news release
September 12, 2022
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The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has discovered it is moving forward with a new self-contained mental health hospital in St. Paul. Public interest due to lack of mental health beds for inpatients. Despite this conclusion, MDH acknowledged serious concerns about the proposed new facility.
Fairview Health Services and Acadia Healthcare have partnered to finance and operate a new licensed facility of 144 inpatient beds on the site of Bethesda Hospital in St. Paul. Part of the new hospital is intended to replace services previously provided by Fairview Health Services at St. Joseph’s Hospital, according to the proposal.
MDH has determined that this project is in the public interest as it will provide additional inpatient psychiatric beds during the bed crisis. However, as documented in MDH’s analysis, the new independent mental health hospital will replace the comprehensive services previously provided by Fairview Health Services at his July-closed St. Joseph’s Hospital. It is not a replacement. Even after facilities are established, there remain significant inpatient care gaps that other providers must fill. For example, the new facility does not have an emergency department that accepts patients with mental health crises, does not provide full medical care, and serves only a subset of mental health patients. Additionally, the facility will operate under a staffing model that is less than national and Minnesota standards. Public comments on the proposal raised similar concerns.
“The public review of this proposal shows just how much we need more mental health beds in Minnesota,” said Minnesota Health Director Jan Malcolm. As we attempt to address the need for policy makers, medical institutions, mental health care providers, employers and insurers, and patients to work on solutions to fully meet the state’s mental health needs. We hope to highlight your needs.”
As part of the review process, MDH reached out publicly to mental health care stakeholders through presentations, letters, and a public meeting held on June 9 to collect comments and feedback. The MDH has a total of 67 written public statements from various perspectives including 4 other health systems operating in the region, 10 community/social service organizations, 27 providers, 2 unions and 24 patients and families. Your comment has been received.
- Most comments recognized the need for additional mental health beds.
- Among those supporting the proposal, commentators acknowledged Fairview Health Services as a trusted community partner and expressed their belief that the new facility would help the underserved.
- The most common concern among those who do not support the proposal is that facilities cannot serve all patients who need them, based on limited medical capacity and limited access due to the absence of an emergency department. Other concerns included questions about the quality of care provided by Acadia Healthcare nationwide. Plans to have fewer nursing staff than other comparable units in the state. To what extent the facility accepts transfers from outside of Fairview Health Services.
The main concerns highlighted in the review were that hospitals serve only a subset of the patient population based on diagnosis, potentially with low need for care, and that the proposed hospital staffing plan was designed for Minnesota That’s far less than any other inpatient mental health unit in the state. The review found that most of the increased patient numbers due to the closure of the emergency department and beds at St. Joseph’s Hospital are in surrounding hospitals, despite straining emergency rooms and inpatient mental health units. It was found to be absorbed by
A key factor in determining the public interest of this project is the Minnesota Legislature’s commitment to how the new facility will impact the economics of community care delivery and inpatient mental health services. , was the perception that we expect close and continuous scrutiny. As part of that legislation (Minnesota Legislature Act of 2022, Ordinary Congress, Chapter 99), MDH established a patient-payer pairing, transfer, and patient flow system for inpatient mental health care in the state. are instructed to monitor.
In addition to granting a conditional exception in 2022, the Minnesota Legislature has made other changes to the moratorium on hospital construction (Minnesota Code, Section 144.551). One of the key elements is to create a process for establishing additional inpatient mental health competencies without public interest screening. This process will include additional monitoring activities and reporting on the impact of expanding inpatient mental health capacity in 2027.
Materials related to the public interest review, including the initial proposal, the questions MDH submitted to Fairview Health System and Acadia, and their responses, can be accessed online at MDH Public Interest Review – Fairview Health Services and Acadia Healthcare.
-MDH-
Media inquiries:
Scott Smith
MDHCommunication
651-503-1440
scott.smith@state.mn.us
