LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Nevada’s lowest-in-the-nation ranking in mental health care last year is fueling new efforts in Southern Nevada, where the region’s only Crisis Stabilization Center is working to expand access to treatment and intervene before mental illness or substance abuse crises escalate into dangerous situations.
The center is partnering with law enforcement and local organizations to connect people to care more quickly, aiming to reduce outcomes that can include domestic violence or officer-involved shootings when conditions go untreated.
“This is the biggest center of its kind here in Southern Nevada, and we hope it proves a concept that mental health care needs are large and vast, that we are lacking those resources, and strategically placing these around the community can really help,” Dr. Ketan Patel said.
Dr. Patel is the co-medical director at the Crisis Stabilization Center. He says the facility is designed for people experiencing mental health crises or substance use issues and offers an alternative to emergency rooms and jail.
“We know a lot of patients seek that type of medical care in emergency departments, and those settings can often be chaotic,” he said.
To streamline access to psychiatric care, the center trains local first responders and law enforcement on the criteria needed to bring someone directly to the facility.
Dr. Patel described the types of patients the center serves.
“Patients who are undergoing large emotional crises, some people who are undergoing psychiatric crises, some patients who do not feel safe, and some patients who just need resources or help,” he said.
Patel said the transfer process is designed to move quickly, getting people out of ambulances and into psychiatric care within minutes.
“We know that ambulances are better served not waiting in busy emergency department walls trying to offload a patient, but to offload that patient and get to the next person that needs help,” he said.
The center is designed to alleviate crises within a 24-hour period, and Patel said most patients are able to leave much sooner.
“Most of our patients actually get the help they need and are able to get discharged from the crisis stabilization center within 6 to 8 hours,” Dr. Patel said.
However, Patel emphasized that treatment timelines vary.
“Psychiatric care doesn’t stop in that moment or within 6 to 8 hours; the patients need a longer time, they’re afforded that opportunity to be there,” he said.
Patel said the goal is to provide immediate stabilization while also connecting patients to longer-term support after they leave.
“Patients can come, get help for the acute issues that they’re dealing with, but also meet them with additional resources such as case management and other community resources on the backend of when they go to help them stay out of emergency departments,” he said.
The center is staffed around the clock and serves patients regardless of their ability to pay.
Services include psychiatric care, pharmaceutical prescriptions, and help connecting to transitional housing, emergency shelters, or outpatient therapy.