Young Adult Mental Health

YA @ The Loft

The Kellyville Private Hospital Young Adult Unit, established in 2011 (when the hospital was known as The Hills Clinic), caters to the psychiatric needs of young adults aged 16 to 24 years.

YA @ The Loft offers a creative, relaxed, safe, and secure environment where young adults can recover, supported by a team of mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, and other allied health professionals during their three-week live-in program.

Patients also have access to a hospital gym, and holistic activities such as art therapy, horticulture, mindfulness, tai chi, martial arts, and pet therapy.

Key features

• 27-bed ward
• Group therapy
• One on one consultations with allied health
• Devoted nursing team with expertise in adolescent mental health

Inpatient treatment

Kellyville Private Hospital Young Adult Unit was established in 2011 to address the psychiatric needs of young adults, aged 18-25 years.

The YA @ The Loft program is a holistic approach tailored to young adult individuals struggling with a variety of issues, including depression, anxiety, personality, and drug/alcohol use disorders. The program incorporates a combination of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). It incorporates art therapy, horticulture, mindfulness practices and physical health, tai chi, martial arts and pet therapy.

The main aims of the program are, but not limited to

• To support young adults in better understanding their mental health
• To help young adults understand and manage addictive behaviours
• Create a meaningful life
• Understand the consequences of their long term and short term coping strategies
• Improve self-esteem by cultivating a sense of self
• Improve daily functioning and quality of life
• Increase skills in regulating emotions and tolerating distress
• To support families and carers with family sessions

Program Outline

Our 21 day inpatient program encourages a more focused approach to your specific treatment goals. It has three essential components:

Group Program

This group ensures a therapeutic environment with creative discussion and expression. Each week, patients are allocated to a group and a theme or topic will be discussed. Program topics may include:

• Self compassion
• Distress tolerance
• Emotional regulation
• Acceptance
• Effective communication
• Core beliefs, or how we see ourselves, other people, the world and the future

Consultations with Psychiatrists

You will be seen by your psychiatrist at regular intervals during your inpatient stay. The frequency of these sessions will be individually negotiated between yourself and your psychiatrist.

For interstate patients, it is important you understand that your allocated psychiatrist will oversee your care as an inpatient only.

Individual Work

Ours is a working unit and as such, we expect you to have realistic goals. If this is your first admission, your goal is to establish rapport with our clinical team and work within our model of care. Other goals may include developing safety strategies, working on a specific memory or learning coping skills. There is also a strong focus on developing and maintaining healthy boundaries and self-management. These skills will assist your transition from the unit to your home.

Young Adult Programs

YA Program

Our young adult program is catered to people 16-21 years with mood disorders such as depression, anxiety and personality and addictions which includes drug and alcohol, gaming and gambling.

Our YA Program is based of years of clinical research from a range of accredited psychiatrists, psychologists, teachers and school counsellors. We explored the latest scientific evidence related to delivering therapy to young adults. This research built the foundations of the YA Program. There is a consistent emphasis in the program on approaches focused on personal responsibility, consideration of others and patients' active involvement in their treatment. 

Our hospital takes a holistic approach to therapy where we treat not only the mind by the body. The therapies include CBT, DBT, ACT as well as physical therapies such as boxing. Martial arts, tai chi, circuit training, and also art therapy and mindfulness.

Parenting Program

Our hospital also highlights the need to engage the family – parents, siblings, peers and all. By doing so, the treatment we provide is able to address communication issues within the family structure, as well as any additional issues that may be present at school, work, or in the home.

Our parenting program can help families work together to develop support networks for young adults and to help parents manage their own distress. We provide an affordable package for two carers. For parents/carers of patients enrolled in the Young Adult DBT program, the cost of the course is discounted. 

Parents and Carers Relationship Education Course

Developed to help parents and carers understand and respond to young adults (13 - 25 years) who may have/or are currently experiencing mental health issues.

The aim of the program is to help parents and carers create an environment where young adults can feel safe, seen, and secure.

The course runs over two sessions: Thursday evening 5:30pm (3.5 hrs) and Saturday morning 9:00am (5 hrs).

The course focuses on common young adult mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, substance use, and/or emerging personality traits.

The course covers topics, including:

• Common YA mental health issues
• Understanding deliberate self-harm (DSH)
• Communication skills
• Setting and maintaining boundaries

The cost of the course includes: 8.5 hours of content, course pack (including tools and readings), light refreshments(Thursday) and lunch (Saturday). To register for the course, individuals will need to contact the groups department at Kellyville Private Hospital. Please call our team to obtain the course rates, we offer discounts for parents/carers of patients already enrolled in our programs.

To register, call 1300 122 144 or email kvl.groups@aurorahealth.com.au

Please contact us for rates on 1300 122 144.