Effective July 15th, Hannibal Regional Hospital’s Woodland Center for Mental Health will close.
For those unfamiliar with the Woodland Center, it is a 14 bed inpatient mental health service which has been in operation since the hospital opened in 1993. Providing care to individuals who are mentally ill, the professional staff of the Woodland Center have assisted many residents of our region in regaining functional mental health. Whether suffering with anxiety disorders, depression, post-traumatic stress, bipolar disorders, dissociative identity disorders or antisocial personality disorders, among other illnesses, the patients within the Woodland Center have always received the most attentive and responsive professional psychiatric care available.
The decision to close the Woodland Center is, as you would expect, quite difficult. It was made only following an in-depth and thorough assessment and evaluation of the mental health services offered and our ability to continue that level of service into the future. Two issues were of primary importance to this evaluation: the sorry support of services for the mentally ill by the State of Missouri and other payers for care and the increasing challenge of psychiatrist availability.
Whether a state government or private insurance company, few wish to recognize the costs of treating mental illness. In fact, the State of Missouri has recently closed many of its inpatient mental illness facilities in a cost-saving move which has transferred many of those in need back to their communities. Many of Missouri’s hospitals have closed their inpatient units in the past two years including Boone Hospital in Columbia and Audrain Medical Center in Mexico. The Woodland Center is the last such unit operating in northeast Missouri . . . until July 15th.
The closure of the Woodland Center does not mean that Hannibal Regional Hospital is abandoning the mentally ill. Patients having mental health needs will continue to be treated as inpatients, as appropriate, but not restricted to a separate mental health unit. Patients with severe behavior disorders will be referred and transferred to more appropriate care settings.
Additionally, Hannibal Regional Healthcare System’s capabilities to provide additional outpatient mental health services through the Hannibal Regional Medical Group have recently expanded and will continue to develop to better meet the needs of our communities. You will learn more about these developments in the months ahead.
The closure of Woodland Center for Mental Health is a significant event. However, ensuring mental health resources are available within northeast Missouri remains a priority. As we continue to move forward in pursuing our mission “To lead, support and encourage excellence in health”, please know that we remain actively committed to the development of clinical services to best serve you, your families and our communities.
In good health,
John C. Grossmeier
President and Chief Executive Officer
Thursday, July 28, 2011 8:01 PM
I began my nursing career at Woodland Center for Mental Health. As a mental health professional and a mother of a child with disabilities, I can't help but be concerned about the lack of resources available to these fragile members of our community. While our state recognizes the cost of care for nearly every other patient population, they seem to turn a cheek when it comes to recognizing the cost of care to those served by DMH, making it next to impossible to provide these individuals with the services they need. It's such a shame..
However, as Mr. Grossmeier stated, patients served by Woodland Center "always received the most attentive and responsive psychiatric care available". I couldn't agree more! I've had multiple patients and their families express their gratitude, saying "you don't know how much you touched our life".
Thank you.. thank you to HRH and Woodland Center for the opportunity to serve you. Thank you to my patients and their families for allowing me to care for them. It was truly my honor!
Alison Miller, RN