Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center officials unveiled the newly expanded Inpatient Mental Health Unit (IMHU) during a ribbon cutting event on Tuesday, October 8, 2024. The Kinney Drugs Foundation/Kinney Drugs Inpatient Mental Health Unit redesign began over a decade ago to improve the patient experience.
“When this construction project began it was more about improving the quality of the patient care space and the environment in which we treated our patients as opposed to increasing our capacity,” stated Tina O’Neil, director of mental health at Samaritan. “We looked to upgrade the unit and add more privacy for patients, plus we added group rooms and meeting rooms for family meetings. We focused on soft calming colors and artwork, and all new furniture.”
Plans to improve this hospital unit began in 2006 as the organization outlined the hospital facility master plan to address the aging facilities and to add new space where needed. There were four distinct phases planned and the official opening of the inpatient mental health unit marks the fourth and final phase as complete.
“This ribbon cutting is more than to celebrate the new space for the inpatient mental health patients. This is culmination of the work that has went into the last project of our 2006 facilities master planning project,” said Thomas H. Carman, president and CEO of Samaritan Medical Center. “Almost a decade later we can say we completed what we set out to do and with IMHU in particular we were able to pivot this project to meet the current needs of our patients and the community.”
Prior to construction, the unit had 32 beds and by the end of construction was set to have 34. In 2023, Samaritan officials requested a change to the project and was approved to move forward by the New York State Office of Mental Health (NYS OMH). This allowed the unit design to pivot and add five additional private rooms for patients for a total of 39 with two of these including negative pressure capability for mental health patients who also have a communicable disease such as COVID-19 or Influenza.
‘We watched the needs of our community change prior to and during the pandemic. We did not have private rooms on the unit, nor in the current construction plan, and with OMH’s approval, we were able to make this shift,” said O’Neil. “Patients need private space for hygiene, gender, infectious disease and other reasons, and now we can accommodate them better with private rooms.”
Although the funds to complete this portion of the phase four construction project were budgeted around $12 million dollars, construction costs soared as time went on and adding the five additional private rooms had a cost of $2.2 million dollars extra. The Samaritan Foundation looked to the community and corporate donors to help offset the costs.
“Kinney Drugs and the Kinney Drugs Foundation have supported every major capital project initiative Samaritan has embarked on, as well as major corporate partner and supporter of Children’s Miracle Network,’ stated Carman. “Their commitment to the communities they serve is unwavering and Samaritan is appreciative of their support of this unit, named in their honor.”
During the ribbon cutting event, Mr. Carman thanked the generous donors who supported the need for increased mental health services in our community. The leading donors to this project were Kinney Drugs, the Kinney Drugs Foundation, Catherine and Bill Quencer, Samaritan Medical Center Foundation donors along with Foundation event proceeds from A North Country Festival of Trees and the Thousand Islands Golf Tournament.
###
Pictured here, in attendance at the Inpatient Mental Health Unit ribbon cutting event for Samaritan Medical Center included Olivia Patterson, Assemblyman Scott Gray, Katie Roberts, David Adsit, David Warner, David McClure, Tina O’Neil, Tom Carman, KI LaClair, Mart Liinve, Tim Reutten, Rick Tague, COL Christine Buchner, and Zane Buckingham. Pictured here, in attendance at the Inpatient Mental Health Unit ribbon cutting event for Samaritan Medical Center included David McClure, Katie Roberts, David Warner, and David Adsit.
Watertown, NY – The Samaritan Medical Center Foundation of Northern New York is pleased to announce the generous support of Kinney Drugs and the Kinney Drugs Foundation in expanding mental health treatment services and physical space within Samaritan Medical Center. In recognition of this recent commitment of dollars, the adult inpatient mental health unit space will be named in honor of Kinney Drugs.
The inpatient mental health unit expects approval from the New York State (NYS) Office of Mental Health (OMH) to increase the bed count in the unit from 34 to 39 beds. The five additional rooms will be private, which is a significant need. The current physical space consists exclusively of double-occupant rooms. It often cannot be used for two patients due to aggression, infection control issues, and other reasons. The unit is typically full, and with the increase in mental health crises, patients go to the emergency department. Fifty percent of the adults who visit the emergency department in a psychiatric crisis will need a stabilization inpatient stay within this unit.
Kinney Drugs and its Foundation remain among Samaritan’s top donors, supporters, and partners. Over the years, the organization has supported Samaritan and quality healthcare in the Northern New York region in many ways. They are dedicated to the pediatric patient population and have donated needed funds in multiple departments within the Car-Freshner Center Women & Children, including the Level II neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), the play area on the pediatric inpatient unit, and a cesarean surgical suite in labor & delivery. In addition, Kinney is a steadfast partner and fundraiser for Samaritan’s Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) program.
In 1992, they became a CMN national partner, just two years after Samaritan became a Children’s Miracle Network Hospital. All stores raise funds for CMN and locally across the Jefferson, St. Lawrence, and Lewis County areas. Their teams are highly engaged and passionate about CMN.
Kinney Drugs and the Kinney Drugs Foundation have repeatedly shown their commitment and support to Samaritan over decades. They have invested over one million dollars in continuing quality and compassionate healthcare at Samaritan.
The Kinney Drugs Foundation is the philanthropic arm of KPH Healthcare Services, Inc. with locations in 14 states, including its home state of New York. Since its inception in 2002, the Kinney Drugs Foundation has given more than $12 million to these communities, helping make positive changes in the lives of so many people. Information on the Foundation may be found at www.kinneydrugsfoundation.com.
Pictured here, from left, are Beth Fipps, VP of Foundation & Community Services, Samaritan Medical Center Foundation, and Thomas H. Carman, President and CEO, Samaritan Medical Center, with Dave Warner, President of the Kinney Drugs Foundation and EVP of KPH Healthcare Services, and Rich McNulty, SVP of Human Resources of KPH Healthcare Services.
Watertown, NY – Samaritan’s emergency department (ED) will undergo a construction project to expand and enhance the care of psychiatric patients within the secure behavioral health unit (BHU). The expansion is needed as the average daily census of patients has been consistently exceeding physical space. The project is set to cost $2.5 million dollars and construction has begun.
Looking to the past: In 2010 when we opened our modern ED a five-bed BHU secure unit was sufficient to meet the average daily census. Two overflow rooms were identified near the secure BHU that could be used when needed. This left 31 remaining medical beds in the ED for a total of 38 beds in the entire department. The psychiatric patient numbers have continued to climb over the years and prior to the pandemic in 2020 the average daily census was approximately seven patients.
Present condition: The average daily census of psychiatric patients in the past 12 months has grown to approximately eight patients, with a high of over 20 patients at one time. There has been an increase in pediatric patients needing care. This number collectively exceeds our secure unit and overflow capacity, which forces these patients into medical beds within the emergency department. This has two immediate impacts – there are fewer beds to treat medical patients and more staff members are needed to watch psychiatric patients in these medical rooms because there are inherent equipment and safety risks in a traditional medical room.
Coupled with an increase in patient census, these patients, especially children, are waiting longer in our ED when they need hospitalization. The current physical space to help safely stabilize these patients is not adequate within the emergency department’s current behavioral health unit (BHU).
The increased number of adults and children in a mental health crisis can be attributed to many factors, but there is not one particular trend. The pandemic is certainly a newer factor with more stress, anxiety, isolation and breaks in outpatient care.
Future solutions: Samaritan leaders contacted the Department of Health (DOH) with our physical constraints and then decided to seek emergency approval on a Certificate of Need (CON) that identified the space we need. The full approval process can take up to 12 months, but the state quickly approved it.
Construction is now underway to expand to a 12-bed secure unit to meet the needs of the community and the ED will have 29 medical beds. To gain this space, the current coffee shop in the main lobby will move to a different space in the lobby, as well as moving physician office space and claiming hallway space in the lobby area. This will happen in a phased approach to limit the impact to current operations. The project is expected to be completed by the Summer of 2024.
The BHU expansion project is set to cost $2.5 million dollars. This was not budgeted for in 2023 but has been deemed necessary as a matter of patient safety concerns and to mitigate extra staffing needs. Several revenue sources have been identified, and Samaritan continues to look for grant dollars to help offset the construction costs. The Samaritan Foundation, Children’s Miracle Network of Northern New York, and Jefferson County have all committed funds totaling approximately $793,000.
The Samarian Foundation committed half of the net proceeds from its recent Thousand Islands Golf Tournament in June to the project for a total of just over $60,000. In addition, the Foundation is going to dedicate proceeds from an event later this year, Festival of Trees, to the project as well.
The Children’s Miracle Network of Northern New York and its allocations committee designated $300,000 to the project because there is a direct pediatric care need to this expansion.
On April 4, 2023, the Jefferson County Board of Legislators approved a request from Jefferson County Community Services to provide $430,000 to Samaritan Medical Center for this expansion project. The funds have been made available as a result of the New York State Attorney General’s successful litigation with several pharmaceutical companies. The $430,000 is designated to assist with the physical expansion of the behavioral health unit, which has experienced dramatic increases in opiate-related visits. The funding will also be used to begin the important service of providing lifesaving, medication assisted therapies to those who need medical assistance to begin their journey to recovery.
Samaritan is also applying for an expansion to our adult inpatient mental health unit from 34 to 39 beds. This request has been submitted to the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) as they oversee the operations of this inpatient unit. This expansion is needed since we are consistently at full capacity in this unit, as 50% of the adults coming into the emergency department for a mental health crisis are admitted to Samaritan for stabilization and a treatment plan. This project will cost approximately one million dollars.
“Our region continues to battle the mental health crisis needs in this rural community,” states Tom Carman, president and chief executive officer of Samaritan. “Although there are many community-based programs, the need for emergent care through our emergency department, and transferring from other local hospitals who do not have this level of care, consistently surpasses a safe space for us to care for these patients in the existing physical footprint. The need to expand this secure unit has a trickle-down impact that helps these patients, plus the overall wait times for medical patients. The funding will also be used to begin the important service of providing lifesaving, medication assisted therapies (MAT) to those who need medical assistance to begin their journey to recovery.”
Emergency Department Behavioral Health Numbers:
From January 2022 to June 2023, 946children presented to our emergency department for a behavioral health crisis. Samaritan does not have an inpatient pediatric mental health unit, and those children needing to be hospitalized must be transferred to a facility with capacity in New York State.
273 of these children were deemed in need of hospitalization and transferred to a higher level of care.
Pediatric patients had an average length of stay of 30 hours in 2021 and 35 hours in 2022, with a peak of over 72. This is caused by a shortage of pediatric beds across the region and state. Children are waiting longer in our BHU and the new space will be more child-centered.
Over 550 of these children were already established in outpatient behavioral health services in the community.
From January 2022 to June 2023, 3,461 adults presented to Samaritan’s Emergency Department for a behavioral health crisis.
1,746 of these patients were admitted to Samaritan’s inpatient mental health unit.
210 of these patients were transferred to another facility for psychiatric care.
1,388 of these patients were stabilized in the ED and discharged home to continue their care plans.
Adult patients average length of stay went from 12 hours in 2021 to 22 hours in 2022 and peaked at over 36 hours.
Overall, Samaritan’s emergency department cared for 35,570 patients (medical and psychiatric) in 2022.
Renderings of the new 12-bed secure unit being constructed in Samaritan’s emergency department.
Samaritan Health is not responsible for content, privacy policy, accuracy or legality of any website assessed through a link on www.samartianhealth.com. A link to another website does not constitute an endorsement, guarantee or approval by Samaritan Health of the linked website or the information, products or services contained therein
