No Time to Wait
College Hill Campus Addresses a Critical Need
 |
|---|
| The College Hill campus is a 60-bed psychiatric treatment center for children and adolescents requiring inpatient hospitalization for acute psychiatric care, residential treatment for chronic mental illness and outpatient psychiatric services. |
In 1995 the Emergency Department at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center treated 800 children and adolescents with mental illness. In 2000 that number jumped to more than 2,000 – a 150 percent increase.
With cutbacks in state and federal funding and limited insurance reimbursement, families were forced to seek emergency solutions for chronic behavioral health illnesses or send their children out of the Tristate for longer-term, residential services. Where else could families turn?
Cincinnati Children's responded to this crisis by opening the College Hill Campus, a 60-bed psychiatric treatment center for children and adolescents requiring inpatient hospitalization for acute psychiatric care, residential treatment for chronic mental illness and outpatient psychiatric services.
Meeting the Need
"Before we opened the College Hill Campus, kids were leaving the area and going to other states to get help for mental illness. We decided we needed to bring kids back," says Mike Sherbun, RN, PhD, senior clinical director of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. "If we can treat them here, then as a community we can take care of our kids."
Paying the Price
From the beginning it was understood the cost to open and operate the College Hill Campus would be substantial. In fiscal year 2005 Cincinnati Children's lost more than $6 million on outpatient and residential mental health services at the medical center and the College Hill Campus. But the cost of not providing care to those suffering from conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder would be far greater.
Without treatment those with mental illness face unnecessary disability, unemployment, substance abuse, homelessness, inappropriate incarceration and suicide. The National Alliance on Mental Illness estimates that the economic cost of untreated mental illness is more than $100 billion each year in the United States.
"We offer high-quality care to a population with desperate needs. The children we see often struggle with a major mental illness like bipolar disorder or severe depression, a history of abuse and neglect or exposure to violence, and cognitive impairment that challenges traditional methods of treatment," says Michael Sorter, MD, director of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Despite these realities, "Our outcomes demonstrate that mental health treatment works."
 |
|---|
Pet therapy is one of the recreational
therapies at the College Hill Campus. |
Having a child with mental illness can be difficult for all family members. Treatment plans take a multidisciplinary approach that includes family involvement. Parents and guardians are encouraged to visit their sons or daughters daily, take part in therapy sessions and talk with medical providers. Families learn about the roles of medication and therapy so treatment can continue successfully after a child leaves the campus. As their understanding of mental illness deepens, parents and guardians become equipped to manage their child's illness in ways that benefit the entire family.
Measuring the Outcome
Since 2003, when residential treatment began at the College Hill Campus, more than 200 individuals have been through the program. Offering intensive treatment with an emphasis on family-centered care has significantly reduced the amount of time children are in treatment. The average length of stay for children in the residential program at the College Hill Campus is 90 days, compared to six months to a year in other residential treatment facilities across the country.
The treatment of mental illness comes in many forms. Recreational therapist Jill Fowee has teenagers from the College Hill Campus make weekly visits to a nearby nursing home to assist with activities, take walks and have conversations with the elderly residents.
"We give our kids a chance to do something for someone else," Jill says. "Making a difference in another person's life can improve physical and mental health, particularly for those who wrestle with depression and mental illness."
