Artist's rendering of Indiana Regional Medical Center's planned 31,000-square-foot Behavioral Health Center, which is expected to open in autumn 2024.
Behavioral Health and Development Program and Southwest Behavioral Health Management to receive a $4.8 million HealthChoices reinvestment plan approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services-Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to assist with construction costs of the facility, according to IRMC. “The community-based mental health system has been inadequately funded for many years,” says Tammy Calderone, administrator of the Armstrong-Indiana Behavioral and Developmental Health Program.“There was a significant 10% cut in 2012 with no mental health funding increases since. "I am excited about the opportunity to partner with IRMC in securing funds for the development of the inpatient beds for our region.This is a much-needed service that will support residents in our communities and strengthen the existing behavioral health continuum of care.”
professionals to recognize mental health concerns early and address them while the most costly and catastrophic results can be prevented is foundational to the entire project.” The Behavioral Health Center will also enable residents to receive care in close proximity to their homes. Just two years ago, 200 Indiana County residents had to be served at 23 different inpatient facilities throughout Western and Central Pennsylvania, as well as out of state, Richards says. “The anticipated outcomes from this project will not only be significant locally, but regionally,” he adds.“By increasing the inpatient behavioral health bed capacity for individuals in need of this level of care in our county, residents will be able to remain in their community and not have to utilize beds in surrounding counties or go out of state. “Behavioral health is the number one transfer from most emergency
departments throughout our region. This new venture will help keep more patients, family members and loved ones closer to home as they work through various issues. It will help reduce cost, length of stay and staff burnout for numerous other hospitals, because we all struggle with mental health patient placement.” The new facility will provide IRMC patients with faster and more efficient care, Richards says.That will be much appreciated because the average wait time for a psychiatric patient at the IRMC Emergency Department to be placed in a psychiatric inpatient bed increased from 90 minutes in 2009 to more than 11 hours in 2021. “Often, patients are waiting multiple days for a bed to be located,” Richards says.“This is not a problem just at IRMC, but a problem throughout the country.” IRMC is partnering with the Armstrong-Indiana-Clarion Drug and Alcohol Commission,Armstrong-Indiana
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