We believe that parents/legal guardians have the best understanding regarding their children’s needs. Clifford Beers will assess multiple children from a household and determine what is clinically appropriate for the children. When coming for Open Access "walk-in hours" with multiple children please plan to be here as early as possible and for at least two hours — multiple assessments take longer. You can opt to start with services for one child and then speak with your child’s clinician about family therapy, which could include the sibling. You can also opt to come one day with one child and come back another day with another child.

We do not prescribe medication until after a client has completed the intake process, and from that point, there is usually a wait time of about two weeks. Families should contact the last prescriber/physician for medication refills.

Yes. It is the policy of the Clinic that if a child is in DCF custody, the actual DCF worker assigned to the child must attend the intake. It is our expectation that the foster parent will be involved and attend the second session, but he or she is welcome to attend the first.

Intakes are an evaluation to see if the child and family can be served appropriately by the Clinic (it is not a guarantee of services). Families will initially meet with an Admission Counselor to complete initial paperwork and assessments if it has not already been completed (or, click this link for printable forms you can download and complete prior to your visit; for the forms in Spanish, click here). Case Management and Family Advocacy are available during our Open Access hours (if there is a need for other resources). Most families meet with a Intake Clinician for about an hour.

Your child Parent/legal guardian of the child Your child’s insurance card Your child’s Social Security card Any records that might be useful (custody paperwork, school records, IEPs, evaluations, etc.)

Clifford Beers staff work with families to make appropriate referrals.

All walk-in intakes ONLY occur at 93 Edwards Street, New Haven, CT. Scheduled intakes may occur at any of our outpatient offices. Please see our Contact Us page for locations, or click here.

We have specific times blocked for "walk-in" intakes, and we ask that you arrange to be here during those times. Our hope is that we offer enough variation so that you can pick the day/time that works best for you. Once your child begins treatment, hopefully, you can negotiate a more convenient time to be seen for care. We also offer scheduled intakes. You may call to make an appointment at (203) 772-1270.