Fact Sheet
Vinfen: Celebrating 30 Years of helping to transform lives
Vinfen is a leading nonprofit human services organization that provides services to children, adolescents and adults with psychiatric, developmental, and behavioral disabilities.
Vinfen transforms lives by building the capacity of individuals, families, organizations, and communities to learn, thrive, and achieve their goals. Our services promote the recovery, resiliency, habilitation and self-determination of the people we serve. As a human services leader, we strive to be the provider, employer, and partner of choice.
As Massachusetts’ most comprehensive human services organization, Vinfen offers a number of competitive advantages, including:
- A reputation as the provider of choice.
- The proven ability to serve people with severe, often multiple, challenges.
- Professionally trained and highly dedicated staff featured in the 2006 Boston Business Journal’s “Best Places to Work” supplement.
- State-of-the-art residential programs selected by the National Mental Health Association as its national model program.
Services Provided
Residential: Vinfen offers a continuum of residential programs, ranging from independent living to highly supervised settings for people with mental illness, developmental disabilities, HIV/AIDS, hearing or vision impairment, and other disabilities. Residential services focus on maintaining a true home environment while building skills through supported activities, such as cooking and budgeting.
Day and Vocational: Vinfen offers a variety of day and work services, including adult day habilitation, arts-based rehabilitation, pre-vocational training, and supported employment. Each program focuses on developing skills, self-esteem, and confidence.
Clubhouse: Vinfen’s Webster House program in Brookline, MA, offers a welcoming, supportive clubhouse environment for people with mental illness. Club members share links to opportunities for education and employment and engage in activities that encourage gradual mastery of self-care and social skills.
Outpatient: Vinfen’s licensed People Care Clinic and satellites provides individual, family, and group counseling, as well as consultation, psychological testing, and medication management. Staff members assist adolescents, children, adults, and families who are challenged by emotional, developmental or behavioral disabilities.
Child and Adolescent: Vinfen serves children and adolescents whose emotional, developmental, and/or behavioral challenges affect their ability to learn, grow, and function in school. Services include on-site therapy for young people in need, as well as training for public elementary and middle-school teachers and administrators.
Mission
Vinfen transforms lives by building the capacity of individuals, families, organizations, and communities to learn, thrive, and achieve their goals. Our services promote the recovery, resiliency, habilitation and self-determination of the people we serve. As a human services leader, we strive to be the provider, employer, and partner of choice.
Nonprofit Status
Vinfen is a private, nonprofit organization governed by a volunteer board of directors. As a nonprofit organization, Vinfen is committed to work for the public good and is exempt from most federal, state, and local taxes. Vinfen’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.
Origin
Vinfen was founded in 1977 by administrators at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center in Boston who wanted to provide residential services for people with mental retardation and mental illness.
Geographic Area
Each year, Vinfen supports thousands of individuals in more than 300 programs in eastern Massachusetts and northern Connecticut. [insert service area map?]
Certification/Awards
In 2008, the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) awarded Vinfen a national accreditation for three years (the highest level). This is the eighth consecutive time Vinfen has received a three-year accreditation from CARF.
Also in 2008, Vinfen received the Excellence in Outcomes Award from the Mental Health & Substance Abuse Corporations of Massachusetts (MHSACM) for contributions to the field of behavioral health quality and outcomes management.
Recipient of the nationally recognized Excellence in Risk Management Negley President’s Award from the Mental Health Risk Retention Group in 2002, 2003, and 2005.
Licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health
90 percent of Vinfen’s Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division programs are licensed.
Licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health
Vinfen’s People Care Clinic is licensed through the Mass. Department of Public Health (DPH) and HIV programs are certified under the DPH AIDS Bureau Standards of Care.
Certified for Medicaid Rehabilitation Option Billing
In 2006, Vinfen’s Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division was re-certified for Medicaid Rehabilitation Option billing.
Certified by the Massachusetts Department of Developmental Disabilities
In 2008, Vinfen’s Developmental Disabilities Division was re-certified for two years by the Massachusetts Department of Mental Retardation’s Survey and Certification Team (the longest certification possible).
Facts and Figures
| Year Founded | 1977 |
| Number of Programs | 205 |
| Number of Locations | 179 |
| Total Staff | 2,300 |
| Total Persons and Families Served | 6,088* |
| Annual Budget | $100 million |
| *Multiple services may apply |
Number of Persons Served:
| Number of Programs | ||
|---|---|---|
| Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services Division | 100 | |
| Developmental Services Division (MA) | 80 | |
| Developmental Services Division (CT) | 22 | |
| Behavioral Health Division | 3 | |
| Psychiatric Rehabilitiation Services
Number of Persons Served: |
||
| Specialized Residential Services | 30 | |
| Clinical Programs (MMHC) | 1,200 | |
| Community Rehabilitation Support | 145 | |
| Community Based Flexible Supports | 2,831 | |
| Psychiatric Clubhouse | 562 | |
| Program for Assertive Community Treatment (PACT) | 156 | |
| Recovery Learning Center (RLC) | 49 | |
| Transition to Independence (TIP) | 125 | |
| Developmental Services
Number of Persons Served: |
||
| Resiential | 304 | |
| Day Habilitation | 263 | |
| Family Support | 68 | |
| Arts-Based Vocational Programs | 101 | |
| Community-Based Day Program | 57 | |
| Employment Services | 151 | |
| Respite | 16 | |
| Specialized Services | 39 | |
| Behavioral Health Services
Number of Persons Served: |
||
| People Care Clinic (outpatient) | 198 |
Consumer Satisfaction
One of the most important indicators of Vinfen’s success is the satisfaction of people who receive our services. Vinfen regularly surveys consumers to determine levels of satisfaction. According to our last survey (June 2005):
- 92 percent of Vinfen consumers are satisfied with the service they receive.
- 9 out of 10 family members and/or guardians reported being satisfied with Vinfen services.
Capacity Utilization
Vinfen has operated at 92 percent capacity for the past three years. Vinfen programs are vertically integrated, ranging from children to the elderly. Our operations are “managed care ready,” including current use of unit rate contracts and integrated cost containment systems, making Vinfen programs and services exceptionally cost-effective.
Financial Position
Vinfen has seen a steady 7 percent average annual revenue growth since 1997. In 2005, Moody’s Investors Service upgraded Vinfen’s long-term bond rating to Baa3 from Ba1. Vinfen’s stable rating outlook is based on very consistent and balanced operating performance, growing liquidity, and no near-term additional debt plans. The Baa3 upgrade applies to $16 million of outstanding Series 1998 bonds jointly issued by First Albany Corporation and the Massachusetts Higher Education Finance Authority. They were the first-ever public bond offering for a human services provider in Massachusetts.