Construction of first crisis stabilization center for youth & adults in SE Alaska currently underway at BRH

Currently under construction on the Bartlett Regional Hospital campus in Juneau is a new crisis stabilization center. Scheduled for completion in March 2023, the center will further expand Bartlett’s comprehensive, integrated approach to addressing urgent mental health needs by providing the first crisis residential center for youth and adults in Southeast Alaska.

Once fully staffed and operational, the center will offer 24/7 crisis care with 8-beds serving youth and adults. It is anticipated that both 23-hour crisis observation and stabilization, as well as crisis residential services for up to 7 days will be available. The center will work directly with numerous community partners, in addition to the hospital’s Emergency Department, Adult Mental Health Unit, Bartlett Outpatient Psychiatric Services, Rainforest Recovery Center, and existing Crisis Intervention Services to strengthen the community’s crisis response framework, specifically adapting core elements of the Crisis Now model for Southeast Alaska.

“Providing wrap-around behavioral health services, both for individuals and their families experiencing mental health crises, has been needed in Southeast Alaska for a very long time,” Interim Chief Behavioral Health Officer Karen Forrest said. “Building out the continuum of care alongside community partners will help to better meet the needs of the community in a more therapeutic environment.”

There are currently no residential centers for crisis intervention in Southeast Alaska for youth and adults with urgent mental health needs. For youth, the center will reduce the number of individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis who must leave the community and receive treatment away from their family. For adults, the center will provide the services necessary to stabilize individuals that do not require inpatient psychiatric hospitalization, and provide a step-down approach for adults discharging from the Mental Health Unit who are still in need of supports.

The crisis center is being constructed by Dawson Construction and will house three service floors and basement parking. In addition to crisis stabilization care services, the center will be the new home for the Bartlett Outpatient Psychiatric Services clinic, which includes psychiatric evaluation, medication management, and therapy for adults and youth. The center will also house specialty behavioral health services and additional outpatient services as needed.

(The image is an exterior rendering of the building by NorthWind Architects.)