During the Spring 2016 school semester, two Recreation Therapy Interns worked with The Temple University Collaborative to develop and facilitate programming aimed at increasing community participation for consumers of local mental health agencies. Each intern developed an 8-week protocol with a focus on encouraging participation in community-based recreation. Interns were encouraged to create group sessions that would work either as stand-alone sessions or as 8 consecutive weekly sessions. This project was done under the supervision of a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS) at the Collaborative and staff at the sites where the sessions were delivered.
Adding Recreation to your Coping Toolbox: An 8-Week Protocol series encourages participants to identify personal coping strategies and community-based resources needed to engage. This protocol was designed to support consumers to identify coping strategies that minimize stress and conflict after discharge from a short-stay, inpatient facility.