The New Future Dreams Day Treatment Program
Overview
The New Future Dreams Day Treatment Program is a Partial Hospitalization Program in Lakewood, NJ which serves consumers with chronic mental health diagnoses, primarily Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective, and Bipolar Disorders. Clients are between the ages of 18 and 70.
Duties
--Learning documentation and chart processes for intakes, releases, and privacy forms.
--Learning to develop treatment plans.
--Assist with reviews, documentation, and progress notes
--Sit in on therapy groups and potentially develop sessions
--Sit in on individual meetings with clients
Requirements
Confidentiality pledge
How to Apply
--Contact Program Director
Contact Information
Amy Zieman-Swart, MA, LPC, NCC, ACS
Program Director
The New Future Dreams Day Treatment Program
127 7th Street
Lakewood, NJ 08701
Phone:(732) 886 7128
Student Feedback
I spent my days at the New Future Dreams by assisting the staff with the needs of the clientele, such as filling out paperwork, taking notes of things they needed, and assisting during group sessions. I practiced skills such as communication, collaboration, and creating ideas, such as activities and topics to discuss, to carry out for the clientele. I learned to improve on skills such as leadership and patience. The most enjoyable thing about this position was getting to know the clientele and carrying out my own ideas within the program for the clientele. The thing I enjoyed the least about my site was being made aware of the treatment that the clientele experience when they are in the boarding home section of the building.T he type of student that I feel would be the best fit for a site like this is one that has an abundance of patience, an engaging and enthusiastic personality, and a drive to want to bring joy into the clients lives. I say this because the clients are used to being maltreated, feeling alone, and feeling as if their needs are overlooked. Since most of the patients are low functioning, you need to be very patient and understanding with them, especially during communication. Being engaging and enthusiastic will bring out a positive side of the clients that will lead to successful participation and will uplift their moods. I would definitely recommend interning at this site because it is an experience into all types of lower and higher functioning clientele that struggle with mental health disorders. It has left me with an experience like no other and has solidified forme that, within my future career, I want to uplift and provide aid to individuals that struggle with psychological disorders they are unable to control.
~Sabrina Merola, Fall '21
I spent each day at my internship shadowing case managers and sitting in on group sessions such as symptom management, current events, or musical expression. The most important skill I learned from interning there is how to interact with this population. This is not a population that many people get to experience every day. You can learn about it in a book, but nothing compares to truly interacting with people who are suffering from mental illness. I also gained skills such as being able to recognize symptoms better, and how to meet each person’s individual needs.
The most enjoyable part of working at New Future Dreams was making connections with the clients. They are mostly very friendly and are genuinely interesting in learning about you and interacting with you. However, the least enjoyable part was how overwhelming a site like this is. There are almost 100 clients who mostly all suffer from some type of severe mental illness. It is exhausting sometimes and very eye-opening to say the least. It takes a very strong, motivated person to work at a place like this. If this is something you are considering doing as a career path, I would definitely recommend working here. This internship will give you a very clear idea of if this field is for you or not. The way mental illness is portrayed in movies and shows is not what it is truly like in the real world. This internship made that very clear for me and gave me a better perspective on what to expect in the field of psychology.
~Marissa Kraemer, spring 2019
Have you interned at here? Add your feedback to help other students by emailing [Goodwin].