A company that provides autism and mental health services has opened its first Peoria County clinic in Bartonville.
Lifelong Access, which has operated in McLean County for nearly 70 years, celebrated its expansion into the Tri-County region Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at converted office space on Airport Road across from Limestone Community High School.
“It’s an amazing opportunity for us to bring our autism services for kids and behavioral health services for adolescents and adults, and just being able to remove barriers for community members that need access to services,” said Executive Vice President of Operations Dan Ramos.
Lifelong Access aims to remove barriers to care access for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and mental health concerns. Ramos said every community has a need for more mental health treatment options.
“All of these disabilities, they’re immune to income, they’re immune to all different genders and so forth,” he said. “There’s demand everywhere, there’s wait lists everywhere, and we could have five more clinics like this.”
Lifelong Access already provides adult services at its main office in Normal, and has a pediatric clinic at Carle BroMenn Medical Center.
“Peoria County has been wildly underserved for far too long, so Lifelong Access is so excited to be able to bring a new hope to anyone who might be ... on a waiting list[of] other places, and to offer that availability that we have by opening up a brand new space,” said Liz Lowery, the Bartonville clinic’s site director.
“According to the most recent statistics put out by the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], autism is prevalent as much as affecting one in every 53 people," she said. "So the need truly is everywhere, and unfortunately, we could open up 100 businesses everywhere and there would probably still be a need.”
Lowery said the Bartonville site will have two sides — one dedicated to autism treatment and the other to behavioral health services.
“Our autism services is going to be ABA therapy, also known as ‘applied behavior analysis,’ which is the science of learning and behavior,” said Lowery. “What we’re going to do in ABA is create individualized treatment plans for every single child and client that we are able to serve, and be able to teach them those skills that are the most important to them and to their family.”
Lowery said the clinic's behavioral health side will be able to provide a range mental health treatment.
“The clinicians are able to provide community supports as well as therapeutic counseling to any person, any age, any diagnosis,” she said. “Maybe it’s just someone wanting to receive counseling services, and that can be individual, group therapy, family therapy, almost anything.”
Representatives of Lifelong Access were joined by other area business leaders in Wednesday’s celebration in conjunction with the Limestone Area Chamber of Commerce.
“In the last six months, it’s really been about taking ownership, making the building the way we wanted to get it ready for therapeutic services. We’re excited to be able to start offering services immediately,” said Ramos, noting the agency provided at-home therapy while the building was being prepared.
“Absolutely, it’s a great location. We’re in Peoria County, but we’re also so close to Tazewell — and that’s truly a space that’s been completely underserved,” added Lowery. “So, being able to offer a quick car ride to people who are in spaces that might have to drive 30 or 40-plus minutes in order to receive services is going to drastically reduce that.”
