PAHCS has offered various counseling services for approximately 10 years, but decided to expand their services and psychology department to form the Paynesville Community Counseling Center, which is located in the Paynesville Hospital building.
PAHCS purchased the Community Counseling Center, owned by Donna Bahr, LICSW, whose counseling practice was in Glenwood.
With the services of Bahr and eight other staff members of the mental health care department, the Paynesville Community Counseling Center offers a number of services; including psychiatric, child centered therapy, employee assistance, diagnostic assessments and psychological testing. The professionals at the center also offer foster care support, supervised visitation, crisis intervention, support groups, and outreach services in the community.
Various support and therapeutic groups are available through the Paynesville Community Counseling Center. They include anger and abuse, grief, death and dying, life changes, eating disorders, parenting, diabetes, life skills, attention deficit disorder, and stress management.
In the area of outreach, masters level and lisenced professionals are available to provide family therapy in the home, schools, and community. Counselors are available to provide motivational speaking and workshops in the schools.
Bachelor level practitioners provide parenting and life skills counseling. Services are also available to adults and the elderly in various settings.
Presently, the Paynesville Community Counseling Center is working out the details of a 24-hour crisis line. When the telephone line is ready on Oct. 1, those in need will be able to call at any time, 24 hours a day.