation, supportive counseling and solution-focused interventions. It is essential that the outreach occurs within the most natural setting for the individual.