Prince George’s County Welcomes New Behavioral Health Unit at MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center
Dear Prince Georgians,
Today, we celebrated the opening of the new Behavioral Health Unit at MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center. This is an exciting time for Prince George’s County as this is yet another step in our journey to provide access to the comprehensive healthcare our residents deserve and it continues our increased focus on behavioral healthcare, a need that has long gone underserved in this County.
For so many years, Prince George’s County has been a behavioral health desert. In 2019, the Prince George’s County Community Health Needs Assessment identified behavioral health as a leading health priority for County residents. Our County is home to nearly one million residents, but only had two acute care units for inpatient behavioral health and as a result, more than half of the adult admissions from Prince George’s County were admitted to hospitals outside of our jurisdiction.
We have also seen this lack of access to adequate treatment revealed within our criminal justice system, because people in a mental health crisis are more likely to encounter police than get necessary medical help. Over the last few years, nearly a third of the inmates brought to our detention center on any given day have been found to be on psychotropic drugs, and as many as 70% of the people who arrive at the jail are intoxicated when they get there. We can all see the steep price that communities like ours pay for lack of access to healthcare, and this path is unsustainable. That is why at the start of my administration, I made expanding mental health services one of my Proud Priorities, and while we have made significant strides towards treating mental health more adequately, the COVID-19 pandemic only magnified these challenges that we face within our community.
The opening of this facility fits with our goal to build a continuum of healthcare right here in the County that will address every healthcare need that our residents face. We are incredibly grateful for Congressman Steny Hoyer’s efforts to secure $925,000 in federal funding for this critical project in the FY2022 Omnibus Appropriations Bill passed back in March. We are also grateful to the Maryland Hospital Association’s Bond Project for awarding the hospital a $840,000 grant, which was included in state funding allocated in the 2021 Legislative Session.
We also want to thank MedStar Health for their dedication to providing the best healthcare possible for Prince Georgians. They invested heavily in renovating the hospital’s 4-East unit for this purpose, and because of their support and the support of so many others, our residents will now have access to four new treatment areas, a dedicated examination space, a quiet room, and a new facility to conduct administrative hearings as patients receive care.
We are so proud to celebrate this occasion today and now have even more hope for the future of behavioral health in this County. My hope is that we all can continue to work together to improve the health and well-being of all of our residents and keep moving forward as a stronger, healthier Prince George’s County.
Yours in service,
Angela Alsobrooks
Prince George’s County Executive
|
