The Behavioral Health Commission met on July 9 at Central State Hospital and received briefings from Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services Commissioner Nelson Smith, Central State Hospital CEO Brandi Justice, and Chinh Vu, Director of the Office of Construction Management for Special Projects at the Department of General Services. Dr. Justice discussed the hospital’s history and its current role, and Mr. Vu led a presentation from DGS staff and the project architects on plans for a new Central State Hospital facility, which is designed to provide a more therapeutic environment and enhance safety for patients and staff. Under DGS’s current timeline, patients and staff are scheduled to move into the new facility in early 2027.
Commissioner Smith updated members on key components of the Administration’s Right Help, Right Now initiative. Improvements to the crisis system are in process, but challenges remain in the state hospitals. Commissioner Smith explained that the state has exceeded a national standard that would call for 64 mobile crisis teams; Virginia now has 98 teams, and is working towards a goal of 140 teams statewide. The state is also working toward meeting a national standard for crisis stabilization units and crisis receiving centers. Although state hospitals have experienced a drop in overall civil Temporary Detention Order admissions in the last two fiscal years, forensic admissions have increased significantly in the last ten years, a situation that continues to stress state hospital capacity, particularly in certain hospitals. Individuals admitted for restoration of competency to stand trial often have lengthy stays in state hospitals (the average length of stay for these patients is 106 days). DBHDS is taking several approaches to address this “forensification” of the state hospital system, including establishing a pilot unit to provide restoration services at a jail and examining current hospital processes, to include timeliness of forensic evaluations and forensic discharge protocols.
Commissioner Smith also reported on several other agency initiatives, including the establishment of a performance dashboard for Community Services Boards, and the creation of the Adult Psychiatric Access Line (APAL). This program is modeled on the Virginia Mental Health Access Program, which helps children’s primary care providers to support patients’ behavioral health care needs by offering education to providers, telephone consultations with specialists, and care navigation assistance. The APAL program will provide similar assistance to primary care providers and emergency clinicians in serving adults.
The Commission’s next meeting is scheduled for September 10.
VACo Contact: Katie Boyle