Recovery, Resiliency and Self-Determination

Welcome to Philadelphia's Department of Behavioral Health & Mental Retardation Services (DBH/MRS) Web site. The City of Philadelphia integrated its behavioral health care and mental retardation services into a comprehensive system.

DBH/MRS components provide services through a network of community providers while collaborating with the Philadelphia School District, child welfare and judicial systems, and other stakeholders.

Our employees strive to embrace and fully implement a vision of self-determination, resiliency and recovery. We continue to focus on shifting from a crisis-oriented, professionally-focused model of care to a model of care directed by the person in recovery. In this model, professional treatment is one aspect among many that supports people in managing their own conditions over time, and in building their own recovery resources. This recovery process should be viewed as a lifetime journey.

Transformation to a recovery orientation in both addictions and mental health becomes possible by focusing on the central role of individuals and families in responding to, managing, and overcoming these serious illnesses. It is critically important to use this focus as an organizing point for the entire system.

We also strive to help people with mental retardation live self-determined lives in their communities by providing quality supports and services.

Please bear with us while we redesign our Web site. Our goal is to develop a Web site that is more responsive to the people we serve and collaborate with while highlighting our efforts around recovery, resiliency and self-determination.