Do The Good

More about Do The Good

“If you were to walk into one of Doc Wayne’s weekly Chalk Talk sessions, you would see a group of energetic youth using a makeshift gym to play basketball. It could be any rec league or a gym class, and yet beneath the surface, there’s much more at play. This group of kids playing basketball is, in fact, a group therapy session; there are clinicians and coaches and basketball is only a tool.” - Root Cause SIF

You don’t need a Ph.D. in psychology to know that a lot of youth love sports. The big idea behind Doc Wayne is that sport and therapy can be combined to heal and strengthen youth who struggle with complex trauma and mental illness.

While Massachusetts has the nation’s highest rates of children screened for behavioral health issues, doctors and advocates interviewed on the subject in late 2013 reported that many of these youth were not receiving appropriate treatment. Youth who fail to progress in traditional “talk therapy” settings thrive in Doc Wayne programs because the programs appeal to youth as fun. Our programs build critical life skills, developed on the field and on the court, that help youth to develop into functional, independent adults.