WakeMed to provide inpatient mental health care services

[Joint news release with Alliance Health and WakeMed]

Wake County and Alliance Health are pleased to announce a new partnership with WakeMed to help reestablish operations of the 28-bed inpatient psychiatric unit at the WakeBrook Behavioral Health Facility in Raleigh.

After WakeBrook reopens, WakeMed will share the campus with Recovery Innovations (RI) who will provide three other services including:

• Crisis and assessment services
• Alcohol and drug detoxification unit
• Facility-based crisis services.
   

“WakeMed has the ability to provide higher levels of medical care at WakeBrook as a clinically appropriate alternative to local emergency departments,” said Alliance Health CEO Rob Robinson. “They will be able to leverage their medical staff to support patient care on the inpatient unit and call upon their partnership with a network of behavioral health providers to provide important post-acute community-based behavioral health and substance use disorders services and social care supports.”

WakeMed has a long history of stepping up to help meet the health care needs of this community and recently announced plans to build a 150-bed mental health hospital in Garner which will open in early 2027. WakeMed’s partnership with nationally recognized mental health care provider Sheppard Pratt will also benefit WakeBrook patients.

“We are excited by the opportunity this partnership represents for the continuum of behavioral health care in Wake County,” said Wake County Commissioner Cheryl Stallings. “WakeMed’s historical commitment to supporting some of our most vulnerable community members, engagement of community providers to support post-crisis needs and service expansion to include a new behavioral health hospital make them a unique partner for this important service.”

RI, a nationally recognized leader in delivering behavioral health services, pioneered the “living room model of crisis care,” a best practice recommendation that creates a safe and trauma-informed environment for individuals in crisis. RI expects to assume the operations of three of the four services at WakeBrook by early 2024, with WakeMed following to reinstate the inpatient psychiatric services.

While a firm timeline for opening the inpatient unit has not yet been established, WakeMed will coordinate care with Wake County and Alliance to make these important services available as quickly as reasonably possible.

“Our community benefits from collective, collaborative solutions that better support optimal wellness and whole-person health,” said Seth Brody, MD, MPH, WakeMed EVP & Chief Executive Physician. “As WakeMed aims to change the way mental health care is delivered, we are committed to working alongside Wake County, Alliance and other organizations to provide the vital services that WakeBrook patients—and every member of our community—deserve.”

While WakeBrook Services are Paused
Services are currently paused at the WakeBrook campus in Raleigh while the facility is being renovated to accommodate its new providers. Please visit the Alliance Health website for an up-to-date list of ways to reach out for help until WakeBrook reopens.

Anyone who is in crisis and needs immediate assistance can call the Alliance Health Behavioral Health Crisis Line at 919-223-4617 (open 24/7) or the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 (open 24/7).

For more information and updates related to WakeBrook, visit wake.gov/WakeBrook.