New facility in Memphis aims to help children with mental health
By: Mandy Hrach
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Ever since the pandemic, rates of mental health disorders like depression and anxiety among children have exploded.
Many of them are ending up in emergency rooms, which may not be equipped to deal with a patient in a mental health crisis.
That’s why a new facility coming to Memphis aims to get kids the help they need.
“Mental health is a huge issue here in the states and Tennessee and all over,” Ryan Castell, a parent said. “So anytime we can help the kids and in that capacity, I think it’s a great thing.”
More children are suffering from mental health disorders than ever before. But the new building next to the Alliance Crisis Wellness Center on Broad Ave. in Memphis offers new hope.
“We serve 15,000 individuals a year. That’s for adults. Now we’re expanding that to kids,” Laurie Powell, the CEO of Alliance Healthcare Services said.
Alliance Healthcare Services received a state grant to open a crisis stabilization unit for children.
Powell said a mental health professional will assess children in the 24/7 crisis walk-in center and determine whether what services the child needs.
She said they also can stay at the center for up to five days for free, regardless of insurance coverage.
“Everybody deserves quality behavioral health care regardless of your ability to pay,” Powell said. “I think that’s what sets Alliance apart from all the other providers, because we will not refuse to see you.”
Tennessee’s Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Commissioner Marie Williams said the center will keep more kids experiencing a mental health crisis out of the e-r and in a place where they can get the treatment they need.
“When you’re in a true behavioral health crisis, struggling with intense anxiety, major depression, potentially suicidal thoughts, having someone who has the background, the skill set, the training, and that’s all they do all day every day, is incredible,” Williams said.
The first Crisis Stabilization Unit for children in the state opened up in Knoxville a few years ago.
Commissioner Williams said it’s cut the average time families spent waiting in the emergency room for placement by a third.
The Memphis unit is expected to break ground sometime after Feb. 2025.
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