Clinic & Community-Based Behavioral Health Care

The Alameda Family Services Clinic & Community Behavioral Health Care (BHCS) division provides individual, family, couples, and group therapy that is trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and designed to promote well-being and empowerment. The BHCS Division also operates a highly respected American Psychological Association (APA) accredited Narrative Therapy Program. Other services include psychological testing, Intensive Care Coordination, and Enhanced Care Management referrals. These services, and more, are available through our Clinic on Clement Avenue, but may also be accessed in the community thanks to essential partnerships with agencies and organizations throughout Alameda.

For more information about clinic fees and eligibility, available services and how to access them, and current group therapy topics, please call the intake line at 510-629-6210.

Narrative Therapy

Alameda Family Services is the primary provider of mental health services to the residents of Alameda and is one of the few organizations in the state to operate an APA accredited Narrative Therapy Training Institute.

Narrative Therapy is highly effective in helping people find their inner strength and develop the skills necessary to overcome anxiety, depression, trauma, and many other struggles and we have seen the life-changing benefits for our clients.

The model takes a compassionate and non-blaming approach to counselling that separates people from their problems and assumes that we all have many skills, competencies, values, and abilities that can be used to manage and overcome challenging feelings and situations. The power of Narrative Therapy is found in collaborative healing, a partnership between therapist and client that is centered in mutual respect.   

Psychological Assessment

A psychological assessment, or psychological testing, is a process in which a clinician gathers information to gain greater understanding of a person’s unique way of thinking and engaging in the world.

Psychological assessments are used to determine or rule out a mental health diagnosis which may inform the treatment path.

For more information about obtaining a psychological assessment, please click here.

Intensive Care Coordination

IIntensive Care Coordination (ICC) is a targeted case management service that connects families and youth under the age of 21 with services across all life domains. Service plans are developed within Child & Family Team meetings (known as CFTs), which include family, youth, natural supports and professionals. To access ICC services, clients must be actively engaged in therapy and eligible for Alameda County Medi-Cal.

ICC services:

  • Ensure that all needed services are delivered in a strength-based, individualized, client-driven, culturally responsive, and linguistically competent manner.

  • Are guided by the needs of the youth.

  • Facilitate system collaboration.

  • Strive to create a functioning Child and Family Team that can support the youth/family ongoing.

Clinic Internship Opportunities:

Wright Institute Doctoral Internship: AFS’s APA accredited doctoral internship is exclusively designed for students affiliated with the Wright Institute. AFS accepts up to three candidates each year and provides them with a comprehensive clinical experience where they will serve a diverse population, including individuals, couples, and families from a variety of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. The program emphasizes a strengths-based and collaborative service approach and provides interns with opportunities to build skills in psychological intervention through the use of supervision, didactic trainings, narrative case conference, and other interactive trainings and peer consultation groups. To learn more about our APA accredited doctoral internship through the Wright Institute, please click here. For information about how to apply and application deadlines, please click here.

Alameda Family Services’ Clinic offers two unique internship opportunities that accept new applicants on a yearly basis. Please note, when you apply to either opportunity, please include a cover letter, curriculum vitae, and recommendation letters (2 for practicum, 3 for doctoral interns and post-doctoral fellows). While our internship applications have specific deadlines each year, we encourage you to ask about potential clinical staff positions that may be available throughout the year.

Practicum Student Internship: This internship provides training and clinical supervision for graduate and postgraduate psychology, counseling, and social work students, as well as therapists who are collecting hours towards licensure. With an emphasis on Narrative Therapy, trainees are matched with clients, a variety of programs, and supervisors based on their areas of interest. For more information about this internship, how to apply, and application deadlines, please click here.