By Beth Musgrave, The Lexington Herald-Leader, Ky.
Dec. 18–Lexington residents who need psychiatric care but don’t need to be hospitalized will now have a place close to home to receive services.
An eight-bed crisis stabilization unit has opened on the grounds of Eastern State Hospital to serve those who need crisis psychiatric care. The unit, previously located in Harrodsburg, began taking patients yesterday.
There are more than a dozen such programs in Kentucky, but this is the first time a crisis unit will be housed in Lexington, said Joe Toy, president and CEO of the Bluegrass Regional Mental Health-Mental Retardation Board, which operates both Eastern State and the crisis stabilization unit.
The units were designed for people who are having psychiatric episodes or problems and need 24-hour care but do not need to be hospitalized.
“I think it’s going to be a real positive thing for the community,” Toy said.
But the move from Harrodsburg to Lexington has not been without controversy. Some who have received services through the Mercer County unit are concerned that fewer people will want to go to Eastern State because of the stigma associated with going to a psychiatric facility. Others say fewer people in outlying areas will be able to access key psychiatric services.
“I believe with all my heart and soul that (the) plan will cost lives,” said Debbie Bellairs of Richmond, who has received treatment at the Harrodsburg unit. Bellairs questioned the timing of the move — in December, when stress and suicides are high — and said Toy made the decision with little consumer input and over the objections of the staff.
Ken Zeller, senior staff attorney for Kentucky Protection and Advocacy, said he has also heard concerns about moving the program. At a recent meeting of the state-run agency’s mental health advisory committee, several members expressed opposition to the move.
“There were concerns that when the CSU program was started, the intent was for the programs to be located in the community,” said Zeller, whose agency advocates for mentally retarded and mentally ill people. “Many people don’t want to go to Eastern State.”
But Toy said the plan is to reopen the Harrodsburg unit — most likely with four beds instead of eight and less staff.
“This could be a real positive; instead of eight beds we’ll have a gain of four beds,” Toy said.
Bluegrass has been pushing for years for a new state hospital. Toy said he hopes that having the crisis stabilization unit at Eastern State will make a new hospital more attractive to legislators in the coming session.
The Harrodsburg unit was rarely full and transportation was a problem for people in Lexington and surrounding areas, Toy said. Having the unit at Eastern State will create access to services people wouldn’t receive at a stand-alone unit. Toy said the unit is on the hospital grounds but is separate from the hospital.
Rita Ruggles, a program administrator with the Department for Mental Health and Mental Retardation, said the department had received some complaints about the move from staff and clients. But the department does not have any say on where the units are located.
“It takes an array of emergency services to meet the needs of the community,” Ruggles said. “The bottom line is that there is just not enough funding to meet the legitimate need for these beds.”
Crisis stabilization units are instrumental in keeping people healthy enough so they don’t have to check in to a psychiatric care facility, said Kelly Gunning of the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Lexington. The units can address psychotic episodes without going through the formal and rigorous commitment process.
“A lot of people believe that all services should be in the community,” Gunning said. “That’s just not realistic. What we’ve done is switch institutions — from state hospitals to county jails.”
Toy said he hopes the Harrodsburg unit will be reopened soon.
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