Indiana (Pa.) Regional Medical Center plans to construct a new mental health facility to meet a growing regional need.
The local population has limited access to primary care and many residents use the emergency room or urgent care for their medical needs, according to an Oct. 20 news release. Additionally, drug addiction, poverty, and unemployment create unique local challenges for providers prepared to care for publicly funded medical assistance recipients or uninsured patients. To address this, IRMC plans to construct a 31,000-square-foot, 44-bed mental health facility to coordinate and integrate mental and physical healthcare and provide better patient outcomes.
"As an independent community hospital, we understand the needs of the people we serve. Behavioral health needs have been a critical issue for some time and only worsened due to the pandemic," said IRMC president and CEO Stephen Wolfe.
Construction is scheduled to begin in fall 2022, and the facility is scheduled to open at the end of 2023, according to the news release.