NewsMaker
Spring 2003

"Help a Child…Strengthen a Family…Build a Community" is the Mission for Nuestro Futuro - Our Future

Recognizing that Westchester's largest minority Latino population was frequently under- served in receiving mental health services, MHA hired Ximena Francella, CSW as director of bicultural and bilingual services for the agency. Nuestro Futuro - Our Future provides bilingual and bicultural mental health treatment to Spanish-speaking children, families and adults. The program offers a multidisciplinary team made up of Ms. Francella, a master's level clinical social worker, consulting psychiatrists, a master's level clinician and MSW interns from prestigious academic institutions. All staff members are bilingual. Nuestro Futuro also works collaboratively with other service providers including the Department of Social Services (DSS), Child Protective Services (CPS), Mandated Preventive Services (MPS), schools, hospitals and other mental health providers.

Nuestro Futuro has three main components, according to Ms. Francella. "We are able to provide information and referral services to individuals and organizations seeking services for Spanish-speaking clients, we can provide direct clinical treatment for individuals, couples and families including crisis intervention and medication management and we make education and training presentations in English and Spanish to organizations, community groups, academic institutions and others looking for the ways and means of assisting their Latino clients. Children from age four and up and adults who currently have a mental illness or have a history of emotional disturbance are eligible for services in Nuestro Futuro."

Ms. Francella is a certified social worker with more than 15 years of experience providing clinical services in English and Spanish to children, families and adults. She earned her Masters of Social Work from Fordham University and holds an advanced certificate in clinical social work from New York University and a postgraduate certificate in administration from Hunter College.

For additional information on Nuestro Futuro - Our Future, please call 914-345-5900, extension 249 or by e-mail to francelx@mhawestchester.org.

Return to the top of the page.