Clients’ ages: 12-17 Years Old
Type of Services: Multi-systemic Therapy in home for youth and their families
Funding Stream: EBA & DJJ
Population served: Adolescents 12-17 at risk of DJJ commitment or violation of probation
Director in charge and telephone number: Sandy Pietrewicz, Ph.D. Program Supervisor (772) 359-8095

The Redirection Program is designed to divert, or redirect, juvenile justice-involved youth as an alternative to residential commitment through placement into highly effective evidence-based community treatments. The program uses Multisystemic Therapy (MST), which is a home-based model of service delivery that reduces the barriers that keep families from accessing services. Therapists have small caseloads of four to six families; work as a team; are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; and provide services at times convenient to the family. The average treatment involves about 60 hours of contact during a 4-month period. MST therapists concentrate on empowering parents and improving their effectiveness by identifying strengths and developing natural support systems (e.g., extended family, neighbors, friends, church members) and removing barriers (e.g., parental substance abuse, high stress, poor relationships between partners). Specific treatment techniques used to facilitate these gains are integrated from those therapies that have the most empirical support, including behavioral, cognitive-behavioral, and the pragmatic family therapies. This family–therapist collaboration allows the family to take the lead in setting treatment goals as the therapist helps them to accomplish their goals. Funding for the program is provided by the Department of Juvenile Justice through a statewide contract with Evidence-Based Associates, a managing organization that subcontracts with HSA for service delivery in Circuit 19.

Office Location:
1215 Bell Avenue
Ft. Pierce, FL 34982
Hours of Operation:
24 Hours a Day 7 Days a Week

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