Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria opened up its Crisis Stabilization Unit in September 2022 for patients seeking mental health care.
The unit has the capacity to serve eight patients at a time who are suffering from depression, anxiety, PTSD, or other mental health crises.
Health officials say it costs $4.5 million to fund year-round.
“The mental health crises that are occurring in our community and everywhere are increasing in frequency and severity,” said Dr. David Ketelaar, Marian Regional Medical Center Emergency Medicine Physician.
Ketelaar says that people seeking mental health treatment weren’t always directed to the appropriate facilities.
“Our emergency departments have actually been forced to hold these persons for long periods of time waiting for care that’s outside of the community that sometimes never appears,” Dr. Ketelaar said.
“An emergency department is not the best place for you if you’re having a crisis. You need to get intensive behavioral health help. You need a psychiatrist,” said Sue Andersen, Marian Regional Medical Center President & CEO. “You need to have staff that deal with mental health.”
The critical stabilization unit provides local 24-hour care, which means patients don't have to travel long distances for outpatient treatment.
“People find that when they’re going through a mental health crisis, being with other people who are going through similar things is really helpful to them, and so the environment that we have built over there is completely different than what you would find in a hospital,” said Andersen.
Dr. Keteelar says they have already seen a positive impact.
“Our unit has treated almost 600 patients in the first year and that we consider a good start, but it's a start. We plan to see more in the future,” he said.
Dr. Ketelaar adds that the Crisis Stabilization Unit is for patients over the age of 18 and requires a referral to be treated by the unit.
