Danville Mental Health Crisis Center receives $500,000 grant

Danville-Pittsylvania Community Services expanded its crisis center to a new location at 366 Piney Forest Road in August.

Crisis Services Coordinator Carla Pruitt said the grant will cover the costs of recruiting and hiring two office managers and a health care worker for the center, as well as medical supplies needed to conduct mental health assessments. He plans to cover it.

Pruitt said the money will also be used to build an on-site pharmacy and capitalize on things like medical and security equipment.

“Some of the grants are one-time funds and some are ongoing funds,” Pruitt said in an interview at the crisis center.

Governor Glenn Youngkin recently announced that Danville-Pitzlvania Community Services has been awarded one of six grants to help pay for an emergency room alternative for patients experiencing mental health crises. did.

The grants were for new locations in Virginia, completion of projects in development, and staffing increases for existing crisis reception centers and crisis stabilization units, according to a news release from the governor’s office.

The award comes from the state’s $58 million 2024 investment in facilities outlined in Youngkin’s “Right Help, Right Now” plan for behavioral health care in the commonwealth, according to a news release. It is something that

Funding for this program comes from the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services.

“Crisis reception centers and crisis stabilization units provide a necessary alternative to emergency rooms to ensure those in crisis receive the appropriate care they need, when they need it,” Yonkin said in preparation. said in a statement. “Through these steps, we are transforming Virginia’s behavioral health system for the better.”

Danville-Pittsylvania Community Services opened a crisis center on Piney Forest Road on Aug. 17. It was previously located at 136 W. Main St., across from Sovah Health-Danville, and has been open since late 2021.

The center provides 23-hour crisis stabilization for people experiencing an acute mental health crisis that can lead to psychiatric hospitalization. Our services aim to avoid this.

Prior to the crisis center’s move, crisis management staff was split between the West Main Street location and the Danville-Pittsylvania Community Services headquarters at 245 Hairston Street. However, the move allowed the crisis center to consolidate these personnel into her one site.

The crisis center has 20 employees, including clinicians who evaluate clients. Care coordinators connect clients with community resources. That includes fellow recovery professionals who have struggled with mental health or substance abuse issues in the past, Pruitt said.

“They can share their experiences so clients can relate,” she said, referring to her fellow recovery professionals.

She said the crisis center has 18 openings due to the need for more staff.

“We just added new positions,” Pruitt said.

Mental health crises can include anxiety attacks, suicidal or homicidal thoughts or urges, mental illness or an inability to care for oneself, she said.

The crisis center receives referrals from schools, law enforcement agencies, clinics, probation offices, walk-ins and self-referrals.

Pruitt said the center’s staff conducts about 100 to 225 evaluations at the facility a month, or about 1,500 a year.

Thanks to additional services such as 23-hour stabilization, 7-day outpatient crisis stabilization, and mobile crisis response services, the proportion of temporary detention orders has decreased from about half to 30% of evaluated clients, Pruitt said. said.

Temporary detention orders are issued by a magistrate and require detention in a psychiatric facility until a hearing can be held.