One county in Central New York is opening an office within their child counseling center that plans to expand resources to cover all types of trauma and all families, beyond the boundaries of a typical childhood advocacy center.

In working on designs for Cayuga County Counseling Services’ new Childhood Trauma Center, set to open by February, Associate Director Emily Hitchcock says it’s about making sure kids can be kids while dealing with challenging topics. The rooms are filled with toys and books with art on the walls, all geared toward making kids feel at home.

“They are learning skills; they’re learning how to talk about their emotions in a safe way, but we’re doing so in a way where kids are still having fun,” she said.

It’s the first center in the area that deals with all types of childhood trauma, and Deputy Director Sarah Van Dorn says that extends beyond things like abuse or domestic violence, which would normally result in kids being referred to other programs at the center.

“There are children that have experienced other types of trauma, so that means something like an earthquake or house fire, things like that that didn’t necessarily qualify under our other program,” she said.

Van Dorn said the program knows no bounds in terms of what types of trauma they treat or what type of family. Middle and upper income families who may not qualify for other trauma services will be welcome.

“All incomes; it doesn’t discriminate,” she said.

Hitchcock says the all-encompassing model is intended to limit the strain on the child and the family, preventing them from having to jump around looking for treatment of overlapping issues.

“They can go to one place where all of their needs are being met,” she said, “where the team at the youth center has the opportunity to get to know the families and really learn what their needs are.”

So how can the center’s staff possibly handle such a wide array of situations? Hitchcock said there will be training for staff to learn how to deal with various types of trauma.

“We will be able to get a lot of therapists trained in specific therapeutic interventions that use evidence-based screening tools,” she said.

The addition to the center was made possible by a grant from The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and will be modeled after other parts of the facility already geared toward child counseling.