History
Pioneers in Supporting the Dually Diagnosed
At The Rock Creek Foundation, we believe that having a disability and/or a mental illness should not prevent anyone from having the opportunity to participate in everyday life. That’s why our goal is to ensure that each person we serve can develop the skills they need to live as independently as possible, in their own communities and that they are able to realize their potential in ways that they could not do so before.
Our history
Founded in 1973, The Rock Creek Foundation (RCF) pioneered the field of community psychiatric treatment and support for individuals who had both mental illness and developmental disabilities, employing values-based treatment services. Those services included the first private fee-for-service outpatient mental health center and psychiatric rehabilitation program in the state of Maryland. At the time, direct state funding and grants were not available to enable low-income individuals and families to access such innovative services. RCF’s commitment to serving all populations led the organization to secure Medicaid funding for such services, a new use of Medicaid funds at the time.
An affiliate of the Santé Group, RCF’s ground-breaking treatment and service delivery strategies were praised by the President’s Committee on Mental Retardation in 1979 as a “program of national significance.” The Foundation was also recognized by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) as the first partial hospitalization program in the United States for this population. RCF has firmly established itself as an international leader in this field.