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The Hamilton County Council and Hamilton County Commissioners recently approved $3.5 million for the creation of a behavioral health urgent care center in Noblesville focused on helping people experiencing mental health, substance abuse and psychiatric crisis.
The new center, to be named the Rely Center, will move into a refurbished portion of the Aspire Indiana Health’s facility on Cumberland Road and is expected to open this fall.
Aspire Indiana Health is a nonprofit community health system that offers primary medical care, behavioral health care and other services.
The Rely Center will be open to anyone in need with no appointment or referral required. According to Aspire, which will staff the new center, people are encouraged to seek help before reaching a breaking point—much like they would visit an emergency room for a physical health crisis.
The center will be a 23-hour crisis center, meaning patients can stay up to about a day for treatment, observation and stabilization. It will be staffed by a multidisciplinary team of behavioral health and medical professionals who can provide triage, assessment, rapid stabilization, symptom reduction, and observation, according to a news release.
One of the goals of the new center is to provide care for Hamilton County residents a little closer to home, according to the release. Currently, residents experiencing mental health crises are often transported to facilities such as Community North Hospital in Marion County.
“This center has been a long time coming,” Hamilton County Council member and retired judge Steve Nation said in a written statement. “Too many individuals cycling through our courts and jails are there not because they are criminals, but because they are in crisis.”
Nation said people coming to the Rely Center will receive a detailed evaluation including medical, mental health and potential substance-abuse issues to help ensure they get proper follow up treatment. For example, the effects of an undiagnosed medical issue could contribute to depression.
Nation, who served as a judge for 24 years with the Hamilton County Superior Court, said the center provides a path focused on treatment rather than incarceration.
“I saw the whole gamut of individual coming through. It was always (the case where) I wished I could have seen them a few years before they were in my court,” Nation told IBJ.
The news release said the Rely Center also is expected to reduce overall response times for law enforcement and emergency personnel. The center will also connect individuals with housing, employment and other essential supports.
“This facility will make a major difference for our local hospitals and emergency departments,” Riverview Health CEO David Hyatt said in a written statement. “Right now, ERs are often the default destination for people in crisis, which is not always the best setting for their needs. The Rely Center will provide targeted, expert care and alleviate pressure on emergency services.”
The Rely Center is part of a strategic partnership between Riverview Health, the Hamilton County Health Department, the Hamilton County Council on Alcohol & Other Drugs, MindWell Solutions and Aspire Indiana Health.
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This will change lives well done to everyone involved
Fantastic news, as noted, this is long overdue. I hope that the center will find good staff that will make a great impact on our healthcare and legal systems dealing with mental health issues. Well done and a great step in the right direction!
Congratulations to Aspire on this expansion. Behavioral health urgent care is a huge need in Central Indiana!