Give Hope for the Holidays this year. Match with a child receiving support from The Buckeye Ranch and help make the season bright.
When a young person needs more support after discharging from a psychiatric hospital stay, it can be hard for families to know where to turn. Our short-term Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF) program for teens, housed in The Hope Treatment Center, offers a safe, nurturing place for youth navigating high-acuity mental health challenges. The goal is simple: give children the care and guidance they need so they can return home safely, with the right support in place for lasting well-being.
Mental health challenges impact far too many families. One in four children in the U.S. ne or more mental, emotional, developmental or behavioral problem each year, and in Ohio, a young person dies by suicide every 33 hours. In the last 10 years, suicide deaths among Ohio youth have increased significantly.
These heartbreaking realities led The Buckeye Ranch, in partnership with Nationwide Children’s Hospital, OhioRISE, and our generous community of supporters, to open the first Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility program in Ohio for teens. Prior to the program opening, families had noin-state options designed specifically for adolescents who need a safe, structured environment after a psychiatric hospital stay.
Our PRTF program bridges the gap between hospitalization and home, offering higher-acuity care that Ohio’s youth need to heal and build a foundation for long-term wellness.
To meet the growing demand for residential treatment, The Buckeye Ranch completed a $35 million expansion of our Grove City campus in December 2025. The project added a 57,000-square-foot facility and increased our total capacity to nearly 100 beds:
Renovations enhanced our existing Education Center and Dining Center buildings to support a larger campus community. The expanded PRTF serves 40–60 youth each year and allows our residential programs overall to impact more than 270 youth annually.
Our Grove City Residential Treatment Services campus offers a full range of services and amenities to support the healing and personal growth of the youth in our care:
Our Residential Treatment Services campus offers several programs catered to individuals needing different levels of 24/7 treatment and care. Individuals matched with PRTF typically need higher-acuity, short-term care lasting 3-6 months. To be eligible for PRTF, youth must be enrolled in OhioRISE, and established with a care coordinator. Referrals for PRTF must come from Aetna Better Health of Ohio, which is the managed care partner collaborating with OhioRISE.
The Qualified Residential Treatment Program length is longer, typically 6-9 months, and referrals come from the youth’s guardian.
Our PRTF program typically supports youths aged 12-17. If you have questions, please contact our team at 614-875-2371 and select option 2.We are happy to help you learn more about the PRTF program and understand the referral process.
At The Buckeye Ranch, we use evidence-based therapies, provided by licensed clinicians. PRTF utilizes intensive, individual, group, and family therapies with a higher level of collaboration from the Child Family Team. Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT) assessments are also completed upon request, Evidence-based therapies include, but are not limited to:
Our strength-based approach focuses on structured group activities, daily problem-solving groups, and a focus on empowering youth to assist in creating a safe therapeutic environment to live in.
At The Buckeye Ranch, our Residential Treatment Services are our most intensive level of care for children and their families. For youth inpatient mental health treatment in a secure residential setting, our secure campus provides the care and structure they need with locked units, cameras, and low staff-to-youth ratios. Our programs work to offer 24/7 supervised support to youth in designated healing spaces with assistance from specialized medical team members and team members who are trained in crisis support.
Our Residential Treatment Services campus is in Grove City, Ohio, and is a secure campus where youth are provided with inpatient mental health care; individual, group, and family therapy; physical and nutritional healthcare; social-emotional coping skill support; and on-site education through South-Western City Schools. Youth spend half of their day in a school setting among their peers, and half of their day in specialized mental health treatment. Many of the youth we serve on our Residential Treatment Services campus are navigating significant mental and behavioral health challenges, including self-harm, substance abuse, physical and verbal aggression, suicidal ideation, and other considerable challenges.
At The Buckeye Ranch, we know that healing is hard work, but we do our best to engage youth in the process and make therapy fun. We provide art therapy, music therapy, small animal therapy, adventure therapy, and more on campus to keep youth engaged in their treatment.
Our team members also host ongoing events and activities for youth on campus. We know how critical it is to make sure youth on our campus have the opportunity to have life experiences, so we host trunk or treats, proms, summer carnivals, art shows, talent shows, graduation celebrations, gardening, and more to engage youth in our care.
At The Buckeye Ranch, the average program duration at our Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility is on average about 3-6 months, though timing is tailored to the specific needs of each youth we serve and the support they need on their healing journey. Our expanded campus houses 20 PRTF beds, which allows us to serve 40-60 youth annually.
Our Residential Treatment Services team at The Buckeye Ranch is available to answer any questions regarding PRTF. You can reach the team by calling 614-875-2371 and selecting option 2..
To enroll in PRTF, your child must:
To learn more about OhioRISE, including the OhioRISE program services, visit: managedcare.medicaid.ohio.gov/OhioRISE or AetnaBetterHealth.com/OhioRISE. or call OhioRISE Member Services at 833-711-0773 (TTY: 711) Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Our team is available to answer any questions regarding our programs and services and to help ensure you are provided with information to best meet your needs.
Please call 614-875-2371 and select option 2 to see how we can support you today!
Have questions about the PRTF facility? Contact us today!