Oct 11, 2024 More Services for Mental Health

5 people sitting in a circle in a support group

Statewide efforts increase and enhance behavioral health care programs.

It’s a trend that predates COVID-19 but that health care providers have increasingly noted since the pandemic: There’s a growing need for mental health services.

Organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention note a steep rise in rates of depression, anxiety, loneliness and suicide. Providers also see these trends locally as they are caring for more and more patients.

“Young people have been hit especially hard,” says Frank Ghinassi, PhD, Senior Vice President of Behavioral Health Services at RWJBarnabas Health and President and Chief Executive Officer of Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care (UBHC). “The impact of this hidden health crisis is becoming clear, and it’s critical that we invest resources to address the mental health needs of our communities.”

In response, RWJBarnabas Health and UBHC together have recently established or enhanced a number of programs, initiatives and facilities throughout the state such as a new Center for Recovery and Well-Being in Plainfield; Coordinated Specialty Care/First Episode Psychosis Programs in Edison and Cherry Hill; and TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) in Piscataway. RWJBarnabas Health, together with UBHC, is a leading provider of integrated mental health and substance use treatment services, serving over half a million people each year.

Some new initiatives have benefited from recent grants that the New Jersey Department of Human Services awarded to Monmouth Medical Center (MMC) and UBHC to provide services to people in immediate need of crisis intervention and stabilization.

“The expansion of our offerings increases access to quality behavioral health care and further strengthens our services,” Ghinassi says. “These enhancements ensure that those in need receive the comprehensive support they deserve.”

Other increasingly important behavioral health programs include:

An Intensive Outpatient Program

Clara Maass Medical Center’s Behavioral Health Services introduced a new Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). The program offers services grounded in evidence-based practices and focuses on treating general mood and anxiety disorders.

Participants attend IOP sessions three days a week for an average of four to six weeks. Each week, participants receive intensive group therapy, psychoeducation,
individual and family therapy and medication management. The program is intended for patients 18 or older who are experiencing symptoms of anxiety or depression without cognitive impairment, active psychosis or active suicide risk.

Crisis Diversion Services

At MMC, a Child and Adolescent Crisis Diversion Program focuses on meeting the emotional, behavioral and psychiatric needs of children and adolescents from ages 5 to 17, along with the needs of their families.

The program provides rapid access to outpatient mental health services in a safe, compassionate and trauma-sensitive environment that promises to both decrease the need for higher-level care and promote community safety.

A multidisciplinary team of highly qualified, caring mental health professionals, including advanced practice nurses, licensed clinicians, case managers and support staff, offer specialized experience working with children and families. The team collaboratively strives to help youth acquire skills, strategies and techniques for managing symptoms or concerns in healthy and sustainable ways.

Services include biopsychosocial assessments, medication management, psychotherapy, crisis counseling, family and group therapy, coordination of care and referrals for ongoing services.

A Treatment Center and Retreat

UBHC recently unveiled New Jersey’s first youth mental health facility backed by a university or college. Called the Brandt Behavioral Health Treatment Center and Retreat, it combines behavioral health care with evidence-based scholarly research, strengthens the partnership between health care professionals and the communities they serve and helps train the next generation of providers.

Two buildings—the Blau Wellness Center and the Retreat—include rooms for art and music therapy along with a mind-body studio that accommodates dance and yoga therapies. The Retreat includes private rooms for up to 16 guests and a fitness center. Situated near the university’s agricultural research facility, the pastoral site borders horse pastures of the Rutgers Equine Research Facility.

Enhanced Emergency Care

Jersey City Medical Center recently expanded its psychiatric emergency services, growing from six to eight adult rooms and adding two pediatric rooms. Rooms are specifically designed for calm and relaxation, with soothing colors, safe furniture and televisions in each room.

An off-unit family consultation room provides a dedicated space for family members to work with the clinical team by, for example, providing information to medical and mental health clinicians.

A Powerful Tool

Traditionally considered a last-resort treatment, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is increasingly seen as one of the most powerful tools available to treat depression, especially when standard methods prove insufficient.

The treatment is available at Trinitas Regional Medical Center, building on an ECT program that began in 2020 at Clara Maass Medical Center and RWJBarnabas Health Medical Group. Though its use is sometimes constrained by misconceptions, ECT is safe and effective as both an acute and maintenance treatment for depression and certain other neuropsychiatric disorders. It can be especially beneficial for behavioral health patients who:

  • Have depression that hasn’t been relieved by multiple medication trials or who haven’t tolerated medication
  • Responded well to ECT in the past
  • Are at risk for suicide
  • Are pregnant or postpartum and want to avoid antidepressants
  • Are older and don’t respond well to medications or have become more sensitive to side effects
  • Need a rapid, definitive response to treatment

Common Concerns

Behavioral health care services treat a wide range of issues, including:

Learn more about behavioral health services at RWJBarnabas Health.

Healthy Together Fall 2024View full issues of Healthy Together magazine by New Jersey region:
Northeast, serving the community of Jersey City Medical Center in Jersey City
Northwest, serving the communities of Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville, Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in Rahway, and Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth
Central, serving the communities of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in Hamilton, New Brunswick and Somerset
South, serving the communities of Community Medical Center in Toms River, Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, and Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus in Lakewood