Acute, Intensive, and Residential Service Special Interest Group

The Acute, Intensive, and Residential Service Special Interest Group (AIRS SIG) of the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (SCCAP) is dedicated to the promotion of policy, practice, research, training, consultation, and leadership directly relevant to the psychological assessment and treatment of individuals in acute, intensive, and residential behavioral health settings. The primary goal of the AIRS SIG is to provide a professional forum that supports clinicians, researchers, educators, and administrators interested in the development of psychological science, practice, policy, and procedures designed to promote the well-being of individuals experiencing engagement in high levels of treatment beyond traditional outpatient settings such as inpatient psychiatric hospitalization (IPH), partial hospitalization programs (PHPs), intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) and residential treatment facilities (RTFs). As a unified network of concerned scientists, practitioners, administrators, and educators, the AIRS SIG is interested in developing, organizing, implementing, measuring, and disseminating theory, treatments, and knowledge that will improve the delivery of psychological services to individuals receiving mental health care in acute, intensive, and residential treatment settings.  

The AIRS SIG is a professional forum for clinicians, researchers, educators, and administrators interested in the development of psychological science and practice designed to promote the well-being of individuals experiencing psychological, functional, and social difficulty and requiring behavioral health care in inpatient, day-treatment, and residential treatment settings.

To this end, the AIRS SIG is interested in:  

(a) educating others about acute and intensive treatment settings

(b) promoting awareness of the services offered in these settings and across levels of care

(c) implementing evidence-based assessment and treatment in these settings

(d) supporting research relevant to the psychological assessment and treatment of youth in these settings

(e) developing models of service delivery in these settings

(f) defining best practices for use

(g) disseminating information about the psychological assessment and treatment of youth in acute and intensive treatment settings.  

The AIRS SIG is also interested in pursuing these goals through collaboration with other professional organizations in a manner consistent with the goals of the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology and the American Psychological Association (APA).

Higher level or acute psychiatric care for youth is intended to be active but short-term treatment focusing on crisis stabilization, assessment, safety monitoring, and longer-term treatment planning. Though inpatient psychiatric hospitalization has been a level of care available to individuals for over a century, over time its structure has changed dramatically. Social, clinical, and economic factors have impacted the access, utilization, and outcome of acute and intensive care models. These treatment models now include a range of services including inpatient psychiatric hospitalization (IPH), partial hospitalization program (PHP), intensive outpatient program (IOP), and residential treatment facility (RTF) settings. These programs continue to evolve along with knowledge gained through research as well as system mandates and managed care. Given these factors, it is a critical time to formalize a special interest group focused on assessment, treatment, program development and implementation science, education and training, and administration in these treatment settings. Given the significant growth and change in these types of programs over time, and especially within the past decade the need for a special interest group to connect professionals in these settings has emerged.  

Membership in AIRS and the AIRS listserv is reserved for SCCAP members only.  

The AIRS-SCCAP listserv is a discussion forum specifically for AIRS SIG members.  Questions? Contact Alysha Thompson 

To join the AIRS listserv complete the form below.

You can click on the image to preview or download (click down arrow on the bottom toolbar) the latest issue of the AIRS newsletter.

For past issues of the AIRS Newsletter, please visit our archived page

View Past Issues

2023-2024 AIRS Board

Chair: Alysha Thompson, PhD

Chair-Elect: Elisabeth Frazier, PhD

Secretaries: Ana Ugueto, PhD and Stephanie Clarke, PhD

Treasurer: Jennifer Wolff, PhD

Communications Members at Large: Katelyn Affleck, PhD and Cassandra Esposito, PhD

Membership and Marketing Members at Large: Jaclyn Aldrich, PhD and Carl Waitz, PsyD

Awards Committee: Kimberly Schubert, Phd and 

Education Committee Co-Chairs: Rachel Schein, PsyD and Nathaniel Van Kirk, PhD

Science Committee Chair: Elizabeth Reynolds, PhD

Practice Committee Co-Chairs: Jennifer Hellmuth, PhD and Caroline Hodgson, PhD

Diversity Committee Chair: Leyla Erguder, PhD

Early Career Members at Large: Meredith Reiman, PhD and Mackenzie Sommerhalder, PhD

Trainee Member at Large: Patricia Garibaldi, BA

Past Chairs:

2020-2022 Jarrod Leffler, PhD, ABPP and Aaron Vaughn, PhD

2023 Alysha Thompson, PhD

Join using the membership form below