Adult Treatment
Adult mental health treatment is offered in various settings including clinics, community agencies, hospitals, residential sites, colleges and individual practices. Note that agencies use different age criteria for determining if a person is an adult or child. Some programs or agencies will consider teens as young as 13 years old as adults, while others will consider adults to be over 18 years old. It is always best to check resources under both adults and children if you have any question as to the age criteria.
Depending on the provider, mental health services may include assessment, counseling, psychiatric treatment, medication management, housing assistance, support groups and other needs. Some organizations offer both mental illness and substance use disorder (drug and alcohol) treatment.
Some mental health organizations have special programs and services which are offered to people in their homes or communities as well as at the organizations’ physical locations. These are listed under “Community-Based Services,” and are usually most appropriate for individuals with significant barriers to care or who have severe and persistent mental illness. An individual typically must meet specific criteria in order to receive these services.
Since many providers offer services in multiple locations in and outside of Erie County, it is always good to call to find a location near you that offers the service you need. Be sure to ask if they take your health insurance and offer the type of treatment you need.
As mentioned throughout the website, we only include resources that take insurances that include Medicare, Medicaid, Medicaid Managed Care, or, charge according to your ability to pay (Sliding Scale). On occasion, we include a provider that does not take these insurances if it is the only one, or one of only a few, in the area offering a particular treatment or serving a particular need. This list is not intended to include all adult mental health treatment resources, so you may want to go call 211 or visit www.211wny.org.
The following county and state mental health departments are also a good source of government resources:
Erie County Department of Mental Health: Click on “Programs and Services.”
NYS Office of Mental Health: Click on “Consumer & Families”, then “Find a Mental Health Program”. Search by county, city and program.
