​​​​​​River Valley Therapeutic Residence (RVTR) is a sixteen-bed secure residential facility designed to provide a community-based therapeutic setting for individuals with complex mental health issues who require ongoing intensive support for community integration that no longer meet the requirements for acute inpatient treatment or are found to be better served by the Department of Mental Health than in a Department of Corrections facility. RVTR staff believes in a holistic approach to mental health and wellness, as well as encourages its residents to collaborate with their treatment team in creating a strengths-based, recovery-focused plan to address individual challenges and goals.

RVTR serves adults (18 years and older) with severe mental illness. Individuals can be referred to RVTR from either an inpatient psychiatric hospital or from a correctional facility and are required to be on an Order of Non-Hospitalization after having been found by the court to need a secure setting. If an individual is not already enrolled in a Community Rehabilitation and Treatment (CRT) program through their local Designated Agency (DA), they will be referred to their local program upon discharge.

​​​​​​RVTR provides a safe and supportive environment for individuals who no longer require a higher level of care (e.g., hospital-level care) but are not yet ready to return to their communities. RVTR provides therapeutic supports focused on recovery and skill-building, in order to develop or regain independent-living skills. RVTR emphasizes the importance of re-integrating into the community and supports individuals with re-establishing connections within these communities. By supporting the development of these connections, RVTR staff focuses on providing the tools necessary for a successful transition back to an individual's community and avoid re-hospitalization, or recidivism and return to a corrections facility. Without this step-down level of care, many individuals may experience an abrupt transition and have increased difficulty moving through the system of care, lacking the level of support needed for recovery. Without RVTR, many individuals would have to remain in a hospital or corrections setting for an extended and unnecessary amount of time.

This represents a portion of appropriation #3150070000.