Oaklawn Psychiatric Center
Oaklawn St. Joseph County Behavioral Health Crisis CenterOaklawn Psychiatric Center
Oaklawn St. Joseph County Behavioral Health Crisis Center
Like most communities, our mental health system in St. Joseph County has traditionally relied on two types of services- inpatient hospitalization for individuals exhibiting suicidal or homicidal behavior, and outpatient treatment for everyone else needing care. The gap in the system has long been in providing the appropriate level of care for those whose needs don’t rise to the level requiring hospitalization but are more acute than can be effectively treated through outpatient services- the equivalent of urgent care in a physical health setting. Oaklawn proposed to address this gap locally through the establishment of the St. Joseph County Behavioral Health Crisis Center, a project that would bring them together with a coalition including local law enforcement, hospitals, faith groups, and compassionate citizens from the community.
The Crisis Center was envisioned to be a safe place where individuals facing a mental health or substance use crisis could be quickly assessed, de-escalated, stabilized, and triaged to receive appropriate care, providing a better and less expensive alternative to emergency room visits or a holding cell. To be located on the first floor of the Memorial Epworth building on Niles Avenue, the facility would be staffed by a team of mental health professionals trained to manage those in crisis, including physicians, nurses, social workers, and case managers, freeing first responders, law enforcement, and emergency room personnel from the need to manage behavioral health problems.
Oaklawn submitted a grant application, with the proceeds to be used to help defray the renovation costs of the space, for the purchase of durable and safe furniture, and for the acquisition of technology equipment, including a state-of-the art communications center. The Foundation, believing in the long-term mental health benefits of this project to the community, agreed to fund a grant.
