Behavioral Health & Family Medicine

St. Mary's Center recognizes that holistic behavioral and physical health services are catalysts to self-sufficiency and economic stability for women and families experiencing homelessness, severe poverty, and trauma. The correlation between mental health and homelessness has been well documented and at St. Mary's Center, 100% of the women, children and families served have a history of trauma, including mental health challenges, domestic violence, and substance use disorder.

At St. Mary's Center, we prioritize the whole health of the family, including their mental, emotional and physical health in every residential program.

To support families' mental and emotional well-being, St. Mary's Center's full-time Clinical Department provides high-quality, evidence-based best practice treatments to support the individuals and families in our care who are struggling with varied mental, emotional, physical, social, family, legal, housing, and financial challenges. These services fill a critical need, combatting the typical 6–9-month waitlist in Boston to receive behavioral health services.

Clinically, all mothers on campus can access individual and group therapy with an in-house clinician or through our collaborative partners. On average, St. Mary’s Center residents engage with our on-site clinicians in over 150 individual therapy sessions per month.

Through an interdisciplinary, resiliency-based, trauma-informed approach, case managers, clinical team members, and healthcare partners work collaboratively to improve outcomes and provide services to meet the individual needs of each resident and family on their path to long-term stability.

To support families' physical well-being, on-site partner Boston Healthcare for the Homeless offers unprecedented access to primary care and medical services. Additional partners include the Children's Behavioral Health Initiative and UMASS Boston College of Nursing and Health Sciences, who facilitate a Maternity and Mental Health curriculum for SMC residents designed to support mothers through a healthy pregnancy and postpartum care for both mothers and their babies.

By the Numbers:

100% of residents have a clinical assessment within 2 weeks of arriving to St. Mary’s Center

Individuals and families participate in over 600 hour-long group and individual behavioral health sessions annually, covering critical topics including parenting and attachment, relationship building, goal setting, promoting shared experiences between mother and child, and processing trauma.

86 families and 104 individuals received behavioral health services based on their unique needs and individualized behavioral health and clinical treatment plans.

St. Mary’s Center for Women and Children

90 Cushing Avenue, Dorchester, MA 02125
P: 617.436. 8600

F: 617.288.8961

St. Mary’s Center for Women and Children is registered as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Contributions to St. Mary’s Center are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.