Metro Care staff members will work to identify the client’s indicators for a potential mental health crisis and develop successful strategies of de-escalation.

Adults with mental health/behavioral issues living in their homes or foster care settings will benefit from Integrated Community Support Services (ICS) program. The ICS program is centered around the client’s home and community. We tailor our services to fit the family culture, to meet the consumer’s needs and to be flexible in schedule and design.

We work collaboratively with team members to ensure that meaningful support is provided. All staff members are trained to recognize the precursors to a crisis and will work with the client to implement these strategies and avoid more intensive mental health interventions in a manner that is as transparent as possible.

Client Support

What is Integrated Community Supports (ICS)? 

  • Integrated Community Supports (ICS): Services that provide support and training in community living service categories to adults age 18 and older who reside in a living unit of a provider-controlled, ICS setting (e.g., apartment in a multi-family housing building). ICS can be delivered up to 24 hours per day in the person’s living unit or in the community. 
  • Core services of ICS: See “Covered Services” section on the ICS page of the DHS website for more details on the following: 
    • Community participation 
    • Health, safety and wellness 
    • Household management 
    • Adaptive skills

Integrated community supports cover training and support to meet the person’s individualized assessed needs and goals in at least one of the community living service categories:

  • Community participation
  • Health, safety and wellness
  • Household management
  • Adaptive skills.

Community participation

This category may include:

  • Community mobility and pedestrian safety (e.g., safely getting in and around the community)
  • Community resource use and access
  • Community safety and awareness
  • Informal support system and network development
  • Interpersonal communications skills
  • Leisure, recreation and socialization planning
  • Skill-building to meet transportation needs.

Health, safety and wellness

This category may include:

  • Collaboration with the person to arrange health care (e.g., physical, mental, chemical), meaningful activities, social services, meetings and appointments
  • Cueing, guidance, supervision, training or instructional support to complete self-care activities
    (Note: Cannot duplicate use of eligible Medical Assistance state plan home care services; see CBSM – Home care overview)
  • Health services support, as defined in Minn. Stat. §245D.05
  • Help for the person to activate and build resiliency factors (e.g., whole health action management)
  • Support for the person to design and meet individualized strategies to reach their health, safety and wellness goals.

Household management

This category may include:

1. Cueing, guidance, supervision, training or instructional support to complete routine household care and maintenance

2. Household safety knowledge and skills

3. Tenancy support and advocacy

4. Training, assistance, support and/or guidance with:

  • Budgeting and assistance to manage money
  • Cooking, meal-planning and nutrition
  • Healthy lifestyle skills and practices
  • Household chores, including minor household maintenance activities
    (Note: The person is responsible for the cost of the maintenance replacement items or products)
  • Personal-needs purchasing.

Adaptive skills

This category may include:

  • Crisis prevention skills
  • Implementation of positive support strategies
  • Problem-solving
  • Sensory/motor development involved in acquiring functional skills
  • Support strategies for self-sufficiency
  • Support and training to increase positive behavior, resulting in reduction or elimination of challenging behavior.

Working Together

Our staff meets with families, interdisciplinary team members and the client regularly to monitor expectations. The schedule design is flexible to meet the client’s needs.

Be sure to contact us with any questions you might have about Metro Care and the extraordinary collaborative environment we offer.