STAMFORD, Conn. — Stamford Health is expanding its behavioral health services with the opening of its first adult outpatient clinic, aimed at addressing increasing mental health and substance abuse concerns in Stamford and Darien. Located at the Tully Health Center on Strawberry Hill Court, the new clinic is designed to provide a range of mental health services to adults aged 18 and older in lower Fairfield County.
The opening of the clinic comes in response to a 2022 community needs assessment conducted by Stamford Health, which identified behavioral health — including mental health and substance use disorders — as a top priority for local residents. The clinic will offer services such as psychiatric evaluations, medication management, and both individual and group therapy.
“For far too long, patients struggling with mental illness were left to navigate the complex and often inaccessible world of outpatient mental health care on their own,” said Dr. Raviv Berlin, Chair of Psychiatry at Stamford Health. “Thanks to this new clinic, those days are over.”
Stamford Health, a nonprofit healthcare system serving lower Fairfield County, has recognized the growing mental health crisis in both Stamford and Darien, where there has been an increase in anxiety, depression, and suicide rates, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Social isolation, limited access to care, and disruptions in services during the pandemic contributed to rising behavioral health issues.
The community needs assessment revealed an uptick in emotional disturbance-related calls to emergency responders, with many residents reporting increased feelings of depression. Substance use, particularly alcohol and cannabis, also rose as individuals turned to self-treatment. School administrators noted a rise in aggressive behaviors among students, and the area experienced several deaths by suicide during the period the needs assessment was conducted.
While demand for behavioral health services has surged, the assessment also highlighted significant gaps in care, with long wait times and insufficient resources for individuals in crisis. Stamford Health’s new outpatient clinic aims to address these issues by providing timely access to behavioral health care.
The clinic is part of Stamford Health’s broader, multiyear plan to expand its services. In addition to outpatient care, the health system provides inpatient services that include access to psychiatrists, social workers, art therapists, registered nurses, and case managers. For patients requiring higher levels of care, Stamford Health refers individuals to partial hospitalization or other specialized programs.
In 2021, Stamford Health launched a pilot program to co-locate primary healthcare and behavioral health providers at clinics in Stamford and Greenwich, in partnership with Liberation Programs, Inc., a nonprofit organization focused on substance abuse prevention and treatment. The new outpatient clinic is the latest step in the organization’s expansion plans.
The clinic will operate on a referral basis, with appointments available through Stamford Health’s medical providers. The services offered will address conditions such as anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, trauma-related disorders, personality disorders, and schizophrenia.
As the clinic grows, Stamford Health plans to increase the number of clinicians and expand its services to meet rising demand. Over the next five years, the health system aims to modernize its acute psychiatric care by creating new inpatient units, a partial hospitalization program, and a specialized youth-in-crisis program. Berlin anticipates the clinic will handle approximately 30,000 behavioral health visits per year in the coming years.
“We expect to quickly outgrow our current clinic space at the Tully Health Center,” said Dr. Berlin. “Eventually, we plan to move to a new location with more offices and clinicians, and we’ll also increase our telehealth offerings to better serve patients.”
The opening of Stamford Health’s new behavioral health clinic represents a critical step in addressing the region’s mental health crisis and ensuring that residents have access to the care and support they need during challenging times.
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