Optimae LifeServices, Inc. provides health care and human services for individuals with disabilities and mental illness from 39 Eastern, Southern and Central Iowa counties. For more than three decades, we have equipped our customers with supports and services that encourage choice, empowerment and community integration.
Our programs include community-based, behavioral health, home health, rehabilitation and residential care services. We advocate for the rights and needs of approximately 5,300 Iowans each year, providing the quality of care we would want for our own family.
Services Offered
Psychiatric Evaluations and Medication Management: These services are available for customers who need medication to manage their mental health diagnosis. Our staff consist of psychiatrists, advanced registered nurse practitioners and physician assistants who are licensed to prescribe and monitor medications. Individual, Family and Group Therapy: Therapy services are provided for children, adolescents, adults and families who need assistance in dealing with issues that may affect their mental health. Optimae Behavioral Health staff are licensed mental health professionals and use a variety of evidence-based treatment options. These include: - Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT): Cognitive Behavior Therapy helps individuals gain awareness of inaccurate or negative thinking, so they can view challenging situations more clearly and respond more effectively. - Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): EMDR combines exposure therapy with a series of guided eye movements that help process traumatic memories and change how an individual reacts to them. - Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Dialectical Behavior Therapy is designed specifically to treat borderline personality disorder. It uses a skill-based approach to teach how to manage emotions, tolerate distress, and improve relationships.
Skill Building and Support Services Offered: Optimae behavioral health also offers skill building and support services at some of its locations. These services help people regain skills lost due to their mental health issues. Support groups are also available in some areas, sometimes at no cost and without any diagnostic requirement.
Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation: Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation provides individuals with mental illness additional rehabilitation services that aid in their recovery. It helps customers choose where to live, learn, work and socialize, while teaching them the commitment to set goals and giving them the confidence to reach them. Guided by values of choice and self-determination, IPR participants set goals that enhance their lives. They receive support as they reach to fulfill these goals through one-on-one meetings with specially trained IPR practitioners, as well as group sessions.
Fees and Payment
We accept all patients, including those with Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance, with little to no wait time.
A community counseling agency is a group therapy practice that offers affordable mental health services. Most are independent non-profit agencies, state agencies, or publicly-funded agencies. A few may restrict who is eligible for services, so it is a good idea to check when you call.
Community counseling agencies are generally more affordable than other therapy providers, but how much more affordable they are will depend on whether you qualify for a discount or sliding scale fee (or if they accept your insurance). Many, but not all, have a policy that they won't turn away anyone due to inability to pay. You should ask about their fees when you first call.
Expect to talk to kind people who want to help you find the care you need. Most community agencies strive to connect you with a live person within 24 hours, if not immediately. If you're asked to hold or leave a message, don't give up; just leave a message and wait. You should hear back pretty quickly.
Most agencies try to set up an initial assessment appointment within a week (some do within 24 hours), though the waitlist to start therapy is usually longer—about a few weeks on average. If you're not eligible or if the agency is not right for you, it's usually still worth it to call or drop in, because staff are knowledgeable about local options and can often refer you to one.
