Mitra Pedram, director of the new facility, said: ‘We want to be able to step in in those moments of crisis to address those needs and get families connected to ongoing care.’
Springfield will soon be home to a campus where teenagers experiencing a mental health crisis can seek immediate help at any time, day or night.
Burrell Behavioral Health will break ground Monday on the Youth Resiliency Campus. The $14 million project will be built on a six-acre parcel on North Fremont Avenue, just south of Interstate 44.
Modeled in part after a behavioral crisis center that Burrell opened for adults during the pandemic, this campus will add and expand services for youth, ages 13-17, by offering the following:
- Youth Behavioral Crisis Center − A 24/7 walk-in clinic for youth and families to access mental health services with or without a referral;
- Intensive Outpatient Program − Structured mental health services occurring 2-3 hours per day, multiple days a week for youth with a parental engagement component;
- Partial Hospitalization Program − Intensive clinical treatment offered five days a week for five or more hours a day for youth. It includes family therapy and skill building;
- Youth Residential Treatment Program − a 16-bed mental health residential treatment program for youth. The average length of stay will be 3-6 months.
“Sometimes these families just need help,” said Clay Goddard, president of Burrell’s southwest region. “They need to see that path forward.”
Goddard said given the significant spike in the number of young people dealing with mental health issues in recent years, there was an urgent need.
“As we evaluated our crisis continuum, we did see a pretty significant gap,” he said.
He said there are limited options for a teen suffering a mental health crisis because of depression, behavior issues, relationship problems, anxiety, substance abuse, or trauma.
Through the campus, Burrell aims to provide a safe place and immediate help. An on-site team will provide the teen and his or her parent with options and a treatment plan, which may include individual or family therapy, inpatient or outpatient services, and other wraparound resources.
“It is getting to these families early, helping to develop these care pathways that will hopefully result in a family that is able to prosper and get that kid to a point where they are going to be successful,” Goddard said.
There has been overwhelming support for the campus, locally and at the state level.
Greene County allocated $5.3 million of its federal pandemic relief American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, funds for the project.
Greene County Presiding Commissioner Bob Dixon said allocating the funds was “absolutely appropriate” given the youth mental health needs, which were exacerbated by the “COVID aftermath and the lockdowns and all of the isolation.”
“It made a lot of sense to us and as a community we need to do more. This is a big step in the right direction,” said Dixon, who will speak at the Monday ceremony.
Dixon said the campus will create a “point of hope” for families facing a youth mental health crisis and he hopes the teenagers who seek help will gain the treatment and skills needed to navigate future challenges.
“We know the need is real and better to make an investment early on than to pay multiplied cost down the road. Of course that is just part of the picture,” he said. “When you look at the human factor, this is a no-brainer.”
The state has allocated $6 million to the project, which will flow through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
The rest of the project will be paid for by Burrell. Construction will start soon and the facility is expected to open in two years or less.
Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams, is board chair for Brightli, the parent company of Burrell.
He said the local crisis center for adults “proved that this model works” and launching the campus aimed at youth is needed.
“It is a great idea and it will absolutely have an effect in our community moving forward,” he said.
Williams said 7-17% of law enforcement interaction nationally involve individuals with a mental health issue. “That is a considerable amount of time and youth are a part of that.”
Burrell said if youth mental health needs can be met with more frequency, there may be fewer individuals who make life-altering decisions or land in an emergency room, jail or on the streets.
“It will hopefully keep (teens) from having issues as an adult and get them comfortable with seeking services and dealing with mental health issues, which are so common,” he said.
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Mitra Pedram, a clinical social worker, is director of behavioral crisis center and youth residential services and will be the director of the facility at the new campus.
She said pre-pandemic national statistics show 1 in 5 youth seriously consider suicide, 1 in 6 make a plan and 1 in 11 make an attempt.
“We want to be able to step in in those moments of crisis to address those needs and get families connected to ongoing care,” she said.
Once the new campus opens, Burrell plans to close its existing youth residential treatment program, which is located in a former house just north of Nixa.
Pedram said demand is high but space there is limited. Since the pandemic, the facility has served an average of 8-10 youth at any time with a successful discharge rate of 94% in the past fiscal year.
Burrell received 144 referrals for youth residential treatment during the past year, only a portion of which were able to be served in that way.
“This is going to better for the kids and will increase the capacity,” she said.
Pedram said Burrell works closely with schools, hospital systems, the juvenile office, law enforcement and others and many of those entities may referrals.
Grenita Lathan, superintendent of the Springfield school district, said Burrell has been a valuable, long-time partner in the effort to provide students with mental health support so they can be “success-ready in the classroom and beyond.”
“We applaud their efforts to continue adapting services to further benefit our community and region,” she said. “Certainly, the new Youth Resiliency Campus will benefit SPS students through both immediate and long-term care options.”
Lathan added: “The challenges posed by mental health crises are significant, but we are far better equipped to support our students as a result of incredible partners like Burrell and the expanded services they have made possible.”
