Officials of the Orchard Park Hospital announced the opening of its state-of-the-art inpatient acute psychiatric hospital for children and adolescents in the tri-state area.
On Monday, September 25, Orchard Park Hospital opened its doors with the mission to provide quick and vital access for area youth between the ages of 5-18 years old who are in immediate need of acute psychiatric care.
The 30-bed psychiatric hospital will provide desperately needed acute mental health care for children and teens in West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
“We are so excited to officially open our doors and accept patients. Our team has worked diligently to prepare for this, and I am confident our services are and will remain of the highest quality,” stated Jacquelyn Knight, CEO.
“It is amazing to be a part of this project. We have a team of amazing staff members prepared to meet the needs of our communities’ children and families,” added Cory Carr, Hospital Administrator.
Orchard Park Hospital services will reduce the burden on local emergency rooms, where local children in mental health crises are sometimes housed for days without receiving appropriate psychiatric care at all. Treatment is often stalled until a bed opens in a facility located sometimes many hours away from Wheeling.
The need is immediate and growing, Suicide is now the third leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 10 and 24, a study by the Centers for Disease and Control concluded. More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic lung disease combined. Among 5 to 11-year-olds, suicide ranks as either the seventh- or eighth-leading cause of death, the CDC said.
Orchard Park Hospital, LLC is wholly owned by The Children’s Home of Wheeling, Inc., a youth residential treatment facility that was founded in 1870. Officials of The Children’s Home created Orchard Park Hospital in response to the call for youth crisis services by many individuals within the local healthcare, education, and therapeutic communities.
“The Children’s Home has a long history of serving and caring for youth in our community,” continued Knight. “Orchard Park Hospital will continue this legacy of care by offering more critical services to local children,”
The state-of-the-art facility includes secure sleeping areas, individual and group therapy rooms, a gymnasium, and an outside recreation area. The entire facility will be mobility accessible.
Patient referrals are now being accepted. Children and adolescents experiencing a mental health crisis must be first medically cleared by their local emergency room to initiate this process. Local medical and behavioral health providers and other caregivers are encouraged to contact Orchard Park Hospital’s Intake Department at 304-810-2116 for more information on the referral process.
The hospital has also created some forty (40) new jobs for the area, including nursing, direct care, maintenance and cook positions. Individuals interested in employment can apply on Indeed or send resumes to mpearl@oprinc.org.
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