University of Kentucky opens the first emergency psychiatric care unit in the state

Kentucky’s first emergency psychiatric hospital opens today.

UK HealthCare will start seeing patients at the Emergency Psychiatric Assessment Treatment and Healing (EmPATH) unit at 7 p.m. July 30 on the Eastern State Hospital campus in Lexington. Officials cut the ribbon on the unit early Tuesday.

“A mental health issue should be treated with the same sense of urgency and care and compassion as any physical problem. Mental health challenges can affect anyone, and no one should hesitate to seek help,” said Gwen Moreland, UK HealthCare chief nurse executive.

The new mental health crisis unit has the capacity to care for 12 patients at a time. People in crisis can bring themselves to the unit or be brought in by first responders. Anyone can take advantage of the new service, unless the patient is under 18 years old or medically unstable.

This will be the first EmPATH unit to open in Kentucky , and one of about 30 nationally. This model has proven to reduce hospitalization by 60%, according to UK spokesperson Allison Perry.

Lessening the strain on traditional emergency rooms

The dedicated emergency psychiatric unit will help lessen the strain on traditional emergency rooms. Dr. Scott Zeller, the doctor who developed the EmPATH model for care, estimated between 12-15% of all emergency room visits are related to mental health.

Eastern State Hospital Chief Medical Officer Andy Cooley said patients who need mental health services consistently experience extended wait times in emergency rooms, sometimes upwards of eight hours. Having a dedicated space to treat those patients will provide care better suited to meet the needs of people in crisis.

“Like cities all over America, Lexington has struggled to provide needed services to people experiencing a mental health crisis,” Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton said.

“In many communities, including ours, people have been cycled in and out of jail, in and out of emergency rooms, instead of having access to the treatment they need.”

Nationally, about one in five adults have a mental illness, according to Eastern State Chief Nursing Officer Marc Woods. Here in the commonwealth, one in three Kentuckians have an anxiety or depression diagnosis.

A welcoming, hopeful environment

Eastern State Chief Administrative Officer Lindsey Jasinski said the collaborative nature of the new unit’s approach to mental health treatment is what makes the intervention so effective. Forgoing individual patient rooms, the EmPATH unit employs an open floor concept with recliners instead of beds to create a welcoming, hopeful environment.

Jasinski told patients to “come on in, we’ll figure it out together.”

Eastern State Hospital is owned by the state but managed by UK HealthCare. The EmPATH unit is owned and operated by UK HealthCare, from leased space on Eastern State’s campus.

The project cost $1.26 million to get off the ground, according to Eastern State Community Engagement Director Vikki Franklin. UK HealthCare will also pay Eastern State up to $310,000 per year for the leased space.