Listen to this articleNORMAN — A new behavioral health hospital allows Norman Regional Health System to care for more Cleveland County residents needing inpatient mental health treatment.
Close to 15 months after NRHS announced plans to build the Behavioral Health Center at Porter Health Village, it’s now open and providing inpatient treatment to adults 18 and older.
The hospital facility is a joint venture partnership between Norman Regional Health System and Texas-based Oceans Healthcare, a growing behavioral health provider focused on healing and long-term recovery. It will continue to augment the current behavioral health offerings in Norman in the coming months with the introduction of intensive outpatient and partial hospitalization programs, according to a release.
NRHS CEO Richie Splitt said a considerable amount of thought and detail went into the planning and execution in the design and the final product.
The old inpatient unit at the Porter Avenue campus had just 20 beds. With the new 36,000-square-foot facility, Norman Regional now has 48 beds. With an increased need for mental health services statewide, Hospital Administrator Bill Southwick said the Behavioral Health Center comes online at a crucial time.
More than 53% of adults living with a mental health condition in Oklahoma went untreated last year, according to the 2023 Mental Health America report. Approximately 222,000 adults in the state also reported facing barriers when seeking the help they needed.
In addition to increased capacity, Southwick said the new hospital has an outdoor space for patients. He said it’s important to have a place where patients can get fresh air multiple times a day, or at least have the option to do so.
“I think it has to do with just health in general. We all need time to be able to get outside and breathe, to give fresh air and just enjoy the opportunity to be able to get in touch with nature a little bit as well,” Southwick said.
NRHS will soon add outpatient mental health services. Southwick said the intensive outpatient program will have groups meet three times each week for about three hours per session. Additionally, the facility will offer partial hospitalization to those who are safe to sleep at home. That program will have four to five-hour therapy in an outpatient area.
“The goal has to be to reset the bar so that patients getting care for these types of services are receiving the highest quality and safest care that can be found anywhere in the state of Oklahoma,” Southwick said.
Split called the facility and the system’s partnership with Oceans Healthcare a “tremendous achievement.”
“With expanded services, a state-of-the-art facility with room for expansion, by the way, and a dedicated team of healthcare professionals, we are precisely poised to grow to meet the growing demand of mental health care in the state,” Splitt said at a ribbon cutting event last month.
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