23 The Status of Wraparound Approach in the United States

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the status of intervention for children and adolescents with severe emotional disorders who typically have been treated in institutional settings or with fragmented services in the community. The wraparound approach offers an alternative to both. The current evidence base for wraparound is reviewed and the ambiguity around the definition, values, elements, and requirements for implementing the wraparound approach is addressed. The need to operationalize wraparound is emphasized by a survey, conducted which found that 88% of U.S. states and one out of five U.S. territories implement programs that they identify as wraparound, despite indications that implementation is likely to vary across sites. It is clear that wraparound has been disseminated widely throughout the country, there was reason for optimism that wraparound could be provided more systematically based on the recent publication of a training video, a manual, and standards in several states.