Centra’s psychiatric care plan may get boost

Centra’s plan to expand in-patient psychiatric care at Virginia Baptist Hospital is moving forward.

 
- A public hearing on the proposed project is set for 11 a.m. Oct. 29 in the Lynchburg Public Library on Memorial Avenue.
- The hearing, a required part of the Certificate of Public Need process, is overseen by the Health Planning Agency of Southwest Virginia. The process is needed when health expansion falls into certain categories or levels of expenditure.
- The public hearing is part of an information-gathering process that includes reviews by local and state health planners. The final decision will rest with the Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Health.

The $1.2 million project would add 19 psychiatric beds and boost current mental health bed capacity for children as well as for geriatric care.

Since Centra filed a letter of intent last summer and first discussed the proposal, the bed numbers have remained the same, but they’re distributed a little differently, and the price tag has gone up.

“It will cost a little more,” said Bill Semones, Centra vice president who oversees mental health services. “We still feel there’s a need for it.”

The project involves extensive renovation of existing space, but does not require new construction. Centra’s hospital mental health services will go from 39 acute-care beds to 58 if the project is approved.

An expansion of the child psychiatric unit at Virginia Baptist Hospital would go from 14 to 20 beds and “will help considerably,” said Semones. The unit will likely see about 600 admissions this year, said Semones.

The addition of the beds will allow Centra to better serve the children, who range in age from 5 to 17. With the additional room, Centra would be able to separate those who are about age 5 to 12 years old from teens ranging in age from 13 to 17 years.

“We’re seeing a lot of young kids with adjustment, emotional problems and a lot of behavioral problems,” said Semones. Sometimes, the need for treatment is acute — “some are hurting other children, or trying to, or hurting themselves,” he said.

The geriatric specialty unit “is a new adventure for us,” said Semones. Centra has lots of support from area nursing homes on the project, he said.

The unit will be for patients with dementia or behavior problems, with the goal of discharging the patient back to the nursing home or the

family.

Dr. Peter Betz, a psychiatrist with specialty training in geriatrics, will be medical director for that unit, Semones said.