Senior Behavioral Health Services
Haywood’s Senior Behavioral Health Unit is a 16-bed unit providing a spectrum of psychiatric and medical care for senior adults age 55+ in an environment designed specifically to meet the unique needs of the elderly population requiring 24-hour in-patient hospital care. This includes the use of medication management to treat complications that come with aging, physical impairments that limit mobility and daily living and life changes and losses that diminish their financial, social and emotional support systems when they are most needed. The goal is to stabilize the patient while in the hospital setting and help each patient to determine safe and suitable living options upon discharge. This is not a long-term care facility - the average stay is 14 to 16 days.
Who We Are
A multidisciplinary team of clinicians conducts mental, cognitive and medical assessments and develops customized treatment plans for patients. Attending psychiatrists and registered nurses will be on staff as well as mental health assistants, certified nursing assistants, an activities coordinator and licensed clinical social workers and counselors.
Program services include providing a safe environment with 24-hour monitoring and supervision, diagnostic services, medication evaluation and treatment, dietary evaluation, group counseling, individual counseling, physical and occupational rehabilitation, recreational therapy, and specialized care coordination with outpatient providers.
Our services include:
- Recreational therapy
- Individualized treatment plans
- Psychiatric consultation
- Evaluation of medical needs
- Multidisciplinary treatment team
- Individual, group and family counseling
- Scheduled daily activities
- Psychosocial assessment
- Physical, occupational, and speech therapy
- Comprehensive discharge planning
Admissions Criteria
A patient may be referred by family, a physician, another healthcare professional, or by self-referral. Senior adults who are considered for treatment at Haywood Regional’s Senior Behavioral Health unit have acuity levels to meet the criteria for an intensive inpatient admission, such as:
- Sudden onset or increase in confusion, disorientation or memory loss
- Hallucinations, delusions, and/or paranoia
- Behavior or verbalization reflecting potential risk of danger to self, others or property
- Severe depression
- Suicidal ideation or attempted suicide
- Assaultive behavior as a result of psychiatric disorder
- Sudden change in ability to attend to normal daily activities
- Inability to comply with prescribed psychiatric health regimen
- Noncompliance with prescribed medical health regimens due to concurrent psychiatric illness
Acute onset of inability to cope with stressful situation