Hamilton Center, Inc. - November 2005

Hamilton Center Staff exhibits Hoosier Hospitality in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina - November 21, 2005

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Governor Daniels’ sent out a call to action to assist the ravaged Gulfport area. Clinical staff members from Hamilton Center, Inc. answered that call to provide crisis counseling and critical incident debriefing to first responders and to affected citizens. With blue t-shirts identifying their team they became known to the locals as “the Blue Shirts!”

Dr. Jody Horstman, Outpatient Director of Child & Adolescent Services walked neighborhoods with clinical staff offering mental health services in the form of debriefings and interventions. She also helped man the “Outreach Bus” dispensing medication and aid to victims of the devastated areas. Horstman reflected, “It’s was an incredible experience I’ll never forget. It’s remarkable, that in the midst of all that devastation and loss that people still allow you into their lives. When asked about the rewards of participating, Dr. Horstman stated, “The experience is all the thanks I need. The reward is in the ability to be there and to help where I was needed.”

Vickie Trout, Director of Indianapolis Client Support Services, acted as Clinical Director providing logistics, communication and organizing relief efforts in response to FEMA’s request to serve the 3000+ evacuees. Trout stated, “Planning for this huge endeavor was currently in process. Available resources - statewide - were being inventoried. The frustration was that many very well meaning groups were out ‘doing things’ without coordinating with the Red Cross or Salvation Army. Therefore, many resources were deployed to the wrong places. Additionally, we had to be very cautious of the public health dangers of moving large groups of people north who had not been decontaminated. We needed to be sure that psychiatric beds and medications were available for people who were relocated and that we were tracking people in order to reunify families.”

“In our daily lives, we tend to separate ourselves, during this time of crisis, we integrated everyone’s skills into an invincible team while making a lasting impact upon the lives of those struck by this misfortune,” remarked Vickie Trout. Of their 5000 clients, they could only locate about 1500. Trout remarked, “Pictures on television don't begin to illustrate the sights. One group of mental health professionals saw 1207 people in one day!”

Jody Morrison, Access Supervisor assisted First Responder teams and worked with community mental health centers assisting therapists and case managers. Morrison stated, “We’ll never return to Biloxi without having a bond with the residents. People were so appreciative. As Hoosiers, we should all be proud and take comfort in knowing the Gulfport residents were truly impressed with the compassion the State of Indiana offered during a time of incredible need.”

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Hamilton Center, Inc. awarded three-year CARF accreditation - November 15, 2005

CARF announced that Hamilton Center, Inc. has been accredited for a period of three years for its Employment Services and Community Services programs which is part of the Rehabilitation division (Spectrum Industries) of Hamilton Center, Inc. The latest accreditation is the fourth consecutive three-year Accreditation outcome that the international accrediting commission has awarded to Hamilton Center, Inc.

This accreditation outcome represents the highest level of accreditation that can be awarded to an organization and shows the organization’s substantial conformance to the standards established by CARF. An organization receiving a Three-Year Accreditation outcome has put itself through a rigorous peer review process and has demonstrated to a team of surveyors during an on-site visit that its programs and services are of the highest quality, measurable, and accountable.

CARF is an independent, not-for-profit accrediting body whose mission is to promote the quality, value, and optimal outcomes of services through a consultative accreditation process that centers on enhancing the lives of the persons served. Founded in 1966 as the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, and now known as CARF, the accrediting body establishes consumer-focused standards to help organizations measure and improve the quality of their programs and services.

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