POUGHKEEPSIE – Westchester Medical Center Health Network has awarded Family Services in Poughkeepsie $133,000 to enhance behavioral health services for community members being discharged from the emergency department or inpatient psychiatric unit.
Family Services will provide clients and their families with comprehensive social determinants of health support in order to reduce emergency department utilization and inpatient admissions – all in an effort to better meet the complex behavioral health needs of those in the community.
Social determinants of health are conditions in the environments in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, and worship that affect a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes and include such things as safe and affordable housing, education and job opportunities, exposure to crime and violence, early childhood experiences, gender inequality and racism, and socioeconomic conditions such as poverty.
Brian Doyle, Family Services CEO, said the partnership with Westchester Med’s MidHudson Regional Hospital in Poughkeepsie will “ensure that community members being discharged from the emergency department or inpatient psychiatric unit receive comprehensive assessment and follow up care through our Behavioral Health Centers. The Transition Promising Practice Program will provide timely access to compassionate and collaborative wrap around services that will strengthen opportunities for success”
Westchester Medical Center, president and CEO Michael Israel said WMCHealth and its partners have made considerable progress over the last five years, including strengthening relationships between healthcare providers and community-based organizations.
