Treatment Needs of Emotionally Disturbed Deaf Youths: A California Perspective

Despite recent studies documenting that a large number of emotionally disturbed hearing-impaired students reside in California, resources and services available to them remain extremely limited. The majority of students are served, often inappropriately, within the public school or state hospital systems. Professionals who work with this population agree that intermediary residential and educational programs need to be established. A model program in Santa Cruz County, a cooperative effort between a group home and a private day school for severely emotionally disturbed adolescents, is outlined below. In addition, recommendations are suggested by professionals working in the fields of hearing impairment and mental health.