Unlike other areas in our hospitals, the behavioral health unit has a lot of open space and is shared with other patients. This promotes interaction between patients and staff, enables group meetings, and facilitates therapy.

Patients will often eat meals together in the dining room and their rooms don’t have a lot of furniture in them, which encourages you to spend more time in the shared areas, like doing group activities and treatments. Some of our units have shared rooms and you may have a roommate and a shared bathroom.

The unit is kept locked to separate patients from areas or items that can be harmful. Patients are encouraged to bring in a limited number of belongings. Staff members will explain what is allowed before and during check-in. For example, you can bring paperback books and extra clothes, but hospital toiletries will be provided. We also limit who and what comes in and out of the unit. This makes the space more secure and helps everyone focus on the well-being of patients.

Medication is an important part of treatment for many patients. Staff will double-check your identity before issuing them to make sure the right person gets the right medication. This usually means asking you to confirm your name and birthday and checking your responses against the information on your wristband or other ID.

Only two visitors over the age of 12 are allowed per patient and hours vary by location. This helps reduce interruptions and distractions, so patients can focus on their treatment. All visitors are screened using a metal detection wand, asked to empty their pockets and place all personal items in a locker. Each patient gets to choose a 4-digit code which they can give to anyone they’d like to visit them. This code can also be used to give those trusted contacts access to information about a patient’s treatment. Due to privacy laws, we cannot share patient information without their consent.

The average length of stay varies by individual, however, most patients are here less than a week.

Ongoing medication management and therapy are a key part of your mental health recovery. It’s very important to keep the follow-up appointments we have scheduled with outpatient mental health providers.

Next steps could include an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). An IOP can be used as a transition from inpatient psychiatric care or as an option for addition therapy services.

Patients who have social support have better outcomes and we encourage you to involve family and friends in your care. We will schedule a session with you and your family or support person to discuss treatment progress, safety planning, and follow-up care.